fourth Edition

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Impact Informer. As always, our teams have been busy fulfilling our purpose of bringing a voice, hope and change to thousands of people of all ages across Sussex.

There is no doubt that we are in tough and uncertain financial times. Here at Impact Initiatives we are navigating this through building on our strong track record and reputation for partnership, working with voluntary, business, and statutory sector colleagues and supporters. We are considering innovation in all that we do and ensuring we are making best use of and pooling resources wherever possible.

Work which highlights our partnerships includes the recently delivered Impact Safety Net workshops for Safety in Action Week which is a joint campaign with East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service reaching over 1,000 primary school children. We also had the pleasure of the High Sherrif coming along and showing his support.

At the other end of the age range, as Lead for Ageing Well across Brighton and Hove we held a celebration of ‘See and be Seen’ as part of the first Centre for Ageing Better’s Challenging Ageism Campaign. A group of over 100 people aged 50+ had great fun on the i360 followed by morning coffee at the DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole, all filmed and highlighted on the BBC News.

You can find out more detail on these events and more below.

Children, Young People & Families Round-Up

Head of CYPF – Jennifer Tulloch

Impact Safety Net

Our online safety workshops are making waves with a theme of ‘Choices and Responsibility.’ With topics covering everything from gaming to scams, we’re empowering over 1,000 children across Brighton and Hove to navigate the digital world safely. We are consulting with the children, to help shape our future workshops, ensuring they’re tailored to their concerns.
A helpful Online Safety information sheet will be sent to all participating schools throughout Brighton and Hove, which will be packed with tips for parents and carers.

Impact WASP – Whitehawk After School Project

Our Winter HAF program was a great success, offering local families food, fun, and festive activities. We’re now gearing up for an even bigger summer HAF scheme which will run over the summer holidays.
Thanks to funding from Active Sussex, we’re getting ready to offer children the chance to participate in basketball coaching this term.

Youth Champions Program

Our Youth Champions group is fast developing. This is a new program which is based around volunteers. It’s a program designed by young people, for young people. Their input ranges from assisting with our ‘Drop In’ sessions to making their voices heard at the Youthwise ‘Make Your Mark’ event. They’re leading the charge for change helping the health and wellbeing of the young people who come in to the Young People’s Centre.
‘Make your Mark’ is an important way for young people to have a voice and be heard by policy makers across the city and our Youth Champions highlighted some of the major issues concerning young people including: Health and Wellbeing, and Education and Learning.
Our Youth Champions group is not just about voicing concerns; it’s about empowering young people to shape our organisation and community.

Adults & Older People Round-Up

Head of Adults & Older People – Maxine Thomas

AGEING WELL

Our Single Point of Contact continues to be a hive of activity, and we will be working towards increasing the level of support available for people needing quality information and advice, so that the Ageing Well partnership can offer even more support to people struggling with understanding which benefits they may be entitled to.
The Hop 50+ has been bustling with visitors, even catching the eye of primetime TV on BBC Morning Live. With enquiries pouring in from across the nation asking where their nearest Hop is, it’s clear the word is out about our fantastic service.
We’ve been hosting some exciting events too. The first was a grand trip up the i360 followed by tea and refreshments for 100 older people to celebrate the Centre for Ageing Better’s first national ageism awareness action day.
Coming soon, please mark your calendars for our upcoming conference in June, The Age of Engagement on Thursday 13th June. As well as the highly anticipated Ageing Well Festival on Friday 27 September to Friday 11 October. This year’s theme, ‘Places to go, People to see, and Things to do’, promises something for everyone.

advocacy AND ASPIE TRAINERS

Advocacy is absolutely delighted to have secured new funding from the Henry Smith Charity, for a specialised service in West Sussex, ensuring support for those who need it most over the next three years.
The Oliver McGowen team are doing a great job, with 40 training sessions completed at the end of March, spreading awareness and understanding far and wide.
BAM (Brighton Autism Movement) is making waves with 30 members and counting, providing a much-needed space for self-advocacy in Brighton.

Impact Workability

Our Workability team has helped almost 67 individuals achieve their employment dreams this year alone and is also forging new connections with Young Carers by attending groups in West Sussex to talk about all things work related.

housing ROUND-UP

HEAD OF housing – stevie graves

Stopover

We’re thrilled to announce that our recommissioning bid for Stopover 1 and 2 was successful, securing continued support for the only female-only young person’s accommodation project in Brighton and Hove. We’re all set to make a lasting impact.
More exciting news. We’re working with a new landlord to establish another accommodation project in West Sussex which will be our 11th Stopover house.
Our residents’ sessions are back in full swing, thanks to our dedicated volunteers. From healthy eating workshops to arts and crafts, to celebrating International Women’s Day, we’ve got something for everyone. These sessions are provided by our fantastic volunteers from Active Student at Brighton University, who bring energy and enthusiasm to every session.

Home Safety

Home Safety is on the rise, with more and more people seeking our services for safety equipment at home. This service originally sat with Safety Net before our successful merge.

fundraising

On February 15th, we joined forces with three other Mayor’s Charities to help host the spectacular Wave of Love event at Brighton Pier. The evening was a great success, featuring a delightful drinks reception, mouthwatering food, and a dazzling lineup of entertainment. The event raised over £7000, thanks to the generosity and support of our amazing community. We really enjoyed collaborating with Together Co who took the lead, RSPCA Brighton and RISE.
If you haven’t already, please remember to support the YPC Youth Champions Project when you shop at the Co-op, and select them as your chosen charity as a Co-op member. For every £1 spent you’ll earn 2p for yourself and 2p for your chosen local community project. If you would like to become a Co-op member you can sign up here.

Dates for your Diary

Ageing Well Conference – Age of Engagement on Thursday 13 June.
Ageing Well Festival on Friday 27 September through to Friday 11 October.

Training Dates

Introduction to Safeguarding and Child Protection Training live via Zoom on Monday 13 May 2024, 9.30am-1pm.
Introduction to Safeguarding Adults at Risk live via Zoom on Thursday 16 May, 10am-1pm.
Safeguarding Lead live via Zoom Wednesday 22 May, 10am-4pm

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Thank you for your interest in Impact Initiatives. If you would like to give any feedback please contact our Communications & Marketing Officer Katharine.Grummett@impact-initiatives.org.uk

The Impact Informer 04