The Impact Informer 06
Sixth Edition
A few words from our CEO, Caroline Ridley.
As the school holidays come to an end, I hope that for those this affects the holidays have been enjoyable and the return has been smooth.
As ever, little has stood still at Impact despite the holiday season, we have recruited to our new Workability Brighton and Hove service which is now receiving referrals, and have welcomed Penny Telford to the role of Head of Business Development. Penny is already busy working with us on the Ageing Well tender alongside updating our websites, building links with businesses and developing our training service.
We held a hugely enjoyable and productive staff conference just before the holidays with over 70 of our staff from across the organisation, plus trustees, engaged in conversations which will inform our work on this year’s topics including embedding our values into our work, staff wellbeing and cyber-security.
The results of our staff survey which we carry out live at our conference had extremely positive results with only 1% saying they did not enjoy their job and only 5% disagreeing with the statement that Impact live by our values.
We are continuing to update policies, and through this have signed up to the ACEVO Climate and Leadership principles. We have also revised our statement on Modern Slavery to formalise our commitment to tackling this growing issue.
We are looking forward to welcoming people aged 50+ from across the Ageing Well Partnership along with representatives from BHCC and NHS to the Theatre Royal Brighton for the launch of the Ageing Well Festival later this week, and the start of two weeks of events activities and celebrations. www.ageingwellfestival.org
I hope you enjoy reading the updates below, as always there are amazing stories about how our work changes people’s lives through the skills and dedication of each of our staff team.
Children, Young People & Families Round-Up
Head of CYPF – Jennifer Tulloch
Safety Net
- The first tennis block of the year with Hove Park Tennis Club is now complete. The children really enjoyed trying out a new sport. The next block of tennis will run mid-September until October half term.
- We delivered a successful Holiday Activities and Food programme over the summer holidays. Workshops included inviting along Street Funk, CIC Basketball and The RepTylers.
Health & Wellbeing School Nurse Project
- Our Health and Wellbeing Youth Workers have had a busy summer supporting vulnerable young people experiencing very high levels of social anxiety.
- One young person told us the activities and support from the youth worker “helped me build confidence and be able to talk to new people”
- A parent told us The Young People’s Centre is the “only place she can escape and feel safe and get away from it all”.
E-motion
- At E-motion we have been supporting a number of teenagers over the summer holidays. We have noticed the need for counselling increases towards the end of August with the start the start of a new term and for many the start of a new place of learning.
- We are still seeing a significant number of teenagers that are referring into E-motion struggling with suicidal thoughts and self harm. Fortunately, the E-motion counsellors are well skilled in giving support to these often distressing thoughts.
Activity Project
- The team developed and delivered an activity-filled summer programme for our young people over the break which included table tennis, a lovely nature walk in Stanmer Park and racquetball.
The Wild Mind Project
- The Wild Mind Project is well under way and is providing a calm and nurturing space for children and young people (ages 11-25) to take part in creative and nature-based activities at Stanmer Park.
Youth Drop-in
- Our young people have enjoyed getting stuck into a mixture of cooking activities along with games, building friendships and sharing their experiences in a safe space. They have also been making the most out of our freshly revamped outdoor area, with thanks to B&Q, which provides a relaxed space to hang out in.
Youth Champions Programme
- Our Youth Champions have been developing personal goals, along with reviewing the drop-in sessions and developing new ideas. In our next meeting we are looking forward to exploring the role of youth champions, so that we can begin to grow and strengthen participation at Impact.
Adults & Older People Round-Up
Head of Adults & Older People – Maxine Thomas
AGEING WELL SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT
- Last quarter the team received 85% more enquiries than at the same time last year. Bookings for the Ageing Well Festival are now open and within minutes some events were already sold out.
ageing well hop50+
- On Bank Holiday Monday the Hop team took part in a Fundraising Day at Hove Bowling Club, and with a lovely sunny day the team rattled their buckets and offered entertainment and look to have raised over £9,000.
advocacy
- Our Oliver McGowan training work in Hampshire is being extended to include in-person training and we look forward to delivering this important work.
Food Access Service
- Brighton and Hove Food Partnership stopped taking Emergency Food access calls in May, as a consequence all calls are now coming through to our service. So far this year we have spoken to more than double the number of people at the same time last year.
Workability
- We have established a new Workability service in Brighton and Hove and the referrals have started to flow in.
housing ROUND-UP
HEAD OF housing – stevie graves
Stopover
- We are delighted to announce we have opened our 11th Stopover house which is situated in Worthing. This will be our fifth private sector landlord partner to date. It is an exciting time in West Sussex expanding the number of houses, and the team, to meet the need of homeless young women across the county.
- New windows are currently being installed at Stopover 5. This will make a considerable improvement to the property.
- A number of residents are returning to college after the summer holiday studying a variety of courses including Flight Attendant, Childcare and Health and Social Care. It’s great that they have a focus for their day and aspirations for the future.
Home Safety
- Home Safety continues to build on the prevention of accidents work. We are delighted that funding has been secured for a further three years.
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
