HEADLINES
News and updates from our programmes and services
WELCOME
A note from our CEO
Welcome to the latest edition of our Headlines newsletter with news and updates from across our programmes and services. It has been a very busy few months at Community First, notably due to our Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Awards Celebration which took place at Devizes Town Hall on 12th October. This was the first face-to-face AGM we have held since 2019 and it was a pleasure to see so many people in attendance to celebrate our work and congratulate our award winners for 2022.
For a complete list of award winners and photographs, please see our blog post: Community First AGM & Awards Celebration 2022.
At the AGM we shared our Annual Review & Celebration publication which is now available to view and download on our website. We were also pleased to showcase our latest celebration video with highlights from our work over the last few months. The full video is available below:
As ever, we are grateful to our funders, donors, supporters and members for their generous support of our charity and our work with local communities in Wiltshire and Swindon. If you are not already a member, please consider joining us.
Destination Adventure: Youth Action Wiltshire Minibus Appeal
Destination Adventure is a new appeal from Community First which aims to raise vital funds towards the cost of a new minibus for our multi award-winning Youth Action Wiltshire (YAW) service. For Youth Action Wiltshire a minibus is more than just a set of wheels, it’s the vehicle that helps drive adventure, opportunity and friendship for young carers and young people facing challenges in their lives.
Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing information about the appeal and how you can help us raise £30,000 towards the cost of a replacement minibus for Youth Action Wiltshire.
Community First Trustee Victoria and team member Jane recently spent some time out and about locally chatting to businesses to get the (wagon) wheels rolling on our appeal. If you are a local business, organisation or entrepreneur who would like to find out now you can help support young carers and young people facing challenges in their lives, please get in touch with us to find out more: fundraising@youthactionwiltshire.org
For more information or to make a donation, you can also visit our Destination Adventure appeal page.
Follow us on Instagram!
Community First is now on Instagram. Please follow us at: @communityfirstwiltshire – we look forward to connecting with you.
Quick Links
Introduction:
A note from our CEO
Celebration Video
Destination Adventure: YAW Minibus Appeal
Follow us on Instagram
Youth Action Wiltshire
YAW Christmas Cards
Carols by Candlelight – Malmesbury Abbey
Beaufort Christmas Fair
Connecting Communities
Transport Groups Volunteer Recruitment
Door-knocking with Amesbury Link
Furlong Close – Community Engagement Project
Get Out Get Active
Village Halls Week 2023
MiDAS – Minibus Driver Awareness Training
Landfill Communities Fund Grants
Building Bridges Programme
Can we save you money on your village hall or local council insurance?
We offer low-cost, flexible insurance for village halls, community buildings, local councils and playing fields. The scheme is underwritten by Zurich, a leading provider of insurance. Contact:
communityinsurance@communityfirst.org.uk or call 01380 732 809
To order your Christmas cards please email: fundraising@youthactionwiltshire.org
Carols by Candlelight – Malmesbury Abbey
Youth Action Wiltshire will be hosting the popular Carols by Candlelight service at Malmesbury Abbey on Friday 9th December 2022. The event will feature readings, carols and a performance by young carers. Adults tickets cost £20 each, with child tickets priced at £10 each, proceeds from the event will go to Youth Action Wiltshire.
For more information on how to order tickets, please see the ticket application form, completed form should be returned to: ginniekeen@gmail.com
Beaufort Christmas Fair
Youth Action Wiltshire will be in attendance at the Beaufort Christmas Fair. The fair will take place on Tuesday 22nd November 2022 at Newton Dairy Farm, Long Newton. If you are looking to do some Christmas shopping or have a festive day out, please do go along and enjoy the fair. Youth Action Wiltshire will have a stall with a tombola, all funds raised will go to Youth Action Wiltshire.
For more information about Beaufort Christmas Fair, please visit the website.
CONNECTING COMMUNITIES
Transport Groups Volunteer Recruitment
Community First recently launched a new campaign with the aim of recruiting new volunteers for local Link Schemes and Community Minibus Groups. Volunteer transport groups offer a vital service for people with limited access to public or private transport, by offering door to door or group transport to local shops, medical appointments and social events such as lunch clubs. The service offered by local transport groups is more than just going from A to B, it helps people stay independent for longer and reduce isolation for those would otherwise struggle to get out and about.
Working with the Community Transport Association (CTA), our campaign reached over 3,000 people with information about volunteering. We are grateful to the various community groups, organisations, churches and faith groups who offered support to help us spread the word in their towns and villages.
For more information about volunteering with your local Link Scheme or Community Minibus Group, please visit our campaign information page or contact linkproject@communityfirst.org.uk
Our Community Organising team recently offered outreach and engagement support to Amesbury Link. The team walked over 7 miles, distributed 473 leaflets and gained 12 new potential volunteers to be followed up by the Link Scheme Recruiter for Amesbury Link. All of this was achieved through door-knocking in Amesbury, speaking to local people about the Link Scheme and opportunities to get involved as a volunteer.
What is Door-Knocking?
Door-knocking is a proactive form of community engagement which aims to reach into the heart of a community or place and speak to people face to face. Door-knocking is an extremely effective way to engage with harder to reach people and has a proven track-record for reducing isolation, bringing people together and making communities stronger and more resilient. Trained Community Organisers visit individual houses, knock on every door and speak to local people about services, projects, initiatives, ideas, opportunities or events which can help to improve their lives and tackle issues which are important to them.
For more information about how we can help you reach out and connect with local communities through door-knocking or other community engagement initiatives, please see our information leaflet or contact Harry Tipple: htipple@communityfirst.org.uk
We had 500 A5 leaflets based upon the template provided by Community First to distribute.
As we began our door knocking (a very new experience to me personally) I realise that the most important thing to get right was the opening conversation. The recipient of the door knock generally has the “oh no”, not another sale person barrier up and is already primed to say, “no thanks” and close the door. To counter this it is important to be able gain their trust and attention.
My method was to have my Link Scheme ID badge clearly visible, with the A5 leaflet in hand facing them, with the words “Volunteers Required” clearly visible to them.
I would then open the conversation with “Hello and good morning/afternoon,” followed by “I am from Amesbury Link, which is a local community voluntary service to the elderly and people who have transport difficulties, with their transportation to and from the hospital, doctors, dentist appointment. We are in need of more volunteer drivers to allows us to continue providing this service”
Once you have engaged the recipient, you can expand on the conversation with these words: “The voluntary driver, while using their personal vehicle will be paid a generous mileage allowance, the hours you volunteer for are entirely up to you the volunteer, ideally they will be a 3-hour block within a single day/s, which will generally cover most of the voluntary tasks.” If the recipient expresses an interest; you then ask them for their contact details so that the recruiter can contact them to begin the formal recruitment process for our scheme.
The side benefits of this door knocking recruitment system is that you get to meet more people withing the local community, who may be unaware of the service the scheme provides and that they may benefit from the use of the voluntary service.
The door knocking recruitment process seems to me to be a clear winner in terms of results, however, as the younger tech savvy generation get older, I would recommend that each scheme should have its own web page and Facebook account, in addition adverts placed in the local paper are also useful in maintaining public awareness of the Link Scheme.
I would like to express my most sincere thank you to Samantha, Katrina and the Community First organisation for their assistance with the recruitment campaign, which I have deem to be very successful.”
Following a successful campaign led by the Families and Friends of Furlong Close and local residents in Rowde, the future of a former residential care home for disabled adults has been secured. Furlong Close is now being repurposed to supported living for 30 residents with special needs who will be housed within the existing residential bungalows. The site is owned by Specialised Supported Housing and operated by Inclusion and Agincare. This change has meant that some of the land and buildings including a communal hall, office space, workshops, commercial kitchen and horticultural space, are now vacant.
Community First was approached by the Families and Friends of Furlong Close to help get some ideas on how the site can be utilised so that the underused or vacant facilities can be used for the benefit of the residents and the wider community.
Our Community Organising team will be carrying out direct engagement in November and December through door-knocking and listening days. This is a fantastic project and we are delighted to have the opportunity to support the residents of Furlong Close, Rowde villagers, stakeholders, staff and key partners to find out their ideas and hopes for the future use of the Furlong Close site.
Get Out Get Active
The Get Out Get Active GOGA programme was launched in 2016, with the aim of bring disabled and non-disabled people together to be active. Community First is supporting the delivery of the project with Wiltshire and Swindon Sport (WASP), Wiltshire CIL, Age UK Wiltshire and Wiltshire Council. GOGA aims to engage the least active communities in fun, inclusive ways. Now it is set to continue until at least 2023.
GOGA is about more than being active, it strengthens community spirit, boosts confidence and improves mental health. Success is achieved through tapping into people’s real-life motivations to be physically active. GOGA also increases demand for activities and helps make them more accessible. Activities may be provided by local authorities, sports clubs or the voluntary sector.
GOGA Training
Community First will be supporting GOGA this Autumn with community engagement and listening in Amesbury, Ludgershall and Tidworth. Our Community Organisers Katrina and Sam will be out and about to hear your views and stories. On Tuesday 16th November 2022 Katrina and Sam will also offer a free Community Organising training session in Amesbury.
Please contact Helen for more information: hakiyama@communityfirst.org.uk
Village Halls Week is an annual event organised by ACRE in celebration of the 10,000+ village halls and community buildings in England. Village Halls Week 2023 will take place between 23rd-29th January and will celebrate how village halls provide warm, welcoming and inclusive spaces for all.
Halls and buildings are encouraged to get involved in Village Halls Week 2023 by holding a coffee morning, afternoon tea or soup and roll lunch as a fundraiser or get together. It is hoped that these events will help to showcase events and activities in village halls and community buildings and explain how trustees are working to make their hall warm, welcoming and inclusive. This is especially important as vulnerable members of our communities feel the impact of the current energy crisis.
We hope to share more news about Village Halls Week very soon with more information about how you can help us support and celebrate these important community spaces. If you are a village hall or community building and you are not already a member of Wiltshire Village Halls Association, please do consider becoming a member for access to advice, support, guidance and a profile for your hall on our village hall directory website.
The MiDAS training course includes a session on how to operate a minibus safely. This is followed by a 30-minute multiple choice assessment with 20 questions. Trainees will need to answer 16 questions correctly to pass the theory test. Finally, there will be a practical test which incorporates a driving skills training session and an assessment drive which will last just over an hour, with the assessment taking 30 minutes. Upon completion of the theory and practical test, trainees will receive a certificate which is valid for 4 years.
%
of training attendees rated Community First MiDAS training as 'Excellent' in the last 12 months
MiDAS training pricing is based on a minimum group size of 3 drivers per booking and starts at £105.00 per person. For more information or to reserve a training slot, please contact Martin Carter: mcarter@communityfirst.org.uk
In early September, Faringdon Rugby Club secured a £10,000 grants from The Hills Group through the Landfill Communities Fund.
The grant helped to fund a perimeter fence to keep the pitch in good condition. Community First Grants Manager Mary Hardwidge went along to Faringdon Rugby Club on 24th September 2022 to meet some of the people involved in running the club, as well as handing Scott and Chuck (pictured) a plaque which will be displayed at the Rugby Club in acknowledgement of the grant.
Scott said: “Unsafe and dangerous areas of the site can be reclaimed for use giving new and existing teams a larger training area and allowing more players to use the facility, thus increasing club membership.”
The current funding for the Building Bridges Programme from The National Lottery Community Fund and the European Social Fund will come to an end in 2023. As the managing partner for the programme, Community First is working with partners, stakeholders and others to explore opportunities for continuation funding to secure the future delivery of the programme.
The Building Bridges Programme has supported 1,824 participants since launch in late 2016 and delivered £10.9m in economic benefit for Swindon and Wiltshire. The programme which helps people overcome their barriers to employment and education, has supported 1,824 participants to date, with 59% of participants achieving a positive outcome. The programme specifically targets people who are unemployed or economically inactive and who are facing multiple, complex challenges and barriers in their lives.
%
of participants gained new skills and qualifications
%
took part in volunteering
%
accessed debt or financial advice
%
took part in work experience
Supporting the hardest to reach
The Building Bridges Programme has a proven track-record in supporting the hardest to reach groups in Swindon and Wiltshire. Some of the key demographic statistics for programme participants are included below:
19% live in areas of multiple deprivation
59% are disabled or have long-term health issues
84% are classed as being disadvantaged
45% lack basic English and Maths skills
24% are long-term unemployed
6% are homeless
47% live in jobless households
Progress for Specific Demographic Groups
In addition to supporting those who are hardest to reach, the programme has also achieved outstanding results for specific harder to reach groups:
Disadvantaged participants (84%)
39% achieved a positive outcome
Participants who are ex-offenders (10%)
38% achieved a positive outcome
Participants who are disabled/have a long-term health issue (59%)
39% achieved a positive outcome
Homeless participants (5%)
42% achieved a positive outcome
Feedback from Participants
“I wouldn’t be where I am now without the support of Building Bridges.”
“It has 100% changed my life – I recommend it to anyone. It has boosted my self-confidence more than I thought possible.”
“The programme really helped me take the next step to get back into work.”
“It is making me feel more positive, knowing that help and support is out there.”
Community Insurance
Can we save you money on your village hall or local council insurance? We offer low-cost, flexible insurance for village halls, community buildings, local councils and playing fields. The scheme is underwritten by Zurich, a leading provider of insurance. Contact:
communityinsurance@communityfirst.org.uk or call 01380 732 809