Coventry & Warwickshire Annual Report 2013
We strive We build We believe
that young women and men have an important role to play in building a better world and that starts when they have a sense of belonging and have ways to make positive contributions.
meaningful relationships with young people and so enable them to discover their potential. This means that we run projects that are specifically designed with young people for young people as well as working with communities to help build places where young people can Belong, Contribute and Thrive.
To improve the integration of socially excluded young people To raise the skill, self confidence and self esteem levels of young people To develop sustainable communities To increase the involvement of young people
Welcome
to other YMCAs either regionally, nationally or internationally, there are opportunities for young people to be involved in the movement at each of these levels and to create their own experiences.
individual, self-governing charity that affiliates to YMCA England. Through this affiliation, YMCAs become part of the worldwide movement which is called the World Alliance of YMCAs.
In the West Midlands we have created a Regional Forum that is led and shaped by young people. All sports activities and festivals are created, In the UK there are 121 planned and delivered by YMCA’s, each YMCA is an young people. For example; individual, self-governing young people have the charity that affiliates to opportunity to develop YMCA England. Through their voice , create new this affiliation, YMCAs freindships and discover become part of the world- their leadership skills. wide movement which is called the World Alliance The YMCA is a worldof YMCAs. wide Christian voluntary Each YMCA in the movement for women and movement is connected men with special emphasis on and the genuine involvement of young people. The YMCA has a presence in 119 countries across the world and there are approximately 11,000 YMCAs.
Each YMCA in the movement is connected to other YMCAs either regionally, nationally or internationally, there are opportunities for young people to be involved in the movement at each of these levels and to create their own experiences.
The YMCA is a worldwide Christian voluntary movement for women and men FILLERwith special emphasis on and the genuine involvement of young people. The YMCA has a presence in 119 countries across the world and there are approximately 11,000 YMCAs.
In the UK there are 121 YMCA’s, each YMCA is an
The YMCA Expierience The YMCA is a worldwide Christian voluntary movement for women and men with special emphasis on the genuine involvement of young people. The YMCA has a presence in 119 countries across the world and there are approximately 11,000 local YMCAs. In the UK there are 121 YMCAs. Each YMCA is an individual, self-governing charity that affiliates to YMCA England. Through this affiliation, YMCAs
become part of the worldwide YMCA Movement which is called the World Alliance of YMCAs. Each YMCA in the Movement is connected to other YMCAs either regionally, nationally or internationally, there are opportunities for young people to be involved in the Movement at each of these levels and to create their own experiences. In the West Midlands we have created a Regional Forum that is led and shaped by young people. All sports activities and festivals are created, planned and delivered by young people. For example young people have the opportunity to develop their voice , create new friendships and discover their leadership skills.
Landlord, and a Company Limited by Guarantee. Our work is with young people, developing projects that are relevant and sustainable so that the wider community as well as young people themselves can be supported. We support and develop vulnerable young women and men that have become homeless through our housing projects. We offer support by providing housing in one of our 66 flats and bedsits that are located in Coventry and Rugby .
activities at the weekly Youth Club sessions. We offer a safe place for young people to talk with our Youth Work team We invest time and develop and spend time with their friends. the young people living with us by helping them During 2012 we launched to create a happy home our schoolswork project environment by offering and started delivering personal development workshop style programmes workshops in life skills, in schools to support and About Coventry and budgeting, basic cooking Warwickshire YMCA skills and job search skills. develop young women and men with the skills that will enable them to Belong Coventry and Warwickshire In our youth and Contribute and Thrive YMCA has been working community projects we within their communities. in the area since 1888/89. create an environment We are a Registered where young women and Charity, a Registered Social men can participate in
In early 2013 the Coventry Crusaders Foundation merged with ourselves and we are now able to develop Multi-Sports, Health and Fitness projects. Through this team we promote the importance of adopting Healthy Lifestyles through workshops blended with talks and sports such as basketball and handball. We also work in the community to raise awareness about disability and equal opportunities through Coventry Wheelchair Basketball Academy who are also now a part of the YMCAs’s work in the area.
Improving the integration of socially excluded young people
Our housing projects are well established within the communities where they are based in Holbrooks, Radford, Stoke and Wood End in Coventry and Benn in Rugby. We aim to tackle homelessness by providing a safe, secure and supportive accommodation to young women and men regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or disability for a period of up to eighteen months.
within their communities. We strive to ensure that we continue to improve the quality of the support that we offer to the young people that live with us. Between 1st April 2012 and 31st March 2013 we housed 134 young people of these 64 have moved on.
During 2011 we introduced a minimum standard that all of our staff should be qualified with Level 2 in Youth Work. This is to ensure we can achieve a consistent level of support that is centred around the needs of young people and We develop and deliver relevant programmes and a wide range of support work styles are adopted so services in group that our young people can workshops and on a one maintain their tenancies to one basis to help our and accommodation. We young people increase their skills and confidence also actively engage young people in the recruitment in their ability to manage their future homes and lead process of new staff that join our support teams. to settled and happy lives
Causes of Homelessness 70 % Eviction 10% Housing Overcrowding 5% Abuse or Domestic Violence 5% Relationship Breakdown In order to effectively cope with the demands on our services, partnership working is essential to our success. Our partners support us to deliver workshops relating to drug and alcohol use, sexual health awareness and job search skills. Our project
youth workers liaise closely with all local housing providers including other Social Housing Landlords in order to identify move on accommodation for the young people who are ready for their own tenancies.
Employment Status of Residents Govt. training New deal Benefit Job Seekers Allowance Not Seeking Work Full Time Student Working Full Time Working Part Time Lee’s Story Lee has been living at the Daimler Green project for 18 Months, Lee came to the YMCA after his mother passed away and he left home at 15 years old. Lee’s life started spiralling out of control because most of his family have issues with drugs. Prior to moving into Daimler Green Lee slept in a tent in Spencer Park & stayed with various friends sofa surfing, Lee also stayed for a short time with his disabled grandmother
but unfortunately this did not work out. Lee began hanging around with wrong crowd he soon started drinking & taking drugs. Lee drank so much that at times he passed out or fell downstairs, he had many traumatic years. After working with the YMCA support team and participating in the workshops and activities Lee decided that his life had to change. Lee informed YMCA staff that he has filled in over 100 application forms for
jobs & received no replies back. In December Lee applied to the YMCA to drive the mini bus as a volunteer. Lee has recently passed the intense advanced driving course & is now qualified to drive the mini bus. This has inspired & encouraged Lee to give up smoking Cannabis. Within two weeks of passing his advanced driving test Lee was invited to attend an interview as a peer mentor at ‘Voices 4 Choices’ an organisation that motivates young people to improve
their social skills. Lee started his new job in early February and now believes his own life experience can inspire other young people to make better choices with their lives. With his own determination & support from the housing project support team Lee is now enjoying life for the first time in a long time, Lee feels positive about his future and is looking forward to being in a position to move on from the YMCA.
Picture posed by model.
YMCA Housing Projects
Raising the skills, self confidence and self esteem levels of young people
Rugby youth consortium Partnership working is one of the core principles that we adopt in order to realise our vision of “Transforming Communities”. Within the Rugby community we are the lead agency in the Rugby Youth Consortium that was set up to support youth groups and workers across Rugby.
Young leaders As part of the Rugby Youth Consortium work we delivered Young Leaders Programme to a group of 12 young people who had been demonstrating signs of youth leadership within their local youth projects.
ultimately become positive leaders to other young people. Against Gangs, Guns and Knives
We secured funds from the Home Office Communities Against Gangs, Guns and Knives Fund and engaged with 158 young people aged The programme , which lasts for 10 weeks, focuses between 9 and 21 years old in our Youth and on: team building, self Community Projects. awareness, leadership, The core areas of work working with others, group We delivered structured that we delivered were: work, communication and workshops within youth club sessions around making a difference. At Volunteer training Youth the end of the 10 weeks Work Course (equivalent the young people were to Level 1) for volunteers taken on a paintballing working with young people trip to showcase their Development work with leadership and group Rugby Town West Youth work skills. The theme Forum – weekly session for this cohort of young supporting young people people was to encourage to have a say in their local them to make positive communities/services contributions within their Networking meetings communities and youth bringing together youth clubs, to encourage them workers from across Rugby to play a meaningful role in for support, information the development of their sharing and training communities, to develop themselves and hone their leadership skills and to
conflict, gender roles, self esteem, drug awareness and sexual health. As an incentive for positively engaging within youth club sessions we took a group of young people to watch the football during the 2012 Olympics at the Coventry stadium. As a result of this work our impact has led to reducing the occurrence of gang related crime in the Overslade and Brownsover communities in Rugby and the Pridmore community in Coventry.
Schoolswork
Lee’s Story Lee has been living at the Daimler Green project for 18 Months, Lee came to the YMCA after this Mother passed away and he left home at 15 years old. Lee’s life started spiralling out of control because most of his Family have issues with drugs.
Lee informed YMCA staff that he has filled in over 100 application forms for Our schools work jobs & received no replies programmes have been back. In December Lee designed to support applied to the YMCA schools to work with to drive the mini bus young people to bridge as a volunteer. Lee has the gap in achievement recently passed the intense levels by responding to people about The Health advanced driving course individual young people Risks of Smoking, How & is now qualified to drive and complimenting their to Keep the Heart Fit and the mini bus. This has educational experiences. Eating a Balanced Diet. inspired & encouraged Prior to moving into Lee to give up smoking We are flexible in our Daimler Green Lee slept Hoops 4 Health was approach to the delivery in a tent in Spencer Park & Cannabis. Within two delivered with students of this work and we from Coventry University stayed with various friends weeks of passing his advanced driving test Lee offer Schools the choice who have gained valuable sofa surfing, Lee also to pick from a menu stayed for a short time with was invited to attend an work experience that has of 10 workshop style his disabled grandmother interview as a peer mentor enabled them to secure programmes that can full-time employment with: but unfortunately this did at ‘Voices 4 Choices’ an organisation that motivates be tailored to meet the Nike, Finham Park School, not work out. Lee began young people to improve needs of the individuals hanging around with Whitley Academy & the their social skills. Lee and the schools. We have wrong crowd he soon British Army. started his new job in early delivered our schools work started drinking & taking programmes in over 50 Interdependence includes drugs. Lee drank so much February and now believes schools across Coventry that at times he passed out his own life experience can a number of topics from inspire other young people and Warwickshire and plan health and hygiene to or fell downstairs, he had to make better choices to increase this over the many traumatic years. CV and job application with their lives. next 2-3 years. guidance to the emotional Hoops 4 Health uses sports impact of leaving home. After working with the role models to teach young interdependence course. YMCA support team and participating in the workshops and activities Lee decided that his life had to change.
Developing sustainable communities
Volunteers Volunteers play a key role in the development and delivery of our work with young people and the communities in which they live.
Coventry University and NewMan College that are completing a Degree or Masters in Applied Community and Social Studies, Social Work, Sports Science, Sports Therapy and Youth Work.
The types of roles that our volunteers fulfill include: Project Youth Worker, Fundraising Assistant, Assistant Housing Support Worker, Sports Coach, Sports Mentor, Hoops for Health Instructor.
We recognise that Volunteers bring a different dimension to our work and we ensure that Volunteers are supervised and supported so that they can fulfil their potential and work at a level that recognises their training, experience and ability.
We also welcome volunteers who are interested in volunteering to support a career change or have been out of the job market and are interested in developing their skills and experience in working with young people.
Fundraising
Our Volunteers come from all sectors of the community including undergraduate students that need to fulfill the placement hours for their degree course, examples include: students from
We also encourage and support the young people that we work with to volunteer with us a route to preparing them to gain full-time employment and developing their skills.
per annum through our During 2012 we started developing our fundraising fundraising activity in order to be able to continue department in order to to deliver the work in develop new income our Housing, Youth and streams and build Community projects. relationships within our communities to build our individual donor supporters We especially need supporters who will take and corporate sponsors. part in our programme During the year the team of fundraising events. has secured a local business To join us or find out about other ways that called Rialto Reborn to be our corporate sponsor, you can help us meet our delivered two community targets please visit http:// challenge events the YMCA coventryandwarwickshireSleepEasy and the YMCA ymca.org.uk/ email us at donate@ World Challenge Event coventry-ymca.org.uk or that was attended by a call us on 02476 597009. combined total of 150 people including our staff, residents, supporters, local councillors and volunteers. Over the next few years we need to raise £50,000
Lee’s Story Lee has been living at the Daimler Green project for 18 Months, Lee came to the YMCA after this Mother passed away and he left home at 15 years old. Lee’s life started spiralling out of control because most of his Family have issues with drugs. Prior to moving into Daimler Green Lee slept in a tent in Spencer Park & stayed with various friends sofa surfing, Lee also stayed for a short time with his disabled grandmother but unfortunately this did not work out. Lee began hanging around with wrong crowd he soon started drinking & taking drugs. Lee drank so much that at times he passed out or fell downstairs, he had many traumatic years. After working with the YMCA support team and participating in the workshops and activities Lee decided that his life
had to change. Lee informed YMCA staff that he has filled in over 100 application forms for jobs & received no replies back. In December Lee applied to the YMCA to drive the mini bus as a volunteer. Lee has recently passed the intense advanced driving course & is now qualified to drive the mini bus. This has inspired & encouraged Lee to give up smoking Cannabis. Within two weeks of passing his advanced driving test Lee was invited to attend an interview as a peer mentor at ‘Voices 4 Choices’ an organisation that motivates young people to improve their social skills. Lee started his new job in early February and now believes his own life experience can inspire other young people to make better choices with their lives.Lee
feels positive about his future and is looking forward to being in a position to move on
Increasing the involvement of young people
YMCA European Youth Workers Camp Our youth workers and volunteers took a group of young people to the week long YMCA European Youth Workers Camp in Michaelstadt, Germany. The camp is where YMCA youth workers and volunteers from around Europe and the rest of the world come together to meet each other and share best practice and focus on ways to improve youth work within their local YMCA. They also jointly discover new models of youth work and network with their peers from across the YMCA Worldwide Movement. During the camp participants, volunteers and youth workers were required to help plan and prepare experience workshops and challenges which they will deliver for groups during the week of the camp. The aim of the experience workshops
were to provide participants, volunteers and youth workers with new experiences in which they can take home and deliver in their local YMCA. The idea behind the challenge workshops was to prepare challenge workshops that last for a minimum of three days for one and a half hours to educate participants, volunteers and youth workers on a focused topic.
receive a payment for the work that we do at the event in preparing and cleaning showers and this helps our fundraising for events for young people as well as creating the opportunity for young people to attend a festival that would otherwise be beyond their means.
Greenbelt festival
All members of the Coventry & Warwickshire YMCA Greenbelt team developed a unique working style that was recognised & reflected in the way that the shower block was managed and operated. During this time we received some excellent comments and compliments regarding the service that was provided.
Every August Bank Holiday Weekend for the last 5 years we have taken a team of staff, volunteers and young people to the Greenbelt Festival which is held each year at Cheltenham racecourse. The festival is attended by over 20,000 people. We
Attending The Greenbelt Festival provides our young people, staff and volunteers the opportunity to experience and participate in the diverse activities available at the festival including spiritual workshops, silent discos, sample new and different
The overall aim of the challenges was to encourage the participants to take the new learnt knowledge and apply it to their local YMCA.
food from different cultures and enjoy the different forms of musical entertainment. 2012 was particularly challenging because we experienced heavy rain and flooding for 3 of the 5 days. Some of the team lost their tents in the floods! Overall the experience of Greenbelt always bonds the team and helps our young people to build their confidence and develop their communications skills.
President Right Reverend Dr. Christopher Cocksworth Vice President Ken Holmes Directors Oliver Charles (Chair) Christabell Amoakoh Jon Grant Bill Parkinson Helen Peters Anne Woodley
Leadership Team Andy Winter Chief Executive Officer Paul Claridge Business Development Manager Phillip Hoppner Programme and Youth Services Manager Giddy Kalsi Housing Manager
OUR TEAM Charity Registration Number: 1100493 Registered Social Landlord Number: H4433 Company Number: 4644358
Scott Neely Sports, Health and Fitness Director Louise Scott Fundraising Manager Miranda Shieh Human Resources Manager Sue Stauvers Finance Manager
THANKYOU Asda Avon valley school Barrs hill school Benn partnership centre Brancab Bromford housing Brownsover community association Britvic – rugby Chesford grange hotel Clear sounds & security Claddagh electrical Compass- rugby Coventry citizens advice bureau Coventry general charities Coventry gospel hall trust Coventry handball club Coventry, solihull, warwickshire partnership ltd Coventry sports trust Coventry tornadoes basketball club Coventry, solihull and warwickshire sport Coventry university Decathlon Dunchurch & thurlsaton church England basketball Foleshill carpets Gap
to all our individual donors, staff, supporters, trustee’s, volunteers and our partners
Gefco Gg builders Go commando bootcamps Great britain wheelchair basketball academy Greggs bakeries Hope 4 R j parkers Future appliances Hartshill school Hillmorton reform church Holbrooks carpets Home office Ikea Mayday Mcdonalds Midland social care Morrisons National grid Newman college Orbit housing Premier inn Princes trust Recovery partnership Ricoh Rugby citizens advice bureau Rugby children services Rugby borough council Sainsbury’s Sport england Subway The 29th may 1961
charitable trust The belgrade theatre The challenge society The food bank The grey court trust The hope street church The home office The kenilworth ladies circle U choose University of warwick Virgin active – rugby Voluntary action coventry Warwickshire children and voluntary youth services Warwickshire children's trust warwickshire police Warwickshire community and voluntary action Warwickshire county council Warwickshire race equality partnership Whitefriars Wickes Willenhall community association Woodlands academy
Coventry & Warwickshire Annual Report 2013 Coventry and Warwickshire YMCA Endeavour Court 20 Chelmarsh Daimler Green Coventry CV6 3LB coventryandwarwickshire-ymca.org.uk Tel: 02476 597009 Email: admin@coventry-ymca.org.uk Design by Josie Vallely www.josievallely.com