Creating opportunity: two years of our Community Development Fund

Creating OpportunityTwo years of our

Community Development Fund

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Creating OpportunityTwo years of our Community Development Fund

We have always been proud to be more than just a landlord. As the largest community business in Watford and Three Rivers, we play an important role in ensuring that our residents not only live in decent homes but in successful neighbourhoods.

Our Community Development Fund is helping us to achieve this aim. It invests £120k per year into projects that improve the quality of our residents’ lives and meet the goals of our Community Development Strategy: healthier, wealthier and friendlier communities. In addition, the Fund has invested in projects based around four key themes:

f Life Opportunities

f Health and Wellbeing

f Older People

f Creative Arts

In this report you will read some fantastic examples of how we have invested the Community Development Fund so far. From tablet technology courses to Tai Chi classes, all of these projects aim to make a difference to our residents’ quality of life while building stronger, more resilient communities.

Tina BarnardChief Executive

welcome

Needs identified: High anti-social behaviour in Leavesden Green and the surrounding areas highlighted a need for diversionary activities for young people.

Partners involved: Box Cleva, Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue and Hertfordshire Police.

CDF Investment: £6,500

Outputs: Non-contact boxing classes delivered to 42 children aged between 7 and 15.

Impacts: Healthier and friendlier communities.

Box Cleva is a charitable organisation which equips young people with useful skills associated with boxing – including fitness techniques, healthy eating and self-respect. The programme was developed by Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue service and it operates across the county, achieving great results.

Working together with Hertfordshire Police, we invested the Community Development Fund to provide weekly Box Cleva sessions at Leavesden Green Community Hub. Young people throughout our community areas were referred to the programme and we received excellent feedback from parents and carers.

Krissi Palmer of Abbots Langley said that taking part in Box Cleva made a huge difference to her son Luke, 7.

She added: “He wasn’t doing very well at school and he would lose his temper quite quickly. But since he’s started at Box Cleva there’s been a real change in his mood and he’s much more focused at school. We’ve really noticed a change for the better. And you can see it’s good for the others as well, especially some of the boys who don’t have a male role model in their lives.”

Box Cleva has helped reduce anti-social behaviour in the area, and Hertfordshire Police believe it has contributed towards a 35% drop in crime in Leavesden Green and the Stanborough ward – the largest decrease of all wards in Watford.

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Box Cleva

“We’ve really noticed a

change for the better”

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Needs identified: Facilities in Watford are attracting an growing older population. Services such as Shop Mobility play an essential role in helping people to enjoy an independent lifestyle.

Partners Involved: Shop Mobility Watford.


Outputs: Purchase of two new scooters by Shop Mobility Watford.

Impact: Healthier Communities.

Watford Shop Mobility is an organisation dedicated to tackling the mobility problems faced by Watford’s older population. With investment from the Community Development Fund, Watford Shop Mobility were able to purchase two new battery powered scooters – enabling the charity to support more local residents to pursue an independent lifestyle.

Needs identified: Difficulties faced by people with learning difficulties in obtaining qualifications and accessing jobs.

Partners Involved: Watford Workshop.


Outputs: Literacy and numeracy classes delivered for residents with learning difficulties.

Impact: Healthier, Wealthier and Friendlier Communities.

Watford Workshop provides basic literacy and numeracy training for people with learning difficulties, to remove barriers to employment and increase self-esteem. The Trust funded a series of courses for Trust residents of our local community areas who have a learning difficulty. At the time of writing the classes are still ongoing, and there has already been a noticeable increase in the participants’ confidence and interpersonal skills since starting the programme.

Needs identified: Bridging the ‘digital skills gap’ among older people and social housing tenants.

Partners Involved: West Herts College, Job Centre Plus and Watford Borough Council.


Outputs: Four x 6-week courses for twenty-six local residents. Three residents also won a tablet for attending the course.

Impact: Wealthier Communities.

Working with West Herts College, the Trust delivered tablet training courses to help local residents become more digitally included. Residents learnt basic tablet skills including how to use apps, access and send emails, and use the internet to search for information. The course also looked at the benefits and risks of using social media and how to access and use the Trust website.

SHOP MOBILITY SCOOTERS

WATFORD WORKSHOP LITERACY AND NUMERACY

LIFTING THE LID ON TABLET TECHNOLOGY


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Needs identified: Need for some of our older residents to lead a healthier and more active lifestyle.

Partners Involved: ‘Bits and Pieces ’ Tai Chi instructors.


Outputs: 120 weekly Tai Chi classes offered at three of the Trust’s sheltered housing schemes.

Impact: Healthier and Friendlier Communities.

A series of weekly Tai Chi classes held in our sheltered schemes gave older residents across Watford and Three Rivers an opportunity to take part in exercise and live healthier lives. Participants were able to improve their mobility, while breathing technique exercises also helped them to experience a greater sense of relaxation.

As the classes were offered to both sheltered scheme tenants and those from outside the schemes, they proved to be a great way for residents to get to know each other and build new friendships.

Lala, who lives at Dale Court, said: “Tai Chi helps a lot with my muscle weakness, it makes me feel a lot better. Everyone enjoys the atmosphere, even if they’ve come from outside the scheme, and they all say the exercise makes them feel good. There’s one lady who used to need a walker to get around, but since she started Tai Chi she only needs to use a stick.”

The classes were originally run in two of our sheltered schemes, Dale Court and Summer Place, however a third scheme, Hollytree House, has been included in the project due to the classes being so popular.

“It makes me feel a lot better”

Tai Chi in the Schemes

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Needs identified: Our Community Option Studies have consistently highlighted a need for more activities for young people.

Partners Involved: Watford FC Community Sports and Education Trust.


Outputs: Over 500 young people too part in a series of football and dance classes delivered in three of our community areas.

Impact: Healthier, Safer and Friendlier Communities.

The Trust provided funding towards a project delivering football and dance classes in Holywell, Leavesden Green, and the Meriden – three of our heartland community areas. The project aimed to tackle a number of issues prevalent in these neighbourhoods by engaging disadvantaged young people and promoting physical and mental wellbeing. Over 500 young people took part, and going forward the project aims to identify a small group of volunteers who can be supported to undertake their Level 1 Football Coaching award. This will help to develop the participants’ skills and give them qualifications which can be beneficial to their career development.

PREMIER KICKS

Needs identified: High levels of the obesity among children living in our local community areas.

Partners Involved: Westfield Children’s Centre and Berrygrove Children’s Centre.


Outputs: 24 healthy eating sessions (for up to 15 families) were delivered and a ‘Healthy Eating Cook Book’ has been produced.

Impact: Healthier and Wealthier Communities.

This project aimed to provide healthy eating workshops through sessions offered at Westfield Children’s Centre and Berrygrove Children’s Centre. Outreach workers and their partners played a crucial part in the project as they were able to identify families who would benefit the most from this programme. The project covered a number of issues including encouraging fruit and vegetable consumption, looking at portion sizes, the importance of eating as a family, hidden fats and sugar in the diet and childhood constipation. Furthermore, advice was provided on how following a healthy diet could have financial benefits, with ingredients such as vegetables, rice, lentils, beans and pasta being used to ‘bulk up the meal’.

HEALTHY EATING FOR FAMILIES

Needs identified: The Trust works with a lot of tenants through its involvement programmes who identify as having a mental health or support need. Some tenants also lack confidence to take part in activities and suffer with high levels of anxiety which increases their need for support and makes them isolated.

Partners Involved: Guidepost Trust.

CDF Investment: £900

Outputs: 18 people attended the 12-week course and over half of these were Trust tenants. The course participants identified a marked reduction in their anxiety and commented that they felt much more confident after completing the course. A mentoring buddy scheme was developed throughout the sessions to help participants get through the difficult social period of Christmas and New Year.


The Keep Calm and Carry On courses explain the causes of stress and anxiety, thereby helping people to identify and manage the symptoms of these. By completing the course members were made more aware of the services available to them at Guideposts and one Trust volunteer actually realised that they were not suffering from anxiety and acted as an inspirational role model for others on the course. The project’s success has now been repeated by Thrive Homes working in conjunction with Guidepost Trust to reach more participants in Three Rivers.


KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON

Needs identified: A need for healthy social activities for older residents.

Partners Involved: Roundabout Transport, W3RT, Bupa Rivercourt.


Outputs: Tea dances were held at Woodside, Holywell and Leavesden Green to promote a healthier lifestyle and give residents a chance to engage in social activities and make new friends. Trust tenants and staff volunteered to drive residents to the event on Community Transport.


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The initial three events were so popular with attendees, particularly those living in our sheltered schemes, that additional funding was secured in order to run five further events.

Alex Loose, who attended one of the tea dances at Woodside Community Centre, said: “It’s been lovely, lots of fun and a great atmosphere. I love dancing, it keeps you fit and it keeps the brain active. I think events like this are a great idea.”

Amy Willcox-Smith, Communities Manager at the Trust added: “Holding an event like this makes such a big difference to many of our residents. Getting out and about, meeting other people, doing something affordable and active – these are all really positive things for our older residents and for many of them it’s about having a connection with the music.”

Tea Dances

“It keeps you fit and it

keeps the brain active. It’s

a great idea!”

Tea dances are an exciting way of encouraging older residents living within our local community areas to engage in exercise activities and live a healthy lifestyle. The events also help to tackle feelings of isolation and seclusion as attendees are able to enjoy social activities which enable them to meet other residents of a similar age and make new friends.

In order to make the tea dances more accessible to residents, transport to and from the events was organised in partnership with Roundabout Transport. Attendees found this to be particularly useful as many had mobility issues which would have otherwise prevented them attending the event.

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Needs identified: Consultation with residents in our sheltered scheme identified a desire for social activities such as day trips.

Partners Involved: Ross Coaches and Eastbourne Shop Mobility.


Outputs: Four trips were organised and widely attended by tenants living in our sheltered housing schemes and the wider community.

Impact: Friendlier Communities.

Tenants from across our sheltered housing schemes had expressed an interest in taking part in day trips, but they found it difficult to organise such events themselves. The Trust therefore arranged a series of days out, including the Tower of London, Denbies Vineyards and Eastbourne. For the Eastbourne visit, the Trust partnered up with the local Shop Mobility so residents could use a mobility scooter when they got there. The events were a huge success, enabling tenants from different schemes to make new friendships. In addition to the trips the Trust has organised Active Ageing events at the schemes, including quiz nights and race nights. They take place at a different scheme each month, enabling all our sheltered tenants to take part. Tenants made new friends and as a result are attending new and different activities in other communities. This activity sustains itself and some members have become Facebook friends.

Needs identified: International Older People’s Day.

Partners Involved: W3RT and Roundabout Transport


Outputs: Celebration Event for International Older People’s Day.


In partnership with W3RT, the Trust funded and hosted two events to celebrate International Older People’s Day 2014. The events aimed to engage older people and inform them of services and activities available to them in Watford and Three Rivers. A number of service providers and older people’s charities attended, and exercise taster classes were organised to encourage residents to become more physically active. The Trust provided transportation from our sheltered schemes so the events could be enjoyed by all.

Needs identified: A group of residents were consulted on activities that would help to reduce feelings of isolation and seclusion among the over-50s.

Partners Involved: Burstons, Herts Health Walks.


Outputs: 21 different social activities for the over-50s. A group which will constitute and arrange future sustainable activities through collecting funds for the trips through their membership.


The Trust created a group called the Nifty (Over) Fifties to provide residents with an opportunity to enjoy social activities with people of a similar age – reducing feelings of isolation and helping them to meet new friends. Based on consultation with the group the Trust arranged a series of activities including coach trips, craft activities, health walks, yoga sessions and retirement planning events. Following one of the coach trips a resident told us: “This was the first outing I had done on my own since losing my husband and with such friendly people it has given me the confidence to arrange to go on future trips.”

THE NIFTY (OVER) FIFTIES PROGRAMME

ACTIVE AGEING ACTIVITIES

UK OLDER PEOPLE’S DAY


Needs identified: Signpost identified eight young people dealing with problems in their lives who would benefit from a project which would help to build their confidence and develop their skills.

Partners Involved: Sue Lacey Photography, Signpost, YMCA Watford and Watford Museum.


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Outputs: A photography course was delivered to eight young people and an exhibition held at the Watford Museum to celebrate the success of the project.

Impact: Wealthier and Friendlier Communities.

This project, delivered in partnership with Signpost and YMCA Watford, gave young people the opportunity to develop their photography skills by attending a series of classes led by local professional photographer Sue Lacey. The photographs produced as a result of the project were displayed at an exhibition held at Watford Museum.

Signpost, a charity that helps young people overcome issues such as abuse, depression and family break-down, selected eight young people to take part in the project who were likely to benefit from the experience.

In addition to developing the young people’s photography skills the project also helped them to build up their confidence and to gain experience that would be useful in developing their careers. We hope that the participants will continue to pursue photography, either as a hobby or as a career.

Sammie Price, 17, who took part in the course, said: “There’s often a negative image of young people so I hope this shows we are not all the same and we are capable of great things. For me personally I had an amazing time on this course. It was really useful preparation for university and I also learnt a lot about myself.”

From Where I Stand photography project

“It shows we are all capable

of great things”

Needs identified: This project built on the success of a previous project to help children and young people express themselves through music.

Partners Involved: Bushey Academy, Central Primary and the Purcell School of Music.


Outputs: Impulse music outreach training was delivered to students at Bushey Academy, which allowed them to participate in outreach work with primary schools. Four x 3-hour workshops were delivered at the school and two additional outreach sessions were held at local primary schools.


Funding from the Community Development Fund enabled a new partnership between Bushey Academy and the Purcell School – an internationally renowned centre of excellence for young musicians. Through the Impulse project, Purcell students delivered 12 hours of mentoring to students on the GCSE music course at the Academy. The Academy’s students, in turn, provided outreach music classes in local primary schools. Students from the Academy increased in confidence and this generated a further music project, where they used their composition skills to write a song for our mascot, Trusty House, which was performed at the Trust’s annual community event at Watford Colosseum in October 2014.

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Needs identified: Young people in this area have limited access to arts provision outside school and also wanted to have an arts activity that was not in a school environment.

Partners Involved: Watford Palace Theatre, Youth Connexions, Warner Bros Studios.


Outputs: 12 young people fully engaged in the project and a video about bullying was produced in the first phase. This can be viewed online at www.vimeo.com/welltoldfilm/thefallout.

Impact: Wealthier Communities.

Leavesden Green is one of the most deprived wards in Watford, both in terms of financial deprivation and geographical isolation. We identified this area particularly as one that would benefit from arts activity, and the theatre project was a good opportunity to provide education outside of a school setting The young people who were involved had aspirations to work in the film and media industry and this project provided them with an opportunity to gain valuable work experience.

THEATRE PROJECT AT LEAVESDEN GREEN

IMPULSE MUSICAL OUTREACH TRAINING


Needs identified: Reducing feelings of isolation and seclusion among tenants of our sheltered housing schemes.

Partners Involved: The Dan Tien performing arts school.


Outputs: Four sets of twelve-week activities delivered in four sheltered housing schemes. Residents made door numbers, ornaments and Christmas decorations and were able to give them to friends and carers as gifts. Many of the participants also suffer with dementia so they were able to create some recent memories and an object that reminded them of a fun time.


The Community Development Fund enabled the delivery of creative arts workshops across four of the Trust’s sheltered schemes. Workshops included pottery, painting, collages and sewing. The workshops were delivered by The Dan Tien, a performing arts school based in Harebreaks, one of our local community areas. The workshops offered residents the opportunity to engage in creative activities in a social environment, helping to tackle issues of isolation and seclusion which many of our older residents may experience.

CREATIVE ARTS WORKSHOPS FOR OVER 50’S

© Watford Community Housing Trust 2015

Watford Community Housing Trust is an Industrial and Provident Society registration number 30183R and registered with the Homes and Communities Agency number L4495

Contact us:Watford Community Housing TrustGateway House 59 Clarendon Road, Watford Hertfordshire WD17 1LA

T 01923 209 000 E [email protected] W www.wcht.org.uk

watfordcommunityhousingtrust

@watfordgateway

Documents

Creating opportunity: two years of our Community Development Fund