The Pavilion Surgery, based at Old Steine, held a free drop-in healthy eating event on Wednesday 19th October at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (off St James’ Street, Kemp Town) organised by their Patient Participation Group. With information and advice from fully-qualified nutritionists on diet and weight management, there was also a cookery demo by The Big Fig project and refreshments. Stall holders included ‘I love my PPG’ with Pavilion newsletters, Brighton and Hove Health Trainers with visual reminders of how big a pound of fat ways and Mind with useful advice and information on food and mood.
Everyone through the door qualified for entry to a free raffle with impressive prizes, including three hours withanutritionaltherapist (worth £270), vouchers for Infinity Foods, a Weightwatchers back pack filled withgoodies, a cookery book, interactive wall charts and a spiralizer.Patient members of the group hope that everyone who attended went away with ideas of how they can contribute to their own well-being by choosing as healthy a lifestyle as possible. Feedback from participants was very positive. ‘I’m starting a new job working with the homeless – I’ve been able to gather literature that I will be able to pass on to them.’
As the Senior Community Participation Worker with TDC (The Trust for Developing Communities) I havesupported the development of a patient participation group at Pavilion Surgery. The group worked hard to plan and run this event. They have all really enjoyed getting to know each other better and working together to organise something which has the potential to make real differences to people’s lifestyles.
Last month, TDC pulled out all the stops to entertain 100+ elderly residents from East Brighton at a special tea-party. Days later we facilitated a fantastic trip to British Airways i360 for a group of 30 BME older people. It was all in recognition of the achievements and contributions older people make to life in Brighton and Hove.
Older people enjoyed a delicious cream tea
Brighton & Hove ran the exciting two-week festival from Monday 26 September to Friday 7 October. It was specially designed for people aged 50+ and aimed to get hundreds of people actively involved and enjoying themselves. It also hoped to tackle negative stereotypes around ageing, and raise awareness of the benefits of maintaining good health and resilience in older age.
TDC worked with Impact Initiatives, using funds provided by Public Health at Brighton & Hove City Council, to create events that would reach out to older people across the city. Although the events were open to everyone, the focus was on drawing older people from wards that have high levels of poverty and whose older residents are known to suffer from isolation.
“Activities like this play a huge part in older people’s lives. Some of the residents we work with can often go days without any social interaction and so by running an accessible event, we give older people a chance to come together, share memories and make new friends. The impact is even greater when you couple it with growing evidence that shows the huge impact social isolation plays on people’s health. There is a 10 year difference in life expectancy in some of the wards we work when compared to the more affluent parts of Brighton & Hove – TDC are trying to change that.” said Lyndsay Macadam, Project Manager TDC.
The TDC tea-party was a fabulous afternoon of singing, dancing, sharing of memories and tasty food.
“We had competitions for line-dancing, singing and best-dressed, as well as best flower arrangement and a bake-off. We wanted to make it as fun and inclusive as possible to encourage more people to get involved” said Helen Jones, Community Development Worker Moulsecoombe, TDC
TDC’s dedicated team worked with business and charity partners across the city
TDC worked hard to find local businesses to support the event, with Tesco providing the ingredients for a high tea; Hire All providing crockery; Impact Initiative and The Bevy providing transport; The Bridge Community Centre providing cakes and Gladrags providing a chair for portrait photographs. Southern Water, Albion in the Community, BHESCO and the Green Party also donated items for goodie bag prizes.
“Tesco were happy to make the donation and work with the community to bring about positive change in our local area” said Pilly, Tesco Community Champion.
TDC community development workers made sure individual residents and groups in each of the neighbourhoods we work were invited. Approximately 100 people turned up, with representatives from groups including Friday Friends, Mad Hatters, Getting On 50+, The Orchards, Broadfields, Gentle Dance group at Moulsecoomb Hall, Hampshire Court, Partridge House, Salvation Army and Singing for Better Health, Sloane Court, Somerset Point, New Larchwood, Old Boat Corner, Queens Park and Craven Vale residents.
Our BME group enjoyed a cream tea and flight at British Airways i360
For our BME group, the chance to visit Brighton’s biggest new attraction for a cream tea and a flight was a dream come true.
British Airways i360, our partner, kindly helped facilitate the trip with funds donated from Impetus.
TDC’s Chief Executive, accompanied the group and said they were ‘delighted’ by the whole experience.
This year The Trust for Developing Communities’ AGM will be held on Tuesday 18th October.
We will be holding our ‘Communities: the difference we can make together’ themed event in the Auditorium at the Brighthelm Church & Community Centre, North Road, Brighton, BN1 1YD, starting at 6pm.
There will be buffet food and a fun filled evening with presentations showing you exactly what TDC does all across Brighton & Hove.
There will, of course, also be the usual AGM stuff, including the election of trustees plus the opportunity to meet our new Chief Executive and connect with other community groups.
Please feel free to attend if you are interested in community work in the city and have an interest in what we at TDC do. Please See the latest TDC Annual Report 2015-2016 and if you have any questions you would like answered at the AGM please e-mail them to us on [email protected]
Join us for a night of stories, histories and memories at the centre that was built in 1967 and has served Moulsecoomb well over the years. We would love for one and all to come and enjoy drinks and nibbles, have an informal chat and for those that are up to it to plan some sort of celebration for next year.
Join us – Monday 19th September 2016 at 67 Centre 6pm – 8pm
After many years, I am leaving. TDC is a wonderful organisation of dedicated, driven people with so many skills, devoted to opening up the very best opportunities for the communities they work with. These colleagues and volunteers are the most massive asset and the part of leaving that I will find the hardest. Our organisation places enormous importance on striving towards equality and works tirelessly in the way we build our teams to acknowledge community development work as a profession. These are values which first attracted me to TDC and that I have positively identified with over the last 13 years.
So after 25 years in paid community development work all over the country, I am stepping out of paid work for a while. I wanted to take this opportunity to say ‘goodbye and thank you’ to everyone I have worked with in the city and beyond: The problems, solutions, projects and amazing community activists; door-knocking, surveys, research and reports; conferences, training, flipcharts and post-its; clouds, intranet and new technology; funding, bid-writing and partnerships. My diary. Team meetings, management meetings, pre-meetings…meetings! Friendships and like-minded people. I take all these warm memories away with me into the future and whatever I do next.
To my colleagues, partners and friends, you are all incredible people, doing miraculous things. Go well.
An intensive and action focussed 2 x half day course on 13th September and 1st November.
On this course you will learn how to…..
Identify and harness the benefits of working with citizens and communities for you
Build on local networks and enhance effective collaborative working
Develop an approach, test out ideas and review your own work with citizens and communities
Create sustainable work with citizens and communities
Network with cross-sector colleagues to generate new ideas and share experiences.
Day One is an exploration of ways to work with communities with advice on how to create your own action plan.
Day Two is held two months later after you have tested out your plan. It is an opportunity to reflect on your experiences and learn from others in the group.
All public sector staff, community and voluntary sector and small groups welcome
British Airways i360 launched their innovative new observation attraction last week and TDC were invited to experience a special preview flight, before the doors to the public opened.
The ‘community champions’ flight was organised by Sussex Newspapers and British Airways i360 to honour heroes across the county, so it was incredibly exciting to hear that seven of our young people, along with their families, would be part of the special event.
TDC champions
It was tough to pick the seven champions – we work with so many exceptional young people – so TDC asked youth groups in each of the areas we work, to nominate their own community champion. The winners were Jordan Back, Kayleigh Rose, Lauryn Carr, Leah Brown, Tom Maher, Riley Gunn and Riziki Millanzi.
Adam Muirhead, Projects Manager, said, “”We are incredibly proud to be supporting and recognising these amazing young people who, in spite of hardship, have offered so much in return to their communities or shown great courage and character in the face of adversity. It is symbolic that they should be rewarded with this fantastic preview flight on the BA i360 as each of them has raised themselves up and, through their community involvement, broadened their horizons.”
The young people were joined by three of the TDC staff team. Claire Burchill, Senior Community Worker Young People in Queen’s Park and Craven Vale, told us how nervous they all were before the flight, but that it was great to be able to take the young people on board. She said, “it’s a lovely way to reward young people in Brighton & Hove for all the contributions they make to their community”.
Claire with Lauryn and Leah
Our winners
Riley has shown great strength of character in overcoming significant loss and trauma in her life and those that work with her have been incredibly impressed with her recent maturity and responsibility. Riley brought her nan with her and the two enjoyed some selfies at 450ft.
Jordan, a young man who has committed himself to community work, has given his time selflessly to help dance groups, community festivals and his school over the years. His parents were with him on the flight and the three thoroughly enjoyed their unusual flight.
Tom was also there with his parents. Tom has shown a massive increase in confidence over the last year in particular since volunteering at his local bike club. He’s also given his time freely to help run a social enterprise that supports summer activities for local children and young people.
Kayleigh has given amazing amounts to her community through volunteering over the years. She’s supported older people’s clubs and clubs for younger children and all whilst helping to care for her younger brother who has additional needs. It was great to be able to reward her for the efforts that she has put in.
Lauryn and Leah are friends, so they got to catch up in the sunshine before their flight.
Lauryn and Leah catch up
Lauryn volunteers at her local club for young women and has devoted herself to all the extra planning and fundraising activities. She does this having been forced to step back from her college course due to a recurring injury.
Leah has also made a huge impact on her community, voluntarily teaching at a weekly dance group for younger girls, helping with intergenerational events, community clean up days and supporting the local food bank. Achieving all this by the age of 18 makes us excited for what the future holds for Leah.
Riziki was nominated but was unable to attend on the day. We wouldn’t want her contribution to be missed though – Riziki has spent years volunteering with Girl Guides, is editor for a young journalists group and has given her time willingly to special projects including aid work in Africa. David Cameron commended her for her voluntary work in 2015 and we would like to do the same.
To see a video of our community champions on their special flight, head to our Facebook page
The results of last month’s referendum have generated a new period of economic and political uncertainty, and initiated a rise in racially-motivated hate crime. Reports of hate crime have increased by 57% in the wake of the Brexit vote, according to the National Police Chiefs Council.
We join our partners Community Works and others, in standing against this rise in hate crime, and in saying no to hate. At TDC, we are committed to taking an approach where we will not tolerate behaviour that harms or is likely to harm others, particularly when it stems from prejudice against another based on a person’s race, gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, or marital/civil partnership status. The community development work of our organisation facilitates community cohesion and we respect everyone’s identity and their rights to live, work and volunteer in the vibrant and diverse communities we are so proud to support.
We particularly want to say we welcome EU and other overseas visitors, workers and residents in the UK. We hope that you continue to feel able to participate in, and feel valued in, our local communities. Along with others, we say “you are welcome here”.
OUR OWN WORKERS HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS
“To our shock, our own workers have already experienced the impact of racial harassment. It is the right of every member, of every community to be treated with respect and dignity and to live in an environment free from harassment, hatred and abuse. I want to stress how important it is to us at TDC, that we do not tolerate the normalisation and mainstreaming of racism, or any kind of context for a general lack of tolerance for difference.”
Linda Saltwell – TDC CEO
REPORTING HATE CRIMES CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Hate crime in any form is wrong. This is why it is important that if a hate crime happens to you or someone you know; you should report it. Therefore, we strongly encourage people in communities across the city to report, and have the confidence to do so.
Reporting makes a difference – to you, your friends, and your community. By reporting a hate crime when it happens, you can help stop it from happening to someone else. You will also help the police to better understand the level of hate crime in your local area, and improve the way they respond to it.
Useful Contact Details
If you’ve been affected by or witnessed a hate crime, you can report it to the police by calling 999, or to the community safety team. There’s also an app which you can use to make reporting hate crimes easier.
You can also get help, advice and emotional support from the independent charity, Victim Support.
Please share this information with anyone who has been effected by hate or harassment.
Victim Support
A national charity for victims and witnesses of crime in England and Wales.
Tel: 0845 3030900
An anonymous free phone line where you can report any criminal activity that you are ware of in your community, in complete confidence.
Tel:0800 555111
Local children and young people are being given the chance to join a prestigious preview flight on the i360.
TDC are looking for nominations for children and young people, aged 11 to 18, who are deserving of a special treat – to be one of the very first people to ‘walk on air’ with the British Airways i360.
Five young people from across the City will be able to take themselves plus two family members on this special flight if they are successful in being selected following their nomination to the ‘Brighton & Hove’s Young Champions’ Awards.
To be eligible these children and young people will have demonstrated how they have given above and beyond to their community, endured hardship with character or simply been there for others. Nominations will be accepted from anyone (this could be parents, schools, youth workers etc) in under 250 words and emailed to [email protected]by Sunday 17th July 2016.
Winners will be selected by a panel of youth workers and young people and they will be informed by Tuesday 19th July.
October at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (off St James’ Street, Kemp Town) organised by their Patient Participation Group. With information and advice from fully-qualified nutritionists on diet and weight management, there was also a cookery demo by The Big Fig project and refreshments. Stall holders included ‘I love my PPG’ with Pavilion newsletters, Brighton and Hove Health Trainers with visual reminders of how big a pound of fat ways and Mind with useful advice and information on food and mood.
anutritionaltherapist (worth £270), vouchers for Infinity Foods, a Weightwatchers back pack filled withgoodies, a cookery book, interactive wall charts and a spiralizer.Patient members of the group hope that everyone who attended went away with ideas of how they can contribute to their own well-being by choosing as healthy a lifestyle as possible. Feedback from participants was very positive. ‘I’m starting a new job working with the homeless – I’ve been able to gather literature that I will be able to pass on to them.’
supported the development of a patient participation group at Pavilion Surgery. The group worked hard to plan and run this event. They have all really enjoyed getting to know each other better and working together to organise something which has the potential to make real differences to people’s lifestyles.
