Seeking to display the Kingdom of God
· by being open and welcoming to all
· by making the Chat Shop a place of friendship and support in the heart of our local community
· by providing a secure environment in which local groups and residents can meet
· by reaching out in service and witness to our neighbours
· by collaborating with others for the good of Arthur’s Hill
Rev. Richard Deadman (Chair)
Rev. Michael J. Campion (Vice Chair)
Rev. A. Paul Merton
Rev. David MacDonald*
Rev. David Smith*
Mr John Fulton (Treasurer)
Miss Jean Royal (Company Secretary)
Mrs Alma Miller
Mr E McClen
Mr Ron Wilson
Mrs Jean Fisher
Mrs Mary Jobson
*Served for part of year only
The last year has seen no great new initiative at the CHAT Shop. In stead the Trustees have spend the year monitoring and consolidating the projects as well as reflecting on our own core identity and activity. This has been a necessary phase in the life of the Trust, which has seen considerable expansion in the last couple of years.
The Toy Café has developed very well under the direction of Richard Evans. It now has a company structure of its own. Whilst the CHAT Shop still has some residual funding responsibilities until 2006, the Toy Café is now effectively an independent organisation. Owing to the lack of space at Philip Street, it is currently operating from S Matthew’s Church Hall whence it works with a number of schools as well as providing services on the premises. The Toy Café Board will soon be discussing whether it would be more appropriate to register as a charity or a Community Interest Company as the enterprise develops.
Yours and Mine has struggled a little over the last year for a number of reasons, most issuing from the complications and challenges of transforming from a simple drop-in café to a sustainable café and catering business. However, we should not be blinded by the problems, to the considerable progress that has been made by Caroline Graham, Lynne Davidge, Anne Atkinson and, latterly, Thomas Lyons in delivering a phenomenal growth of business activity.
The Telling the Story Project, initiated by the Revd David MacDonald, has quietly developed, attracting a core constituency, which stretches well beyond the usual groups who had been associated with the CHAT Shop. As we move onwards, this project will need delicately to become a little less informally organised so that it can dovetail into the Trust’s activities as a full partner participant.
We continue to provide an administrative cloak for the Healthier Community Group, whose flagship activity is the Happier Christmas, which is greatly appreciated by those for whom it is organised. Other events occur from time to time.
Late last year, the Food Initiatives Group requested that we assume managerial responsibility for a healthy eating research project in Cruddas Park. This clearly fits comfortably with other work that we are undertaking and the Trustees acceded to the request. Although the phase that was outstanding has now come to an end, there is scope to build on the accomplishments thus far, which we shall explore in the months to come.
The Trust took the view that as the projects matured, the workload on the CEO would diminish and at the beginning of the year, the post became half-time. This was probably an error for a number of reasons, not least there is still sufficient work for a fulltime post, which rather indicates how overburdened Carol was in 2004. We intend, therefore, to apply for funding that will restore the post to fulltime status from the beginning of 2006.
This will be particularly important as we carry through the next phase of the development, providing an infrastructure to hold the various independent projects in a federation as well as developing links with other organisations.
During 2004, Carol, Caroline and I attended a number of courses concerned with Voluntary and Community Sector governance. Following these, considerable work has been achieved to upgrade the organisation of the Trust, which is now much better placed that it was in this regard, though, of course as ever, there is more to be done.
The Trust has also had to spend considerable amounts of time aligning itself with the contemporary trends in Voluntary and Community Sector thinking to ensure that we can easily and naturally relate to the many organisations with which we deal. As we have learnt to think and act in the language and processes of our partner organisations, there was a feeling that we were perhaps beginning to lose a little the primary focus on Christ and His Gospel.
Given that all the Trustees are practising Christians, this may not have been quite the issue it sometimes seemed to be. None-the-less, we have given some time to ensuring that our work is anchored in and measured against our Christian vocation, as well as re-establishing our awareness of the CHAT Shop as an ecumenical venture and dialogue.
To consider the many issues confronting us, we held an awayday at S Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral. The day’s discussions were guided by a commentary, which is available to anyone who might be interested to see it. The reflexions were wide-ranging and provided us with an agenda for the next few years.
Amongst other things, we are concerned about the gap that is growing between the Trust and the constituent congregations. We also feel that some reform of our constitution would be beneficial and we would like to think that these two issues can be addressed together; and we shall be consulting with the four congregations in due course on possible ways forward.
The CHAT Shop continues to enjoy the confidence and regard of the Voluntary Sector community in the area and we are generally considered to be doing a good job. We were consulted in some detail by a research team at the University of Newcastle looking at urban issues across Europe and we are regularly approached to work in partnership with other organisations.
During the year, the Revd David MacDonald and his family returned to the New World. They went with our best wishes, but we, in common with many others, were sorry to see them go. It was, however, a pleasure to welcome in David’s place, David … Smith, who is settling into his place on the Trust.
All in all, much has been achieved through the course of the last year and we have made considerable progress on the programmes that were initiated in the previous year. The Trust continues to offer a valuable contribution to the community and is well advanced in its plans for consolidating this work in the months to come.
The Trustees owe a considerable debt of gratitude to our staff for all their work and progress over the last year; likewise, of course, those who have generously funded our activities or supported them in other ways. Finally, we thank God for providing us with the opportunities to serve Him in this way and the resources of many kinds that have been ours to employ.
· The Yours & Mine Community Café based in Arthur’s Hill
· The Toy Café offering play and learn activities for children and families in Elswick and Wingrove wards of Newcastle upon Tyne
Support and develop geographic community groups and community of interest groups
· The Healthier Community Group
· Telling the Story Project
· Moorside Playgroup
Work in partnership with local people and agencies to research, pilot and develop services
· The West End Food Co-operative
· The Toy Library Forum toy and resource loan service
Provide accomodation for advice and information services, community groups and social enterprises
· Arthur’s Hill Advice and Information Project
· Shelter
· Victim Support Outreach
· Esol Outreach
· Youth Inclusion Project
· Round Garden: therapeutic horticulture social enterprise
· Drummed Up: therapeutic drumming group
The major themes that have underpinned my work this year have been:
The Chat Shop has commissioned demographic research and a database of projects and agencies working in Arthur’s Hill.
I have undertaken research around national initiatives and trends with particular reference to models that enable the provision of long-term services.
Chat Shop and Yours & Mine staff members have worked with Cruddas Park residents to research the need for a project delivering affordable, fresh fruit and vegetables in the recognised food deserts of Cruddas Park, South Benwell and Scotswood.
By analysing successful national and business models, the Chat Shop has sought and will seek to find creative, innovative ways to deliver sustainable projects.
The Toy Café Project has applied the Curiosity and Imagination hands-on model of engaging children in learning to develop a Centre for Cultural Curiosity. With the help of local children and families, a cultural roadshow will be created that will tour community centres and other venues. The roadshow will be designed to help people learn about different cultures and faiths. The work is funded by Comic Relief.
The Forth Sector infrastructure support model and the pro-active nurturing of co-operation practised in Mondragon, Spain have informed the support provided to the Yours & Mine Community Café and the Toy Café.
Throughout the year I have sought to encourage partnership working. It is essential that we react to need on a micro, grassroots level but in order to create sustainable services we must encourage individuals, projects and organisations to work together. This will become more important as charitable and voluntary organisations find themselves competing with one another for a dwindling amount of funds.
An example of grassroots partnership working this year was the Bike n Hike Club. The Toy Café received funding from A4H to organise a programme of cycling activities. Toy café staff worked with the Yours & Mine Outreach
Worker, the NDC Learning Champion and volunteers to organise the programme. Healthy picnic food was provided by the Yours & Mine café. 1:1 support was provided to people who wanted to learn how to ride a bike and to families with small children.
The Yours & Mine Outreach Worker has also supported the Healthier Community group to organise a trip to Flamingoland.
This is essentially where all roads lead to! It has been the focus of my work this year. Reflection, research, modelling and partnership working are and will continue to be used to develop sustainable projects and robust business plans for the Chat Shop and the Yours & Mine Community Café.
It is particularly gratifying for me to note the increased café trading income. Every pound of profit will be reinvested to support the community of Arthur’s Hill.
I would also like to thank the volunteers who have supported the Yours & Mine café, the Healthier Community group and the Telling the Story Project. The Telling the Story Project has organised three very successful storytelling and musical evenings on a very small budget. This has been made possible because Dilston Road Methodist Church has provided a venue and facilities free of charge and because of the generosity of volunteers who planned the events, photocopied and distributed publicity, provided the refreshments, told stories and provided the music.
As reported by the Chairperson, I have worked on a part time basis since 1 January 2005. I would like to thank the Chairperson, Board members, volunteers and staff members for their support throughout the year but especially during the last six months.
Chat Shop and Yours & Mine funding ends in December 2005. The next six months will therefore see the submission of funding applications to support our work in 2006 onwards. An effective, development strategy has been developed and agreed. I look forward to the challenges of the next year and trust that God will be with us as we continue to offer support to the residents of the Inner West of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Yours & Mine Community Café Project Manager’s Report
The Community Café has established itself as a business in it’s own right moving away from what was the CHAT Shop drop in centre. Its trading name is ‘Yours & Mine Community Café’ The logo and name reflects the community ownership and cultural diversity within the Arthur’s Hill area. Trading sales are on average up by 18% on the previous year helping with the sustainability of the project and lowering the dependency on future funding. Our customer base has extended from people living in the local area also to people who work in the local area; this has made a large difference as workers have more disposable income.
The Management Committee membership has seen some fluctuation during the year. We have had four people leave the board and three new members; this has mainly been due to changes in people’s circumstances. The current board are working as a team to take the business forward. We are not yet registered as a company and are still an Unincorporated Association however the articles and memorandum are nearly ready and we have named the directors. We hope to have the business registered with Company’s House by the end of July. The business plan for 2006 is still being prepared by a member of the Management Committee along with the help of business and financial consultants. Upon completion we will be approaching funders and preparing for January 2006 to start implementing the plans.
The staffing set up has changed slightly to the original appraisal. We have a Project Manager; this role was taken over by the Marketing and Development Manager encompassing both duties. An Outreach Worker who works within the community is giving local people access to health and cultural activities and information. There are two café supervisors working in the café, they are supported by volunteers in various ways.
A recent development has been the recruitment of a pool of sessional workers from the local community to work in the café on an as and when needed basis. The idea is to support people to take the first steps back into employment and give them the right environment to build their capacity. The café allows people to do this whilst working in an un-pressured environment. The sessional staff help with both outside catering jobs and in the café if needed.
The physical changes that have taken place in the café include complete refurbishment and instalment of oven in kitchen, this has allowed us to extend our product range and create a better ambiance for the café customers. The Internet access in the seating area of the café was very popular but due to some technical problems with the computers the inconsistency of them working then not working has led to a decrease in usage.
Caroline Graham
This has been an incredibly dynamic year for the Toy Café, including the structured separation from the Chat Shop and formation of the limited company; charitable status has also been applied for.
Apart from the organisational changes there have been physical changes too, most notably the re-location to St Matthews Hall in Summerhill Square.
Our toy library traditionally served the people of Arthur’s Hill, and with the advent of Toyland at Moorside school it made sense for the two facilities to work together. It has now been formally agreed that Toyland will be managed by other organisations, initially the Toycafe, on a year-by-year basis. Toy café staff members have administered Toyland at Moorside School for the past academic year, signing up 60 new member families during this time, with a regular attendance of 15 – 20 families per week.
This has been particularly useful with the move to St Matthews, as it has enabled us to maintain a toy library presence in the area whilst the new premises are being prepared.
During the past year we have again worked alongside Surestart Westgate, as we strived to engage more fathers in playing with their children, and we are grateful for all the support we have received from them.
The space at St Matthews hall is now ready for business, and we are already piloting an after school family club on Tuesdays which is a great success.
During June we will have launched our new Toddler play sessions twice per week, and all these activities are supported by a toy loan facility.
During the coming year we are starting to sell activity based lessons to schools, and see this as a potentially good earner of sustainable income.
This time also sees the development of our Centre for Cultural Curiosity, and our development worker will be trying to involve a variety of local groups in a celebration of our cultural diversity.
The Chat Shop Annual Report 2004-2005
The Shelter Multi-Lingual Project has been based in the Chat Shop since December 2003 and would like to thank the Chat Shop for allowing the project to use it’s facilities and for their continuing support.
There are two workers on the project Tracy Guy the caseworker and Shayma Haque the trainee caseworker who both work with residents in the New Deal area to provide housing advice and support. Housing advice includes help with rent arrears, possible evictions, disrepair, homelessness, overcrowding, accessing housing etc. To date the project has helped over 250 people in the area through home visits, drop ins run at Cruddas Park and Callerton House (MECSS) and through people coming to the Chat Shop. The project is able to provide advice and support in a variety of languages to meet the needs of the multi cultural community which exists in the West End of Newcastle and focuses on assisting those people from the Black and Ethnic Minority Community who have previously not been able to access housing advice in their area.
The project continues to expand and plans to appoint a part time support worker and carry out training to enable residents to learn about their rights as tenants and how to access council housing in Newcastle.
Again Shelter would like to thank the Chat Shop for their support and assistance and look forward to a continuing partnership.
Tracy Guy
The
Chat Shop Annual Report 2004 – 2005
How we are performing: monitoring
|
Name of activity |
No. of sessions |
Ave attendance |
Total no of children |
Children from BME background |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Kids cafe |
10 |
6 |
57 |
34 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Toyland wed |
31 |
15 |
107 |
80 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Toyland thu |
26 |
7 |
22 |
16 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Osc play/TL |
3 |
15 |
47 |
4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Summer play prog |
3 |
35 |
80 |
40 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Art & craft |
4 |
15 |
19 |
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Totals |
77 |
12 |
374 |
180 (48%) |
Activities were held in Moorside Community Primary School, St Matthew’s Church Hall, Cruddas Park and at Elswick Pool
Yours & Mine Community Café, Telling the Story Project and The Healthier Community Group
|
Output |
Numbers |
BME |
Total |
|
People trained obtaining qualifications |
16 |
3 |
19 |
|
Young people benefiting from projects |
40 |
8 |
48 |
|
People accessing health activities |
128 |
52 |
180 |
|
People accessing cultural activities |
53 |
36 |
89 |
|
Community groups Supported |
10 |
|
10 |
|
People provided with health information |
71 |
* |
71 |
|
People using ICT and Internet facilities |
116 |
* |
116 |
* Figures not
available
The
Chat Shop Annual Report 2004 – 2005
Our Funders
European Regional Development Fund
Surestart Westgate
The Tudor Trust
Children in Need
Comic Relief
A4H
HEALTHworks
The Greggs Trust
Our Member Churches
Westgate Baptist Church
St Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral
Other Donors and Supporters
Ponteland Methodist Church
Holy Cross Anglican Church
Venerable Bede Anglican Church
West End United Reform Church
The Chat Shop Annual Report 2004 – 2005
Our Volunteers
Geoff Coates
Angela Lyburd
June Dickman
Christine Thomson
A special thank you to
Eddie McClen and Alma Miller for volunteering in the Yours & Mine Community Café
Jean Fisher for doing the weekly shop for the Yours & Mine Community Cafe