A day in the life of the Resource Centre
In 2016-17 the Resource Centre was used by nearly 900 different groups.
Over 700 of the groups were from Brighton and Hove.
To give you a taste of the wide range of support the Resource Centre gives to groups, we’ve picked just one day: 31st March 2017.
On this day 18 groups came to the Resource Centre.
4 groups collected some equipment for events they were running. 10 groups used the print room.
6 groups used our support service. This is extra support available for member groups. These groups were:
Bates Estate Tenants and Residents Association
Bates Estate TRA came in to use the computers to design their AGM newsletter, and received some design advice from us.
They said: “The advice given was excellent and helped save time on my next visit when it came to printing and collating 400 newsletter copies.”
Coldean Residents Association
We printed 1200 copies of Coldean News for the Coldean Residents Association, who producing regular community newsletters since 2008 to communicate important news, events and activities to the residents of Coldean.
This is what they said about the Resource Centre in our last survey: “A fantastic service, which we would be lost without!”
Salaam FC
We helped Salaam FC to write an application in order to apply for a grant to support their children’s football training.
When we help groups with fundraising, we sit down with them, and
- we ask them what activities they want to run,
- help them to plan a budget
- identify where the money could come from
- we then assist with writing the application
Salaam FC said: “The staff are really friendly and helpful. The support given is very appreciated. The work the Resource Centre is doing is incredible.”
East Brighton Bygones Local History Society
We also completed an examination of accounts for East Brighton Bygones Local History Society.
We offer free, independent examinations of accounts to our member groups. It’s an opportunity for groups to have someone independent to look at the accounts, and it gives people peace of mind that the money and the accounts have been kept well.
East Brighton Bygones returned our evaluation card, which said: “Thank you so much for such an excellent service. It’s good to be able to talk to staff about problems that might arise, and get a professional opinion.”
Action for Bevendean Community
We gave Action for Bevendean Community advice about keeping accounts.
Our support for treasurers is very flexible and practical – basically, it depends what kind of support you need:
- we can do one-to-one sessions
- or if you just have a quick question, you can just ring us to ask.
The session we did with Action for Bevendean Community was part of some ongoing support and advice that we gave to the treasurer from the previous year.
They wrote in their evaluation: “The support I’ve had has been fantastic! It helps to talk things through with someone who knows what they’re talking about. I will certainly ask for their help again if needed.”
Oromo Community in Brighton & Hove
We helped the Oromo Community in Brighton & Hove to produce a safeguarding policy, which they needed for their weekly Oromo culture and language school.
Policies are sometimes useful in groups to make sure everyone is looked after and protected.
We can help member groups to think about issues like health and safety, equalities and safeguarding, and to draft policies.
The Oromo group said in their evaluation: “She is very happy to help [the] Oromo Community with an open hand. Thank you is too small a word. We appreciate your work.”
Thank you to all our member groups
The work of the Centre is only made possible by the dedication of our member groups, who work very hard to support their communities. We are very proud to be able to help make life easier for you!