Impact Report 2023-24
Welcome to our Impact Report – your chance to see everything we have been up to last year from 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024.
Scroll down this page to see the highlights, or click the section you want to see in the contents below.
You can also can download a full PDF version of the report here:
Contents
OUR YEAR IN NUMBERS
160 young people
developed leadership abilities, skills, confidence, networks, self-esteem & resilience.
182 children
developed socially, physically, and creatively through our range of play experiences.
377 adults
with mental health issues were supported (up from 200 last year)
5570 people
used our centres for activities (up from 3860 last year)
22 community organisations
provided with capacity building support tailored to their needs
68 families
received free food and support
26 organisations
rented our office spaces
82 community groups and organisations
used our centres for a range of events and activities.
WORKING WITH CHILDREN
We’re dedicated to supporting children to lead happy healthy lives, realise their potential and unlock their ambition.
182 children have developed socially, physically, and creatively through a range of play experiences
104 children
attended our breakfast club
127 children
attended our playscheme
58 children
attended our After School Club
28 young people
attended Transitional Youth
Family Support: Little Manor Supermarket
Little Manor Supermarket is our free weekly food distribution service where families are given a personal time slot during which they can collect various food products.
During these slots, staff talk to the families, identify additional support and provide signposting on issues including housing, debt, benefit applications, mental health and wellbeing, family conflict, difficult behaviour, domestic violence, bullying, keeping children safe online and more.
68 families
used the Little Manor Supermarket
253 family members
benefited from Little Manor Supermarket
Holiday Programmes
Our holiday programme provides fun and enriching activities for children during the school holidays as well as respite for parents who are working, studying, training or actively seeking employment.
I went to a show, we had to take a bus and a 36% of the summer HAF children were declared as having Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.
127 children attended our playscheme
The Manor: Transitional Youth Project
The Manor is a project for young people aged 12-14, aimed at building confidence, resilience, citizenship, independence, and diverse young leaders. Young people have a direct input in creating the rules of the programme; they are creators, not just consumers, which helps them to build ownership of the programme.
28 Young people
attended The Manor during the summer holidays.
Around 28% of the young people had a diagnosed disability.
88%
felt that their physical health or wellbeing had improved
100%
felt their social, communication and relationship skills improved
92%
reported improved mental health or wellbeing
WORKING WITH YOUNG PEOPLE
160 young people
developed leadership abilities, skills, confidence, networks, self-esteem & resilience.
38 local community members
attended our youth-run Community Iftar.
100% of the young people
said we were inclusive and accessible
96% of the young people
said that significantly developed their skills
22 Young People took part in our Digital Well-being Programme
100%
said they improved their knowledge about mental health & wellbeing
Project Management Masterclass
Our Project Management Masterclass was a one-week intensive training course designed to help young people develop the skills they need to boost their CVs.
13 young people attened the taster session
17 young people attended the masterclass
Youth Survey
37 young people completed our youth survey
100% said we are inclusive, accessible & recommendable
75.7% developed their networks
78% improved their confidence & resilience
96% significantly developed their skills
Young Facilitators
Our youth work model includes employing young people, aged 18 to 25, to work as paid young facilitators, in developmental roles, usually lasting around 12 to 18 months.
With support and training from more experienced youth workers, the young facilitators play a key role in engaging and supporting young people across all our youth programmes whilst co-producing and delivering activities, workshops and learning days.
This year we employed 10 Young Facilitators
WELLBEING
Positive Psychology Journaling & Coaching
Following on from last year’s pilots, we expanded our wellbeing work with evidence-based:
- Therapeutic Writing
- Expressive Writing
- Applied Positive Psychology
- Coaching Psychology
61 people engaged with the programme
The programme focused on early intervention, mental health support, providing wellbeing tools and signposting services.
As part of our commitment to fighting racial injustice our culturally tailored programmes were delivered to Black and Asian men and women.
100% benefitted from being able to learn together, share their lived experiences and grow within groups
100% learnt and implemented cost-effective tools to improve their mental health and wellbeing
COMMUNITY CONNECTORS
Community Connectors support people who are experiencing mental health difficulties. Our holistic interventions focus on supporting people to address their social needs and increase their independence, resilience, confidence, and self-esteem, which has a positive impact on their overall wellbeing.
across the whole Community Connectors team in Newham
(including Aston-Mansfield, Community Links and Mind Stratford)
Service User Story
A service user came to us having been recently discharged from a psychiatric hospital due to being suicidal.
He was separated from his partner and had been made redundant. He was heavily isolated, actively responding to voices and very paranoid.
Through the support of a Community Connector and the transformation team, a home visit and more robust medical review was done.
Through regular community meet ups, rapport building and advocacy, our team were able to help him apply for various benefits.
He was introduced to peer-to-peer support and supported in numerous community engagements – utilizing his experience to help others
He recently proudly walked his daughter down the aisle.
His family has learnt more about suicide in men and the great impact mental health has on the Caribbean community.
He is currently being supported by the employment team and is actively involved in running podcasts, support groups and journaling.
FITTER FINANCES: INVESTING IN HEALTH
Fitter Finances: Investing in Health aims to enhance the financial stability and sustainability of grassroots organisations dedicated to promoting health and well-being.
22 Community Groups received capacity-building support
We successfully launched in September 2023. Our primary focus has been to engage with and support various community groups to foster a healthier and more resilient community.
In March 2024, we participated in the Newham Voluntary Sector Spring Fair, organised by COMPOST.
We also presented at the LBN Mental Health & Wellbeing Community Grant celebration event.
At these events, we:
- presented the AMCT Grant
- promoted the work of Investing in Health
- engaged with community groups and
- organisations
VOLUNTEERING
Volunteers are vital in achieving our core mission and aims. We are lucky to have a vibrant and very active group of volunteers. Our volunteers come from diverse backgrounds, including neurodiverse, long-term unemployed, undergraduates, and postgraduates to those volunteers with few to no qualifications.
48 people volunteered with us this year
Mental Health
Supporting those with mental health challenges and who are neurodiverse to have meaningful volunteering experiences
Community Coaching
Working with the University of East London to bring coaching into the community & provide post-grad students coaching opportunities
Moving into Employment
Volunteers moving onto employment or education – expressing gratitude for gaining work experience or developing their self-esteem with us
Volunteer Stories
“I like being able to meet new people and being part of a team.”
“I like volunteering at Aston-Mansfield. I enjoy the away days because I get to meet other staff and volunteers and get to contribute by having my say about things Aston-Mansfield is doing. It’s nice to know that my opinion matters.”
“Everyone is so friendly & supportive.”
“As an international volunteer on a 12-month placement, I appreciated he support I got living and working in a new country. My host family is AMAZING.”
OUR COMMUNITY CENTRES
We rent out Durning Hall in Forest Gate and Aston-Mansfield Community Centre in Manor Park at affordable rates to the community to use for a range of events and activities.
5570 Individuals
Up from 3860 last year
82 Community Groups
Up from 71 last year
82 Group Bookings
69 Private Functions
26 Office Spaces
Our community centres welcomed Skills Enterprise as a new office hirer, and we were happy to assist Well Newham and Newham Recovery College with their launch events.
We also continued to host local Scout and Cubs meetings. We’ve had a relationship with the local Scout movement dating back to the 1930’s.
Warm Haven
Over January, February and March 2024, we ran a Warm Haven at our community centre in Manor Park.
The Warm Haven was a chance for people to get out of the cold, have a conversation and get the support they might need.
It was completely free, open to everyone and a chance for the community to come along and:
- Enjoy hot drinks, cakes and biscuits
- Charge their devices
- Play board games
- Chat and socialise
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