Newsletter
Birmingham Settlement attends the Freemasons Lodge of Happiness Ladies Evening.
Worshipful Master Steve Tector with Chris Doolan and Laura Kemp
The local Freemasons Lodge of Happiness kindly invited our Chair of the Board, Chris Doolan, and Fundraising Officer, Laura Kemp, to join them at their Ladies Dinner Event.
The event was held at the Freemasons Lodge in Edgbaston and saw members of the Lodge invite their partners and wives along to join them for an evening of dining.
We were privileged to be a part of the event, and to represent Birmingham Settlement. Worshipful Master of the Lodge, Steve Tector, previously owned a printing business through which he came to know of the Settlement. We were delighted to be able to take the floor for a few minutes to tell everyone a little about our work and our history in the city, and everyone responded by donating a very generous £352.00 towards our work.
The Warwickshire Masonic Charitable Association has been supporting the work of Birmingham Settlement since 2007 and to date have donated almost £2,000.
We’re delighted to have such a great relationship with the group and hope it continues for many years to come.
Increase your employability at the Birmingham Settlement Job Club!
Birmingham Settlement’s Job Club has gotten off to a great start! Launching on 17th April it’s already been immensely popular and had a good attendance each week. So far our volunteers have been helping people to complete application forms and looking at the possible criteria that employers might use for short-listing.
If you’re looking for work and want to refine your CV, develop great interview skills or want to find out how the Internet and digital technology can support your job search come along to find out more. Our netWORK sessions will look specifically at using social media and digital tools to portray a positive image of yourself and help you to connect with potential employers in new ways.
If you’ve got skills you would like to share then we’re also looking for volunteers to support the delivery of Job Club sessions. We’re particular looking for people who have some experience in IT, but anybody who has some knowledge they would like to share can help out.
The Job Club runs every Tuesday from 1pm-3pm at the Centre for the Aston Family.
For further information about the Job Club please contact Sourour Trevelyan on 0121 250 0771 or sourour.trevelyan@bsettlement.org.uk
Settlement Stories – Annual Review 2011
In 2011 we had the pleasure of working with lots of people in lots of situations. Looking back on the year, we decided that our annual review should concentrate on telling some of the stories from people we’ve met who’ve inspired us, helped us or simply made us smile. Download our Annual Review 2011to read more about the all the fantastic things that happened to us last year!
Universal Credit and Free School Meals
The Universal Credit debate is hotting up as we move closer to the full implementation of this new system. The Children’s Society have raised concerns that the changes made to eligibility to “Free School Meals” will actually counter the ethos of the new system. Universal Credit is designed to streamline benefits and make working “always” the better option for people. BBC Radio 4 aired these concerns and presented the Society’s claim that an income gap will occur and that some families who enter the job market will actually be worse off. The loss of free school meals will mean that working actually “doesn’t pay” and that some children will go without their only hot meal of the day. As advisers at Birmingham Settlement we’ve always factored in “Free School Meals” and the cost of travel to and from work when we assess benefits for our clients. You can see the full article here.
Birmingham to Brussels fundraiser
Chief Executive Martin Holcombe and Facilities Co-ordinator Mark Sargeant are cycling from Birmingham to Brussels in 6 days from 21st-26th May. You can show your support by sponsoring them here and by encouraging your friends and family to do the same. They’ll be blogging and uploading video along the way so watch this space for further information!
Tash talks!
We’re delighted that one of our expert money advisers, Tash Ramrous, just keeps getting invited back as a guest on Radio WM! Every month Tash is doing a special programme about money issues where she’s taking the calls of Midlands listeners. Tash has decades of experience in providing specialist debt and welfare benefits advice so tune in if you want to get useful, independent info about this issue. Tash is part of a team of money advisers here at the Settlement so you can always stop by in person to get some guidance about debt or welfare benefits. We’re open week days between 09:30am-4:30pm and all of our advisers have a lots of specialist knowledge and experience so there’s not much we can’t help resolve!
Settlement stories: The benefits of volunteering.
Maureen is a 67 year old woman who is retired and lives alone. After retirement Maureen found it difficult because she did not know what to do with her time and felt isolated and alone. To alleviate this, she began volunteering at one of Birmingham Settlement’s charity shops. Since then Maureen has made many friends and feels that she has built a new support network from these relationships. Working in the shop has helped her get to know customers and other volunteers living nearby and enjoys seeing the same people every week for a chat and catch up. Maureen says that volunteering has made her feel useful again and has encouraged her friends to become volunteers too due to her positive experiences. The impact on Maureen’s health and wellbeing has been fantastic as the shop activities keep her physically and mentally active; Maureen challenges herself without overdoing it!
Join our Community Development team.
Our Community Development team are currently seeking three staff members to support their work out in the community. What is community development about?
Image thanks to Niall Kennedy.
Capacity-building for smaller organisations…
Image thanks to Adopt a Negotiator.
Aston and the surrounding inner city areas…
Image thanks to Elliot Brown.
Digital inclusion and how technology and social media can benefit our work…
Image thanks to Michael Surran.
Localism and how to strengthen local networks, culture and identity…
Image thanks to Nick Booth.
People and how they can make the most of their community.
Image thanks to Matthew Kenwrick.
Please see each vacancy page for further information:
- Development Manager: http://birminghamsettlement.org.uk/vacancy/development-manager/
- Development Officer: http://birminghamsettlement.org.uk/vacancy/development-officer/
- Development Assistant: http://birminghamsettlement.org.uk/vacancy/development-assistant/
Support Zurich’s 1,000 mile cycling challenge!
This September staff at Zurich Community Trust will be cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and they need your support! If you are interested in taking part as a cyclist they would welcome your involvement, but if not then making a donation to the cause would be very much appreciated! Income raised during the event will be split between a group of charities that Zurich are supporting, and Birmingham Settlement are proud to be one of these. For more information please see their website: http://www.z1000m.com.
Zurich Community Trust is working in partnership with Birmingham Settlement’s Ageing Well programme for the next three years, and will be providing funding, as well being involved in the programme’s activities and events.
Mystery shoppers wanted!
We’re looking for some volunteer mystery shoppers. We need you and / or your family and friends to go along to any one of our shops to have a look and see what you think.
Our shops are based in: Boldmere, Erdington, Harborne, Newtown, Shirley, Sutton Coldfield and Wylde Green. If you live near to any of these, perhaps you could pop in and feedback to us.
We would like to get feedback from at least three people per shop and would appreciate any help you can give.
If you or anyone else you know are interested, could you please contact me and I will provide you with relevant information and a short questionnaire for you to complete and return after your visit.
Di Hickey
T: 0121 250 3010
E: di.hickey@bsettlement.org.uk
Thanking you in anticipation.