The NEW Voluntary and Community Sector:

‘Uncertainties and Strengths’

Brief summary of the Vince Hines Foundation’s core activities:

The Vince Hines Foundation was established in 1975 in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and registered as a national education charity. A voluntary committee manages the Foundation. Volunteers are used extensively. The operational direction of the Charity is based on the following broad headings – organisation development, family support, youth development, community learning, Sports and leisure, support for the over 50’s, community development. Advocacy, Networking and Partnership are important themes of the Foundation’s work. A strategic delivery plan was adopted by the Foundation’s Management, in April 2003, as a point of reference in the Management course of developing and delivering the Foundation’s registered objectives for 2003-2008.

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Sustained Increase In service delivery

There has been a verifiable and significant increase in the Charity's case load since April of 2003, (average monthly increase of 251%) most of whom are children and young people who are not in education, employment and training, and those who may be hardest to reach, and are in contact with the Criminal Justice System,

These new circumstances caused the Foundation’s management to expand the Charity’s premises to accommodate current pressing needs. Inevitably, this capacity building presents initial challenges in respect of associated development costs. Members were confident in their decisions as there was a realistic anticipation in an increase of the Charity’s funding from Connexions, NDC, PAYP, U project, The lottery Fund, Trust and Foundations, gifts in kind and so on, with strong voluntary support.

As a result, in April 2003, the Foundation expanded and up-graded its premises from first floor to three floors, by 300%. This includes an Information, Communications and Technology (ITC) Centre, which contains workshops for children and young people, a dedicated education and training suite, capable of seating fifty people and other extensive office facilities in support of this work.

This involved a new ten-year lease. The Foundation’s premises are designated ‘A CONNECTION ACCESS CENTRE’ by the Connexions – London West Partnership. The Centre has on permanent display the official Connexions Logo. Children and young people drop in for information, advice and general support.

They have access to high-level ITC facilities. The Centre has 13 modern computers, network with an independent server and high-speed access to the INTERNET. It has a modern telephone system, which is used by young people in their job search, etc. It has project facilities and learning aids.

Coinciding with the increased capacities, there has been a record level of beneficiaries currently using the Centre. Over sixty percent of whom are between the ages of 13-19 years.

From our experience, each of the activities on offer is popular with the beneficiaries – some are more popular than others. This is partly because, before activities are planned, beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries are consulted.

Type of activities: The Foundation maintains state of the art digital pictorial records of all of its activities. Some of these activities are: Cinema, Wide Screen Computer games, Chessington World of Adventures, Football, DVD, Scrambling, Residential to Buntlines: Junior, Deejaying/Music Classes, Dance Workshop, Paintball, Scrambling –Motor Cross, Bowling & Arcade, Go – Karting, Banana Boat Ride, Ice-Skating, Alton Towers, Dry Skiing, Residential to Butlins: Senior, Adventure in the Outdoors – South Devon. Group B, C, D, Outreach, ITC, Photography, Work Experience, Meeting, One to One, CV support, Supplementary Education, Job Brokerage, Practice in Good Interview Techniques, Sports, Training, Certificate of Basic Training (Moped), Info & Advice, Carnival, Discussion, meeting/conferences, Advocacy, supporting families, Networking and Profiling.

9. Current Work Operational Projects

Partnership on the Street – an innovative outreach work among children and young people late at nights;

Youth Support & Resource for Life Projects – Providing information and advice, which contribute to children and young people being better informed to make positive choices on matters, dealing with their education, training and getting jobs. Support young ex-offenders, young refugees, and under-achieving minority ethnic young people;

Sports and Leisure Project (Foundation Eagles Football Club) proving sponsorship and practical administrative and managerial support to members of the community for their participation in sports at league levels, including the North Fulham and West Surrey Football Leagues;

Family Support Project – working with parents, schools and children in developing better all-round communications, to reduce truancy, school exclusions, improve self-esteem, improved academic performances and minimum anti social behaviour, particularly among those target deemed ‘hardest to reach’;

Education and Training Project – including work with local schools, providing work experience, community support and student work placements. Some of these are:

Hurlingham and Chelsea school

Henry Compton

Fulham Cross

Burlinton Danes

Phoenix High school

Gibbs Green Special School

Southfield Community College

Metropolitan University

Staff – paid and unpaid, training, in their up-grading skills, including attending Connexions Personal Advisor (PA) Diploma, Introduction, APIR and understanding Connexions courses and other short courses in finance and management; and

Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) Project – working in partnership with Elite Motor Cycles Ltd, the Foundation provides professional training for 16+ year olds in riding mopeds and motorbikes safely. The individual success at this type of training will improve their chances of gaining temporary and immediate jobs, such as fast foods and video delivery, dispatch riders, etc

10 ¹Number of young people benefited during April 2003 to January 2004

Ethnic breakdowns:

•Black British: 269

•White British: 214

•White Irish: 1

•White and Black Caribbean: 111

•Black Caribbean: 216

•Black African: 179

•Other: 12

Total: 1002

Gender

•Male: 748

•Female: 254

Total: 1002

Age groups:

• 0-8: 36

• 9-12: 107

• 13-15: 212

• 16-18: 294

• 19-24: 156

• 25+: 197

•Total: 1002

Percentage (%)

•Black British: 26.85%

•White British: 21.36%

•White Irish: 0.1 %

•White and Black Caribbean: 11.08%

•Black Caribbean: 21.56%

•Black African: 17.86%

•Other: 1.19%

Total: 100%

11. Specialist nature of the Foundation’s work

The Foundation is currently celebrating 29 years of working with the community, providing culturally sensitive and relevant services across the borough.

The Foundation has built up important confidence and trust among users – children and young people and their families, particularly those who many be socially excluded, and termed hardest to reach, and not in education, employment or training, some of whom may be involved in the criminal justice system.

The significant number of people using the Foundation’s services demonstrates this confidence and trust. The work of the Charity is centre based, outdoor non-residential and residential adventure activities.

Many children and young people targeted will have had long standing or multiple problems to address before any issues to do with learning can be tackled realistically.

12. Factors contributing to the effectiveness of the Foundation’s work

The Vince Hines Foundation has been operating in the target areas for twenty-nine years. It has built up a reputation of working with a cross section of local residents in need, particularly children and young people. Many children of those who benefited from the Foundation’s services many years ago come to the Foundation. One generation follows the other. The Foundation builds confidence by its consistency and its non-judgemental professional and innovative methods of service delivery among the local population.

13. The Foundation’s main thrust is to promote

•Self-confidence

Self-respect

Identity

Personal development

Purpose

Communications skills

Teamwork

Focus

Motivation

Self-development, and

The fulfilment of children’s and young peoples’ full potentials as individuals and so they can improve their quality of life, by pointing to constructive alternatives to possible misspent youth.

14. Outcomes

Based on the analysis of the Foundation’s ‘Beneficiaries’ Service Evaluation Form’, given to each beneficiary and visitor to the Projects’ sites, overall responses to the services on offer were:

90% very satisfied

9% fairly satisfied

0.5% neither satisfied

0.5% fairly dissatisfied

00% very dissatisfied

15. Partnerships

The following are some of the Foundation's local partners: BECDF Local Development Support Network, Connexions – London West Partnership, North Fulham New Deal for Communities Partnership, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Youth Service, Social Services and the Policy and Administration Departments, local schools and colleges. The Foundation is a member of the Connexions Local Management Committee.

In addition to these already established liaison mechanism, the Foundation’s staff continue to have regular formal and informal meetings with youth service, youth offending team, Raleigh International, Ground Work, and other relevant agencies, in order to up-date, exchange activities time tables and implementations, and, where practical, joint activities proposed by the Foundation the various agencies. Networking is a key part of the Foundation’s policy. This is an attempt to minimise unnecessary duplications of service delivery among agencies and sharing good and best practices.

The Foundation has been consistently transparent in delivering its services. Its Interim and final reports are sent to partners detailing activities, outcomes and other relevant information.

16. Mismatched Quality of Funding and Quality of Work

The quality of work being done by the Foundation in the borough is not reflected in the quality of funding available;

Management

Report 2003/4