Dear
Volunteers and Friends
It hardly seems possible that it’s
already thebeginning of February and the Christmas
rush is well behind us. I have already seen snowdrops and several daffodils
coming through, despite the recent cold snap. It has been a busy and prosperous
few weeks for us here at Kingsbridge and Saltstone Caring (KASC), with seven
new volunteers since the beginning of the year, who we are very pleased to
welcome on board.
Volunteer
Workshops
We
were delighted to talk with some of you at our three Volunteer Workshops which
took place on 6 December, and 9 and 16 January. Thank you to those who braved the wintry
weather to spend a couple of hours with us; it was good to have the opportunity
to explain our wishes to provide a greater service in the village communities,
and how we have changed our assessment processes to give us a better
understanding of client needs and goals. We will be arranging more events to give you
news and updates later in the year and look forward to seeing even more of you
then.
The
three meetings were arranged according to regional areas – Kingsbridge, the west
villages and the remaining outlying villages so that locality-sensitive
discussions could take place. We’re aware
that KASC at present somewhat Kingsbridge centric and our 3-year Business Plan
set out tasks to address the imbalance.
Subject to funding, we would like to have a greater presence in the
villages and we discussed how we might go about this.
Each
meeting commenced with an introduction by the Chairman, Derek Weaving, followed
by a presentation. Derek and I presented
slides between us inviting comments and discussion. The aim was to facilitate discussion of the
points we made and to stimulate thinking and ideas. We also talked about how
important it is for us to receive regular ‘Diary Sheets’ (or an email, which is
equally good), so we have up-to-date information about when you saw your client
and for how long, as well as a brief description of how you spent your time
together. It’s become ever more important for us to have records of volunteer
interactions with clients and to maintain ongoing information as to client
wellbeing. Please make every effort to submit your information
at least once a month. In an increasingly data-driven world, we need this information
to prove our worth to partner organisations and as we apply for grants and
other sources of funding to keep the charity going.
A
common response at the workshops was that volunteers valued being communicated
with, advised of what was going on (including staff changes) and had the
opportunity to give their observations and views on the Charity. There was recognition
that obtaining grants for funding was a major challenge for the staff and
trustees. Although we are OK for the
short term, significant funding will be required to maintain our services and
to meet growing need. Several volunteers said they get a strong sense
of purpose from their association with KASC; many felt they got as much out of it
as their clients. The needs assessment
of new clients and our approach to pairing client with volunteers seem to be
working well. Due to the revised assessment regime, we now know a lot more
about the needs and frailty levels of new clients. We now need to apply the
same approach to longer term service users.
Can you help
us?
We
have about 90 clients wanting a weekly or fortnightly visit and have less than
two-thirds that number of volunteers who are committed to providing regular
support. There are 31 ad hoc volunteers
on our books and at present we are seeing reduced demand for ad hoc shopping
etc. If any ad hoc volunteers were able to consider seeing someone on a regular
basis – perhaps once a fortnight – we would love to hear from you.
Other News
We
are thrilled that Thurlestone Golf Club has adopted KASC as its Charity of the
Year and look forward to joining with them for some exciting fundraising events
during 2019. Equally we are very grateful to Kingsbridge Co-Op in for their
support and donation. We have been given financial support by some of our
valued Friends too in the past couple of months, some in lieu of Christmas
cards and others for helping their families over the years. We are reliant on
donations and fundraising, without which we could not continue to provide the
support to local people that we arrange.
Dates for your
diary:
So,
with the New Year, we have started planning our upcoming fundraising events.
Following on the success of last autumn, the first will be a Spring Fashion
Show at Avon Mill on 3 April at 6pm. We have arranged a private Film Show at
Dodbrooke Parish Hall on 3 May at 6pm, details to follow. Further events
including a classic car show, a quiz, interesting and informative talks, a ‘cream
teas and carriages’ occasion, as well as a sponsored kayak/paddle board/ swim trial
round Burgh Island. Rest assured we will
let you know more in due course, and we look forward to seeing you and your
friends/family at some of them.
Please
feel free to provide any feedback or updates to me or the team in the office.
We are:
Jane Bray, Interim Manager – Mondays
and Tuesdays
Anne Brunner-Ellis, Charity Officer –
Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Rachel O’Connell, Finance Officer – Mondays and Thursdays
Jinny Robinson, Admin Officer –
Thursdays and Fridays
Andy Walker, Technical Officer –
Mondays and some Tuesdays
With
very best regards,
Jane