It’s been a great week!! Meeting at Canary Wharf on Wednesday with a national bank to finalise their sponsorship of COMMUNILAB, being the virtual learning network that will bring together community - university- local authority and business perspectives. The meeting was very positive, indeed serendipitous as one of the bank’s participants lives down the road in Burpham, thereby exemplifying our point exactly that COMMUNILAB enables employers to demonstrate support for their employees in their home context. Indebted to our Trustee Nigel Biggs whose idea this is – great generosity of spirit.
Very useful strategic discussion on Monday with the Assistant CEO of Surrey & Borders NHS Trust about the Consortium bid for grant-making trust funding to train voluntary sector youth workers in how to identify and respond appropriately to mental health issues amongst young people. Really promising long term links established. Surrey Police Crime Commissioner has indeed become a Partner organisation of ours and we welcome them.
The Surrey CC local prevention grants are being made – the £2.5mill - and I met with a very angry and frustrated bidder on Tuesday to hear his views, which was useful as yesterday I had a one to one meeting with Surrey CC’s top manger for services to young people, which is my most private discussion I’m afraid. All good for Surrey Youth Focus though.
Signing off our agreement with Business in the Community today whereby we undertake to help them source volunteering opportunities/corporate awayday projects amongst our members in return for a fee.
Off today to meet with my fellow directors of the social enterprise now that we have our office base in Leatherhead; we need to progress matters quickly now to recruit staff and get trading. Then meeting with Surrey CC commissioner to sign contract for us to undertake the admin of their Youth Small Grants scheme (£200,000) in respect of which we have been cranking up by….Recruiting Su Freeman as our Events and Marketing Manger so that Kate has the time to organise the small grants scheme, for which of course we get a fee. Delighted that Su has joined us – her background is in sports marketing/events organising, but sorry that Shelagh West has decided to discontinue her volunteering with us as business adviser and we wish her well, especially with controlling her new puppy – a full time occupation!
And finally – don’t forget Argentina v. England on Sat evening (BBC 2) . If you have to ask, you can’t be a regular reader. Gearing up for 2015!
Enjoy the sun!
Mike
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