Wednesday 13th September 2017 - arsenal, october program, cripplegate

Posted 5:05pm

It's a glorious hot afternoon here in Marble Arch, and I am just about to head round to my elderly friend's flat as he is off to watch Tottenham v Dortmund in the Champion's League tonight at Wembley. I am sitting for his brother.

Whilst there I will be working on the funding spreadsheet to accompany another funding application that I completed this afternoon (I have sent it off to my board and HMHB people to review - there must be things that need changing and I always happy to listen to views).  This funding is a maximum of £5000. I imagine few get that though. Generally, if you are successful on applications it tends to be around half of what you ask for. Although, it would be nice to get anything at the moment. It does not cover salaries of course. But it does cover "core" costs - which are vital for us at the moment to provide a quality and professional service.

We met with Arsenal on Monday at their fantastic "Hub" building next to the stadium.  Fantastic layout and great for the local community. We have a terrific chat with Samir and Alan from their Gunners Fund who said they really liked what we are doing, but they didnt fund core costs - which is what we applied for.  Although naturally a bit disappointed, we totally understand all that. But they might actually fund a program. We are going to approach Change Grow Live.

Finally, a terrific meeting last night with Single Homeless Project re our first ever paid program which will now start on the 3 October - 7 sessions (six on consecutive Tuesdays, the seventh on the following Saturday).  We talked about structure and all the chat was positive. We both looking for various outcomes and are also anxious to get good numbers.  I feel we are offering a huge amount.

Monday 11th September 2017 - funding; video intros

Posted 1:45pm

I am sitting have a coffee off the Holloway Road at the moment, all ready for a meeting with Arsenal Football Club to talk about our funding application for their Gunners Fund - which helps local community projects around the area.

We put the application in around five/six months ago, and since then some of our funding necessities have changed, and a couple of things on the application are no longer needed.  We are hoping to still get the £2000 we applied for, but have sent a new list of items - some of them are the same - that we have prioritised.

This includes a new laptop (there are two of us delivering and preparing for the project but only one laptop between us) with updated Microsoft Office software. Also anti-virus software. All of the costings are from the internet.

Plus we want to get accounting software now we are trading, in order to comply properly with Companies House and the HMRC. I like Sage, and we have contacted them to get the costings for this.

On top of that we have put in for travel, insurance for Personal Trainer, stationery, and first aid.

Scott was invited by Arsenal to attend too - so I am very hopeful that we could get the £2000. However, they might not like the fact we have adjusted the items. We will wait and see, but I am excited to attend - we will put another blog posting to update.

We sent off an application yesterday to the Local Initiatives Fund - which is managed by local councillors for projects within their wards. We have already chatted with Osh Gantly and Caroline Russell about this - in fact both of them mentioned this fund.  We asked for around £880 to really push the Izzwalkz CP, and I am hopeful that we will get something - if not all of that.  It would be great to be able to really publicize it and build up numbers - as well as get some fitness equipment and volunteer clothing and items.

We are starting three more funding applications this week - Cripplegate, Trust For London and Awards For All. Plus investigating other opportunities.

Finally, we really need to get our fitness videos onto our Youtube channel. But we need to have "intros" and "outros" on them - and none of us have the slightest clue how to do.  So i went online and found a website where professionals advertise themselves, showing their costs too.  I have left and advert, but contacted a freelancer who does animations and videos. So hoping something comes back for that.  We have put that cost (£75) into the Gunners Fund application.

Saturday 9th September 2017 - persistence and self-belief are key

Posted 11:00am

Just reflecting on a very positive week.  We are definitely moving forward with pace, but this has been years in the making - and we have had to go through many pitfalls on the way.

I liked the graphic at the top of this blog posting. That big "confidence" surrounded by negative words sums us up perfectly. We have always believed we had a concept that would work, even if we have adapted it a lot of times along the way. Its format has been fluid and we have changed direction a few times, often because of small conversations when we have been networking.

I do think we have got a good program now - and we are having fun developing the small changes and improvements for this second project with SHP starting in October. But it has taken persistence and self-belief.  There have been numerous occasions where people have told me to drop the project and move on - "it's a great idea but nobody will give you funding as you need to prove your outcomes first" - this, in different ways, has been said to us a lot.  But i have carried on emailing, phoning, and meeting. Always trying to find influential people, top people, people who can affect money and decisions. We are finally emerging into a new era - and are so close to finally getting ourselves going properly.

This week coming I have at least eight meetings organised - all of which will be influential in the direction we are heading. I know I have a further two already booked for the following week, and intend on getting at least another three added to that.

This weekend is a vital one with paperwork. I want to complete at least another two of the funding applications - one is completed already. By next Friday I want to have got five off to their destination. Would be amazing to get two or three of them. Only one of them covers salaries though. That is the biggest issue at the moment. How long can we carry on without earning?

By the end of this week I also want to have a majority of all the handouts prepared - that we will be distributing in the October program. I have a couple of booklets I also want to prepare (an evidence one and a fitness one) but cannot start those until I have got our handouts ready.

I also need to work on the service user evaluation/welcome papers, the contract, and the information papers - all for our SHP meeting on Monday - we have some very exciting additions to this program and I am thrilled to be offering them.  

Friday 8th September 2017 - Handouts, plus accounts

Posted 2:05pm

Just about to head off to the gym to do some gentle cardio - this bubble in my eye jumps up and down if i exercise heavily and is very annoying!!

I have been very busy preparing various handouts for our next program - and we will be keeping these, and probably adjusting them, for future courses too. I still have many to ocmplete.

We will be giving out four handouts each session - one on mindset, one on fitness, one on health, and one on nutrition - all relevant to what we were discussing on the day.  It is great fun preparing them, to be honest.  We want to make them bespoke to us - but naturally I am trawling the internet for relevant pictures and wording - which we can then adapt more to the language that we want to put over. When I used to get computer software I loved the "Idiots Guide" books you could get, as they spoke plain clear English. So we are looking to provide evidence like that.

I am also reviewing accounts software. I did mention it a week or so ago, but it is important that we start when we mean to continue, and I will be buying Sage software - which you can get for a monthly fee - but that depends very much on funding.  Thankfully we are meeting Arsenal on Monday, and a years worth of accounts software will be part of that package we are requesting. We also want to buy some more fitness equipment to go along with what we have. If we have five walks and bi-weekly pt sessions, we need to ensure we can build up a good base.

Thursday 7th September 2017 - walks, cooking and fitness

Posted 2:30pm
Second blog entry of the day, as more news on a few subjects.

Had a nice walk this morning for our Izzwalkz CP.  Need to pick up numbers, but we still have a lovely chat and laugh. A new member joined us today - and that was through AGE UK (so it is nice to know that we are recommended by people). It was nice to chat to him, and we were also able to direct him to some other services in the area.  Hopefully we can get the funding we have applied for to really establish five/six healthy walks in Islington.

We heartily recommend another service called Bags Of Taste - who demonstrate cooking various recipes on a budget - in a very proactive way. They are running another course in Islington (Canonbury) starting in a couple of weeks. Sadly just too early for our next Ajani customers. But I will be attending two of the days with Rosie, who came through our pilot with great success. I met her this week and she is starting a college course in a couple of weeks and is pushing herself forwards fantastically. Yay!!!

Dean continues to run our Saturday personal training session. It is now every Saturday, meeting outside Highbury Pool and Gym at 12:30pm, and then going up to Highbury Fields for an hour. Sadly I am unable to go this coming weekend, as I have benefited well from these sessions myself.  We are looking to start a midweek session nearer to Camden - probably on the day of the course - for our service users.

Thursday 7th September 2017 - lots of meetings; very busy time

Posted 2:00pm

The diary is filling up quickly as we are organising a lot of meetings over the next couple of weeks. Together with my incredibly lengthy to-do list I fear I am going to be working a few nights too!!! But I would much rather have it this way than be sitting down twiddling my thumbs. Nothing like a challenge!

We currently have meetings organised in the next two weeks with:

Hackney Council Employment Team

Islington Council

Borough Relationship Manager for Camden Job Centres

Practice Manager for Highbury Grange Medical Centre

Single Homeless Project - re our October program

Rosemary from our board - down from Scotland - hoping to catch breakfast (please!!)

Telephone meeting with American Fitness expert Jordan Syatt

Voluntary Action Islington - as we start our years Capacity Building Project with them

We are trying to organise meetings with:

Islington NHS CCG - just waiting for a date

Arsenal FC - re Gunners Fund application - just waiting for a date

The BIG Alliance - just waiting for a date (logo at top - details below)

Clarion Housing Group

Peabody Housing Group

British Library - re possible tour

The BIG Alliance (Business for Islington Giving Alliance), on their website say:

"Since 2012, almost 1,000 business volunteers have been placed into a wide range of roles including one-off and ongoing opportunities providing business support in areas such as HR, marketing, legal and business planning, mentoring roles, acting as new board members, and 1,308 have taken part in team challenges. 

This support has been delivered to 124 community, voluntary and not-for-profit organisations across the borough. In addition, through the education programme, 399 pupils from eight institutions have benefited from mentoring relationships.  

As a result of its piloted employment work, the BIG Alliance has also helped 148 people into work"

We feel that we can network with them, as we also need volunteers to help with the expansion of our Izzwalkz initiative.  I am hoping we can have a good relationship.

Tuesday 5th September 2017 - news updates

British Library:

between Kings Cross St Pancras

and Euston stations

Posted 2:30pm
Second posting of the day - but some exciting updates to share as we progress.

Firstly, Arsenal in the Community have asked to meet with us over our application on their Gunners Fund.  We applied in April, and part of it covered a proposed course in June with the Job Centre, which did not happen in the end.  But we would like to see if they will allow us to use it on a different program this autumn.  We also asked for money towards marketing/admin/stationery; first aid training; insurance for our Personal Trainer; as well as travel. Hopefully we will be meeting with them next week - with Scott. I need to sit down and reevaluate the amount to cover our needs as of now.  Naturally there is no guarantee, but it is a good boost that someone has seen what we are doing and is considering granting us some money.  I am also hoping that we can persuade them that they could get even more involved in the future.

We have organised our telephone conversation with Jordan for next week too. This is the American fitness expert and I feel very excited. We also will be asking him if he thinks he knows any contacts in London that could possibly assist us - I know he has dealings all over the world.  But the fact he has agreed to chat to us, after seeing our email and our online links is another terrific boost.

I have completed our funding application on the Local Initiatives fund - this is the one that local Islington Councillors can distribute in their wards to projects directly affecting their area. We met with both Osh Gantly and Caroline Russell, Councillors for Highbury East - and will be applying for just over £800 towards the Izzwalkz CP walk.  Again, no guarantees, but it must help that both of them encouraged us to apply.

I have contacted the British Library about bringing our Ajani group on a visit. It is a very interesting building. SHP themselves have asked us to target "employability" a bit more for our next course, and I feel that this could help - it can be used for job search and research.  I am waiting to hear, but I do know they run tours - I just hope they do not charge!!!

Finally, Voluntary Action Islington gave us an excellent contact at Islington Council, and I will meeting with her next week too. So it is getting to be very full - and I am hoping to get a few more organised too.