From services such as Essex ARC and Futures in Mind there are many job vacancies at Phoenix Futures based in the Essex area from, Alcohol recovery practitioner, administrator, service manager and more.
For more information on available job vacancies visit their website.
Small charities doing vital work to support local communities are facing untenable challenges because of the cost of living crisis. Because of increasing costs, workforce challenges and significant rises in demand from beneficiaries, almost half of those we surveyed are fighting for survival. Urgent government intervention is required to ensure they can keep supporting their communities.
The Connection Coalition was formed by The Jo Cox Foundation in April 2020 as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, anticipating that the nation was at risk of a crisis of disconnection and a worsening epidemic of loneliness and isolation. Over 800 organisations have joined the Coalition and we support them as they work to build and maintain relationships and connections in their communities.
As the pandemic rolls into a third winter and the impacts of the cost of living crisis start to be felt, the ongoing crisis of disconnection is only set to worsen. Across the UK, communities are supported by over 166,000 voluntary organisations, the majority of them small, with a turnover of less than £1 million. Many of these organisations stepped up in the face of the pandemic, providing vital services at the most difficult of times. It is essential to listen to, value and give practical support to these organisations who are keeping our communities safe and connected.
We conducted an online survey of Connection Coalition members for two weeks in September – October 2022. 23 members responded, giving us a snapshot of the experiences and concerns of small charities right now.
Su Moore, CEO of The Jo Cox Foundation, said:
“This report makes sobering but important reading. Members of the Connection Coalition are doing vital work on the ground to support their communities. With so many of these charities at risk it is clear that, without urgent government intervention, we will be facing a crisis of increased loneliness and disconnection as well as a cost of living crisis.”
Interested members of the public need to live near the Essex Coast so this includes the districts of: Southend, Thurrock, Castle Point, Rochford, Maldon, Colchester, Tendring.
Ten years ago, we launched AmazonSmile to make it easier for customers to support their favourite charities. However, since launch, the programme has not grown to create the impact that we had originally hoped.
AmazonSmile represents a very small portion of the total charitable contributions made through our other programmes, which we estimate at more than £100 million in 2021.
We are writing to let you know that we plan to wind down AmazonSmile by February 20, 2023. We will continue to pursue and invest in other programmes that we know will have more impact—from providing support to families in need, to using our logistics infrastructure and technology to assist communities impacted by natural disasters.
We recognise that these are difficult times for everyone, including charities, so we are providing an additional one-time donation to participating charities equivalent to six months of what they earned through the programme in 2022, and they will also be able to accrue additional donations until the program officially closes in February. Once AmazonSmile closes, charities will still be able to seek support from Amazon customers by creating their own wish lists.
As a company, we will continue supporting a wide range of partnerships that help thousands of charities and communities across the UK. For example:
We recently announced a new partnership with Comic Relief that began with our support for the Comic Relief Cost of Living Appeal, which supports families across the UK and alleviates pressures caused by rising costs.
Our product donation programmes continue to help people and families in need, providing more than 15 million essential goods in the last year alone. These include In Kind Direct, a partnership that supports more than 2,000 charities with donations that help more than 250,000 people every single week.
We have also launched a new Amazon for Charities store which allows charities to raise money by selling products on Amazon and collecting 100% of profits. Today the store features Macmillan Cancer Support, Royal British Legion, the Natural History Museum, Marie Curie and we are adding more charities all of the time.
On top of this work, we will continue to invest in our capabilities to support communities in the UK and abroad every day and in times of crisis. So far, for example, we’ve partnered with Magic Breakfast to deliver more than 6.6 million free breakfasts to thousands of children across the country, and we delivered more than 7 million COVID-19 test kits across the UK during the pandemic. We have also been using our logistics capabilities to help people affected by the war in Ukraine. Globally, we’ve provided more than $75 million in support including millions of critical relief items – from medical supplies to blankets, food, books and devices for refugees, working closely with charities such as Save The Children.
We’ll continue working to making a difference in many ways, but our long-term commitment to our communities remains the same: we are determined to help create a better world for our customers, our employees, and the communities we serve across the country.
Following the Age Well Funding event on 16th January 2023 we are now welcoming applications and ideas generated since the event. Please find attached herewith the application form for the Fund, the slide presentation from the event and the funding criteria.
One Colchester, the local strategic partnership for the Borough, is holding £122,000 for distribution in Colchester over the next two years. £127,000 is being held by Tendring Together. C360 and CVS Tendring are providing administrative support for managing the fund and supporting development of applications. There will be the potential to explore awarding funds to groups working across North East Essex through the collaborative management of the funding.
If you would like to ask any further questions or require any support please contact us at [email protected] or call 01206 505250 and ask for Todorina or Emma.
Please send completed applications to: [email protected] or by post to Community360, Winsley’s House, High Street, Colchester, CO1 1UG. Phone 01206 505250
The deadline for initial applications is 17th February 2023
Colchester has been awarded a full allocation of £1.362 million of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF), following the approval of the Investment Plan by the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
The Shared Prosperity Fund is a new three-year fund, running from 2022/23. The Shared Prosperity Fund replaces the European Structural and Investment Funds. This new Shared Prosperity Fund will fund 17 projects, provided by a range of partners that contribute to the SPF themes of business support, community and health.
The projects supported are wide-reaching and include:
Community Supermarket: a scheme based in Greenstead run by Essex County Council that builds on the work of food banks, by offering subsidised groceries, providing choice and dignity for those moving away from crisis support. The Community Supermarket supports those facing ongoing or temporary hardship and puts money back in residents’ pockets – freeing up disposable income to boost the local economy.
The Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme: a scheme delivered by The Change Portfolio that will increase the safety of victims experiencing domestic abuse as well as working with perpetrators to rehabilitate them and give them the tools to stop their abusive behaviour.
Construction Innovation Network: Colchester Institute will develop and deliver bespoke digital information events, helping small- and medium-sized construction companies to navigate sophisticated software for tender and contracts as well as on site, helping them to future-proof themselves.
A Place to Grow: run by Abberton Rural Training, this scheme builds and extends on the existing programme. A Place to Grow provides basic skills courses and interventions to help those furthest from education and employment, including vulnerable and isolated people and Wounded and Injured Service personnel and Veterans. This allows them to bridge the gap in their skills. Providing a safe space for activities including gardening and crafts, alongside immediate access to mental health counselling and learning coping mechanisms, the scheme allows participants to bridge the gap in their skills and eventually seek new employment opportunities.
Our focus is to support small, local, specialist charities with an income of £25,000–£500,000 where our three-year unrestricted £75,000 grant and support to develop, can make the greatest impact. We’ll support charities that understand the complexity of the issues people face and are best placed to make a genuine difference to people’s lives.
Please take some time to read the eligibility information and then select one of the themes below that best represents the work that your charity does.
We will let you know as soon as possible if your application is not able to progress to the next stage, to reduce the time it takes to get a decision. This means that we’ll be in touch with a decision any time after you apply. We aim to give feedback to everyone who’s completed an application for funding. If your application does not progress past the first stages, our feedback will be focussed on the eligibility criteria and programme fit. We can give more detailed feedback later in the process.
This survey will ask about the voluntary sector infrastructure support offer in Essex.
Voluntary Sector Infrastructure Offer is the ‘support that enables community groups and voluntary organisations to build greater resilience, self-sustaining capacity and capability to deliver activities and services. Strategic representation, liaison and partnership working across sectors.’
In Essex the organisations that deliver this support are normally called CVS and are core funded by the Essex County Council (ECC).
ECC are reviewing this support offer to make sure that it is effective and delivering what you need in order to succeed, this survey is part of a period of engagement with the voluntary community sector, the CVS and other stakeholders, for example districts and health partners.
The CDS Action Charitable Trust makes donations to community organisations who operate in the same communities as CDS to promote health and well-being. So far over £431k has been shared with local organisations supporting causes as varied as canoes for scouts to sign language groups. Applications are invited from charities, social enterprises and community groups in Norfolk and Waveney, Leicestershire, Essex, Oxfordshire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire with grants ranging in scale from £500 to £5,000.
Applications are reviewed every three months by a group of trustees made up of CDS employees.
Applications are invited from charities, social enterprises and community groups. We regret we cannot fund individuals. Organisations should be based in the same communities as CDS CIC; Norfolk, Waveney area of Suffolk, Essex, Bedfordshire, Oxfordshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire.
Applications must demonstrate clear social value and support health and well-being of local populations. Funding should not be used for maintenance or on-going costs after 12 months and applications should show evidence of how they will meet previously unmet needs. We do not fund staff costs.
The Healthwatch Essex Trauma Card has been created by the Healthwatch Essex Trauma Ambassador Group, a group of people with lived experience of trauma.
The card is designed to be a tool to empower cardholders to make those they are interacting with aware of when they are experiencing the effects of trauma, and to inform those in receipt of the card about trauma and how to more effectively support, and work with, those living with the effects of trauma.
All Trauma cardholders carry the card to present in health and care settings when they experience a situation which has generated a trigger from them.
Trauma is by nature unpredictable and affects so many areas of life for those who live with it. It can manifest in the most mundane and unexpected of situations; for example, at a dental appointment or visiting a chiropractor, chatting with another carer at a support group or taking your child for a health check. It can result in the individual withdrawing and disengaging from these services, which leaves them in a position where they may not receive the level of care and support that they need and are entitled to.
The Healthwatch Essex Trauma Ambassador Group have created the Trauma Card as a tool to empower cardholders to make those they are interacting with aware of when they are experiencing the effects of trauma, and to inform those in receipt of the card about trauma and how to more effectively support, and work with, those living with the effects of trauma.
If you would like to carry a trauma card, or speak to someone about the project, please contact our Information & Guidance team: