Mahdlo Youth Zone Annual Review 2017-18

OUR VISION AND PASSION

FOR OLDHAM’S YOUNG PEOPLE BURNS AS BRIGHT AS EVER

Sir Norman Stoller CBE KStJ DL, President can think of no better scene and sound than that of seeing and hearing our members enjoying themselves at Mahdlo. For the past six years, and in growing numbers, our wonderful patrons, supporters, staff and volunteers have become a highly successful and experienced team. Together we provide our young people with a Youth Zone that is warm, safe and welcoming, where there are masses of interesting and challenging things to do and lifetime friendships to be made. Mahdlo membership enables our youngsters to understand that our sole purpose is to help them achieve anything that they dare to dream, and their determination to succeed in life is matched by our combined willingness to support their endeavours.

As look back on what we have achieved each year, realise with enormous pride and pleasure just how much progress we have made together. This year, once again, not only have we achieved all that we set out to do in our development plan, but also we have made a real start to increasing our space to enable new opportunities to become available. However, it must never be forgotten that Mahdlo is a charity and am grateful to all the unsung heroes that climb mountains, run marathons and do all kinds of amazing things, big and small, to help provide the ongoing funds that we need. Thank you all

Terry Flanagan MBE, Chairman

If had to choose a single moment that best illustrates our work in 2017-18, it would be this: our decision to embark on a journey of excellence. This last year we placed greatness at the heart of all our programmes and services, and our key indicators confirm Mahdlo is performing at an excellent level. Most importantly, our members agree it is after all their opinion that counts the most! However, we can’t rest on our laurels. We always need and want to do more for Oldham’s young people, and hope that we can increase our offer through successful fundraising in the future. Well done to the whole team. I’m very much looking forward to another excellent year ahead!

Mike Doran, Chief Executive

Every time prepare a few words for our annual review

I think that the following year cannot be more excellent than the previous one. But it is. This year I can reflect on record numbers of attendances, increased numbers of ability members, more offers, our work in partnership with diverse communities and the unbelievable individual achievements by Mahdlo members.

Through all of this our dedicated team of staff and volunteers, for whom going the extra mile is just part of their daily routine, have superbly supported our members.

To put the icing on the cake, we continue to enjoy the support of our amazingly generous Council, patrons, sponsors and friends, without whom none of this is possible.

So thank you everybody for making the Mahdlo family a beacon of youth provision and a truly life changing experience for all of us.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

It is the individual voices of our members that tell our story of excellence for all young people from Oldham over the last 12 months. Their journey to realising their potential, identity and happiness makes our job so worthwhile:

I’M HEALTHIER

IT HELPED ME IMPROVE MY RESULTS IN MY SATS IAMA

MAHDLO GIVES ME CONFIDENCE

I’MLESS LONELY

5,177

I FEEL HAPPIER

77% of all active members participated in an organised activity

I’M HEALTHIER

MAHDLO’S A PLACE YOU CAN BE YOURSELF

I’M DOING DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES I COULDN’T DO BEFORE

active members during the 12 month period

62,420 visits by young people across all sessions

1,200 average visits per week

7,318 hours donated by volunteers in last 12 months

80% 34% of girls engaging in physical activity

2,003 visits to holiday club

of young people who completed our “Get a Job” employability course went onto further education, training or employment

46,670 attendances took part in exercise based activities

THE OFFERAN INTEGRATED COMMUNITY APPROACH

Over the years we have built Mahdlo’s offer to ensure there is opportunity for as many young people to access our provision as possible. This is only viable thanks to the support of the whole community.

Our partnership approach has enabled Mahdlo to develop a credible profile across the communities of Oldham, ensuring the Youth Zone experience extends far and wide. We continuously strive to make sure we have an integrated offer, which addresses the needs of all young people. Thanks to additional funding from The Big Lottery Reaching Communities Fund this year, we have been able to develop young ambassadors and activists across the borough to help tackle local issues with the full support of our youth work team.

A COMMUNITY ASSET

A core focus for 2017-18 has been to strengthen existing partnerships and forge new links, ensuring we provide targeted support to address relevant needs within each district, via co-delivered services. Here’s what one of our partners thinks:

MAHDLO HAS PLAYED A MAJOR ROLE IN CREATING AND DEVELOPING THE MUCH NEEDED RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE YOUTH OF TODAY. ALLOWING US TO INTERACT IN EVERY ASPECT OF ACTIVITIES THAT MAHDLO HAS TO OFFER HAS BEEN PRICELESS. RESPECTING THEM WAS THE BEST TOOL TO EARN RESPECT BACK. ONWARDS AND UPWARDS.

PC Damieon Hartley-Pickles, GMP

THE HUB SPOKE CENTRES

Swans provide a vital transport service two days a week for our junior members living in deprived areas of Oldham where getting to the Youth Zone would be an issue.

BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS

Mahdlo is for all young people in Oldham regardless of background, ethnicity, ability or age. We focus much of our effort throughout the year, ensuring our core offer is continuously refreshed to increase retention and attendance.

But how do we get those really hard to reach young people through our doors? This year we have strengthened our outreach work in communities that suffer with ASB, drug issues and alcohol problems. The aim: always to make sure we are there for those young people that need extra support!

Mahdlo conducted outreach in targeted areas experiencing threatening behaviour and vandalism to connect with the young people and engage them in positive activities. We arranged a bus service to pick them up and drop them at Mahdlo one day a week. Their attendance at the Youth Zone and engagement with staff encouraged them to go on to visit three times a week, making the effort to travel by themselves.

In 2017-18 we worked with

1,487

young people through outreach projects and all have become members of Mahdlo

Leoni, aged 10

THE COACH MAKES YOUR DAY BETTER

BECAUSE YOU GET TO GO TO MAHDLO AND MAKE NEW FRIENDS…UNLESS YOU MISS IT!

JOURNEY OF SUPPORT

For many young people Mahdlo offers a hub to get involved in affordable activities that they often struggle to find anywhere else. From creative expression to physical pursuits, our core offer attracts huge numbers of young people each week. For many the opportunity to have something to do and somewhere to go meets their needs for a positive environment to express themselves.

However it is the trusted and reliable relationships, which are developed each session between our staff and young people, that ensure we can address the issues affecting our members. Each member’s journey with us is unique; and ensuring we recognise this and provide relevant support to empower them, ultimately underpins our goal to achieving excellence.

ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE

Callum is autistic and has been accessing Mahdlo for just over a year now. His journey at Mahdlo is most poignantly represented in his achievement of a gold Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award. His success led to him receiving a personal invitation to Buckingham Palace for the 60th DofE anniversary royal garden party.

I AM SO PROUD OF CALLUM’S ACHIEVEMENTS AND IT’S ALL THANKS TO THE SUPPORT HE’S BEEN GIVEN FROM MAHDLO. A YOUNG LAD GROWING UP IN OLDHAM, CALLUM WOULD NEVER HAVE EXPECTED TO RECEIVE A ROYAL INVITE. THIS IS SUCH A BIG ACCOMPLISHMENT, TO WATCH HIM PROGRESS DURING HIS DofE AWARDS HAS BEEN AMAZING, PARTICULARLY WHEN WE WATCHED HIM PERFORM A SPONSORED SWIM FOR HIS DIAMOND AWARD - SWIMMING 60 LENGTHS IN 30 MINUTES.

I AM NOW REALLY HOPEFUL THAT THIS AWARD WILL HELP HIM FIND A JOB IN THE FUTURE.

Parent of Callum, aged 17

ACHIEVING GOALS

When Daniel first joined Mahdlo he had low self-esteem and confidence. He lacked direction and was finding it increasingly difficult to secure employment. With little ambition for his future he joined Mahdlo’s Get a Job course and was offered work experience at Nissan Westway. We’ve seen Daniel’s confidence soar as he achieves his goals.

AFTER RECEIVING GOOD FEEDBACK FROM NISSAN FOLLOWING MY WORK PLACEMENT I WAS OFFERED AN APPRENTICESHIP, WHICH I WAS DELIGHTED ABOUT. I KNOW MAHDLO STAFF SAY THEY ARE JUST DOING THEIR JOBS, BUT YOU CANNOT BEGIN TO REALISE JUST HOW MUCH IT MEANS TO ME AND MY FAMILY TO BE GIVEN THIS FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY. THANK YOU ALI FOR ALL THE SUPPORT.

Daniel, aged 19

PUTTING OUR TRUST IN YOUNG PEOPLE

Listening to the ideas and decisions of young people is second nature to us at Mahdlo. Our members are at the heart of identifying the needs and aspirations of their peers and continuously feed these into our staff and Board to improve the quality and diversity of Mahdlo’s offer. Twelve Hate Crime Ambassadors are engaged in a range of activities across Oldham. Over the last year they have developed their own campaign #gettoknow, which focuses on getting to know each other’s differences.

We have a variety of

ACTIVE VOICE GROUPS

for young people to challenge and raise awareness of the issues that affect their lives

AS A GROUP WE FEEL STRONGLY THAT CHANGE NEEDS TO BE MADE ABOUT THE INCREASING AMOUNT OF HATE CRIME IN THE NEWS AND MEDIA AND FROM OUR OWN EXPERIENCES. IN THIS DAY AND AGE, DIVERSITY IS GROWING AND EVERYONE HAS THEIR DIFFERENCES. BY WORKING AS ANTI-HATE AMBASSADORS, WE ARE PROMOTING TOLERANCE AND EQUALITY AMONG ALL PEOPLE, STARTING WITH THE TOWN OF OLDHAM.

Ayra Ali, 15, Young Ambassa dor

GROWING OUR OWN TEAM MAHDLO

Did you know that to date 40% of Mahdlo’s workforce started their journey with us as a volunteer?

PASSION RESPECT INCLUSION DEPENDABILITY EXCELLENCE

We strongly believe that our PRIDE culture helps us focus on achieving an excellent experience for young people who use Mahdlo. Team Mahdlo wouldn’t be who they are without the support of our tremendous volunteers. We currently have 133 active volunteers and our vision is to grow this to 150 by 2019.

Underpinning the success of Team Mahdlo is our dedicated and generous Board of Trustees. Their knowledge, experience and devotion ensure we are able to deliver such a quality service for Oldham’s young people every year.

HONING TALENT

Shaunnine started her journey at Mahdlo as a Senior member and became a young leader supporting our Junior Zone sessions. It became clear very quickly that she has a real passion for engaging with young people. Assisting our Junior Zone youth workers, she honed her talent and was given the opportunity to become a paid member of the team. Her role as an activity worker has given her the confidence to undertake a degree in Youth and Community Work. She really is one of our shining stars.

BEFORE VOLUNTEERING AT MAHDLO I WANTED TO BE A PSYCHOLOGIST. MAHDLO OPENED MY EYES TO A CAREER IN YOUTH WORK AND I HAVE NEVER LOO KED BACK. I PURSUED AN OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME

A PAID MEMBER OF STAFF WITH THE FULL SUPPORT OF THE TEAM AND SUCCESSFULLY ACHIEVED IT. I’M NOW STUDYING YOUTH AND COMMUNITY WORK AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HUDDERSFIELD. MAKING A DIFFERENCE TO THE LIVES OF YOUNG PEOPLE IS SO REWARDING, AND TO BE ABLE TO WORK FOR A CHARITY THAT HAS THE BEST INTERESTS OF ITS MEMBERS AT ITS CORE, IS AMAZING. I CAN’T IMAGINE WORKING ANYWHERE ELSE.

Shaunnine, Youth Worker

LEAVING A LEGACY

The generous investment Mahdlo receives each year helps us reach thousands of Oldham’s young people. Each and every donation is valued and enables us to deliver an offer that is relevant and vital to our members. Since opening we have formed many long-lasting relationships with our key supporters. Our growing group of passionate patrons not only offer critical financial support, but also individually they generously give their time and expertise, making a tangible difference to the aspirations and future prospects of our members.

MAHDLO

IS THE BEST SERVICE OFFERING FOR THE YOUNG PEOPLE IN OLDHAM. I’M OLDHAM BORN AND BRED AND WISH I HAD SOMETHING LIKE THIS WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. MY LATE FATHER GAVE HIS LIFE TO OLDHAM AND HE WAS SO PROUD THAT SAFEGUARD WAS ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE TO MAHDLO - IT WAS HIS LEGACY TO THE FUTURE GENERATION OF BUSINESS PEOPLE IN OUR TOWN. TO SUM IT UP MAHDLO IS AMAZING!

WE CAN’T THANK THEM ENOUGH FOR ALL THEY DO TO SUPPORT MAHDLO.

THE FIGURES 2017-18 FINANCES INCOME

Sales £159,588

Local Authority £400,000

Project Grants £857,736

Patrons & Donations £309,706

Fundraising £102,203

Investment Income £127

Property Donation £132,394

Total Income £1,961,754

EXPENDITURE

Delivery £347,066

Fundraising £33,564

Management £29,365

Premises £159,406

Staff £1,253,931

Depreciation £96,901

Total Cash Expenditure £1,920,233

Surplus for the Year £41,521

WITH THANKS

A special thank you to those that continue to make Mahdlo’s vision to be a beacon of excellence for youth-led provision in Oldham a reality:

CORE PATRON

Oldham Council

FOUNDING PATRON

The Stoller Charitable Trust

PREMIER PATRONS

David & Janelle Barker

Greengate Metal Components

Hills Panel Products

JW Lees

OMC Motorgroup

Team Spirit

The Estate of Norma Sylvia Hirst

Widdop & Co

Wiggett Construction

PATRONS

Frank & Judith Rothwell

Peter & Patricia Casey

SUPPORTERS

Essa Foundation

J Greenwood Builders

FRIENDS

ANSA Elevators

Brian Leigh Bramwell Trust

Jeanette Quinn

Peter Bryant

Treeside Trust

EVENT ATTENDEES AND FUNDRAISERS

3 Peaks of Saddleworth Walkers

A kind donor

Amanda Hamer

Barclays Bank

Bedspace

Bloxham Charitable Trust

Blue Tiffin

Chris Hopkinson

Clearwater

Docutech

Face & Body Shop

Half Baked Cake Company

Ideal Unified Communications

In celebration of June Ingham’s birthday

PROJECT FUNDERS

Accenture Foundation

Arts Council England

Big Lottery Reaching Communities

Greater Sport

Greaves Gym

Henshaws

Sholver & Moorside Community Team

The Royal Northern College of Music

The Shared Health Foundation

In memory of Tyrese Glasgow

JD Williams

Kingfisher Special School

Manchester Cabins Ltd

Mid Communications

Monteros UK

Nick Hopkinson

North Ainley Solicitors

Oldham Business Awards

PARFAS

Police Cadets

Q Crane & Plant Hire

Ruth Hill & Friends

Safeguard

SCC Design Build Ltd

Team Mahdlo

Terry Flanagan

Tesco

The Waggon Inn

Web Applications

Wilds of Oldham

Car Finance 24/7

Careers & Enterprise Company

First Choice Homes

George Cox Foundation

Greater Manchester Youth Network

Home Office

Kerrching

Nesta

Oglesby Trust

Sport England

UK Youth

Youth Aspiration Fund

PARTNERS

Action Together

Barrier Breakers

Café Mandels

Calvert Trust

Charlie Waller Memorial Trust

Chill Out Zone

First Choice Homes

Give Local Oldham

GMP Police

Holts And Lees Community Group

If Oldham

Kingfisher School

Lancashire County Cricket Club

Live Music Now

Mencap

Oasis Academy

Oldham College

Oldham Collesium

Oldham Council Phoenix Team

Oldham Detached Team

Oldham Mountain Rescue Team

Oldham Youth Council

Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust

POINT

Positive steps Oldham

Post-Diagnosis Autism Service

Proud Trust

Pure Gym

REEL CIC

ROC- Holts

Rochdale Council Youth Service

Royton and Crompton School

TOG Mind

Virgin Healthcare

World Professional Billiards & Pool Association

Yolo

Youth Focus NW

2018-19 WATCH THIS SPACE

A ROYAL HONOUR!

Mahdlo has been awarded The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. This amazing honour recognises the tireless support our volunteers bring as trustees, sessional volunteers and mentors. Mahdlo would not be able to deliver for Oldham’s young people and help them be the best they can be without these unsung heroes.

Did you know…since opening, Mahdlo has created around volunteering opportunities for local residents, many of which have progressed into paid employment.

EXTENDING THE OFFER!

You may have caught a glimpse of construction work at Mahdlo starting. We’re really excited to share with you that the Youth Zone is growing. We will be extending the facility over the coming months to accommodate our developing offer. The focus of the new extension will be to reach more young people who have an interest in creative expression through arts, drama and music. Watch this space, more details coming soon.