About Fresh Futures - Our Impact
How Fresh Futures Makes a Difference
Who We Help
Why Our Charity Needs Your Help
The Benefits of Supporting Fresh Futures
Donate Funds
Fundraise For Fresh Futures
Corporate Support
Corporate Partnerships
Donate Your Time
Fresh Futures was founded in 1974 and is a regional charity based in Kirklees, and the surrounding areas. We support vulnerable and disadvantaged children, young people, and their families.
We provide early interventions and medium to longer-term support for children and those in a child’s circle of influence who are facing challenges with their social, emotional, and mental health – meaning we ’ re experts in dealing with difficult everyday issues.
Today, Fresh Futures is made up of some incredible people and we have over 120 employees and 200 volunteers. We pride ourselves on being inclusive, empowering, caring, trusted and approachable in every aspect of our work.
Here are just a few examples of how we can serve communities over a one year period*
10,000 lessons delivered to students at Brian Jackson College in Huddersfield and Heckmondwike
465 isolated individuals matched with a community friend to reduce loneliness in Kirklees
160 families supported by our Family Time team to re-establish positive parental relationships.
845 children received a gift during the toy appeal, which pledges to let no child wake up without a gift on Christmas Day
282 homes fitted with child safety equipment to prevent mild and life-threatening accidents.
*Figures taken from Jan-Dec 2022 statistics
We have the skills, expertise, and reputation to drive equality and social justice forward – and this is something we ’ re extremely proud of. We’re ingrained in our diverse communities and, as a result, truly understand the needs of the children, young people, and families within them.
We are a local charity supporting local families and we pride ourselves on 'Improving Lives and Inspiring Change' - our motto! The impact we make through our specialised services enhances the wellbeing and futures of everyone we work with
But we need your help! Together we can create brighter futures for children and young people in our community giving them opportunities for a better
When Shazia fled an abusive relationship with her 2-year-old son, Sky, she had nothing. After being homeless for nine months, she finally signed a tenancy to secure a roof over their heads, but needed support to be able to make a fresh start.
Shazia self-referred to the Fresh Futures Thriving Kirklees (TK) team, who carried out an independent assessment of her situation, identifying areas where they could help her and Sky in a way that would have immediate impact as well as long-term benefits.
First, Fresh Futures purchased a cooker for Shazia and provided her with food vouchers. This meant that Shazia could now buy fresh, healthy ingredients and cook hot food at home, instead of having to rely on costly takeaways for hot meals.
Next, Fresh Futures completed a full assessment of the family, to identify other ways that Fresh Futures could support them both.
Shazia was then internally signposted to Fresh Futures’ Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme to receive victim support. Fresh Futures also supported Shazia to Locala, to receive Health Visitor Support for Sky, up until the age of four.
Fresh Futures then arranged for free safety equipment such as baby gates to be installed around her new home to keep Sky safe and prevent any accidents.
Finally, Fresh Futures helped Shazia sign up to the National Healthy Start scheme, so Sky could receive free vitamins - ensuring that Sky was getting all the important nutrients he needed for healthy development.
*names have been changed to preserve anonymity
"If it wasn't for Fresh Futures, I don't know what we would've done. You have made a 100% positive impact on our living, which in turn leads to our healing. I can't thank you enough"
-Shazia
Our NACCC accredited Family Time Centres provide a warm, safe environment where parents/carers can spend time with their children.
The family time sessions are used when there are safety concerns, when adults need support to develop trust and reliability, to reduce parental conflict and help relationships develop in an informal yet professional setting
Community connections run services for young people, adults and the wider community.
Community Anchors support local groups in line with community needs in Batley and Spen.
Community Friends provide scheduled visits or phone calls to vulnerable and older adults by a certified volunteer to reduce loneliness or isolation.
Stay & Play offers an opportunity for parents and carers to come together in a safe environment whilst their young children play and develop skills.
BJC is an 'Alternative Provision', supporting pupils who experience social, emotional and mental health difficulties. We have 2 sites; one in Huddersfield and another in Heckmondwike with a capacity of around 30 pupils each. We equip pupils with the skills and qualifications to succeed independently in life, by offering a 'fresh start' through motivation and empowerment
Safety in the Home seeks to reduce and prevent childhood accidents in the home by supplying and fitting home safety equipment into the property of eligible families.
This can include free safety gates, fire guards, bathmats, cupboard locks, corner cushions and cord winders
Healthy Start supports eligible, expectant mothers over 10 weeks pregnant, or parents with a child under 4, to help buy healthy food and milk through an e-voucher scheme
DAPP seeks to facilitate change for male perpetrators of domestic abuse and support female and child victims.
The course runs for 17 weeks and is designed to 'break the cycle' of violence', increasing the safety of the victims, and improving the quality of life of everyone in the family.
Often the people who are most in need are the most overlooked, with society and governments not set up to protect them. Charities like Fresh Futures are here to fill the gaps and provide dedicated resources to help the most vulnerable.
However, due to the current cost of living crisis, we are experiencing two significant challenges:
Firstly our communities are in more need of support than ever before
Secondly, as pools of government funding dries up, we are being pushed to find different funding streams to keep our services running.
Over the past year, Fresh Futures in particular have been finding it increasingly difficult to access the funding we so desperately need to keep running.
Because our charity is expanding as much as possible in response to the huge demand within our communities, our size often disqualifies us for significant funding that we would have had access to one or two years ago. This is seriously limiting the support streams we have access to.
Furthermore, the money that we are able to apply for is often 'restricted funding'. This means it can only be used for a specific purpose - meaning we aren't able to expand in other areas where we identify demand growing urgently.
That’s why public and corporate support is so incredibly important for our charity.
Benefits to organisations supporting Fresh Futures
By engaging in corporate giving, businesses can drive change in areas that mean the most to their staff and stakeholders
Helping others is hugely empowering and, in turn, can make you and your teams feel happier and more fulfilled
Multiple studies show that volunteering improves mental health, lowers blood pressure, and increases happiness.
Corporate giving is a great way to demonstrate to your stakeholders that your company cares
£4 could pay for books to educate one young person on their safety
£30 could help us maintain our contact rooms with needed repairs and new toys
£100 could fund an expert to support a weekly stay & play session
£10 could ensure that a child does not go without a gift at Christmas
£30 could fund ingredients for food technology lessons for one week
£100 could fund one family with a full home safety equipment pack
£19 could pay for a one week gym membership for a Brian Jackson College pupil
£75 could pay for one perpetrator to attend a DAPP programme
£250 could fund a memorable party or day trip for a group of service users
All donations Fresh Futures receive go to a central fund which help with the charity's overall costs. There is also the opportunity for donations to be reserved specifically for certain provisions.
As a registered charity, we rely on the kindness and generosity of others to help us raise awareness and funds so that we can continue to deliver our specialist services now and in the future. There are many different and fun ways to get involved with fundraising! Whatever you decide to do, every penny raised will directly benefit the children, young people and their families in the community.
ORGANISE YOUR OWN FUNDRAISER TAKE ON A CHALLENGE FUNDRAISE AT SCHOOL FUNDRAISE AT WORK
We hold our own organised events and fundraising initiatives that have a variety of sponsorship opportunities for businesses to get involved with. Supporting an event through sponsorship will help us to raise awareness of the charity, and at the same time help you meet your CSR objectives and increase your reach and visibility
Unclaimed client funds are sums of money which lie dormant in client accounts of many solicitors and accountants, for years It’s often the case that the rightful owner cannot be traced, a company has closed, or they have failed to provide instructions on how the funds should be dealt with.
We will be holding corporate events throughout the year where your business can get involved. These events are a great way to network with other businesses and show your support for our charity.
Payroll Giving, also known as Give As You Earn (GAYE), is an easy, and tax effective way for employees to make regular donations through their salary, so it costs you less to give more.
Nominating us as your Charity of the Year is a unique opportunity to unite your staff behind an inspiring cause and demonstrate your company ’ s commitment to making a difference
We value all our corporate partnerships, and are keen to partner with a diverse range of business industries who share our passion for helping disadvantaged children, young people, and their families. We understand that every business is different, and will work together with you to create a bespoke partnership.
Sponsoring a specific service for 12 months or longer
CORPORATE PARTNER
A company that provides ongoing support / resources that Fresh Futures use within their services
- at least four different interactions per year
CORPORATE SUPPORTER
A company that provides regular support / resources that Fresh Futures use within their services
- at least two different interactions per year
Donating significant recurring financial support or significant recurring "in kind" donations
A company that sells one of their own products “in aid of Fresh Futures” with each item sold generating a donation to Fresh Futures (must be preapproved by Fresh Futures before sales start)
Providing regular volunteering support to Fresh Futures
Feature Fresh Futures on their website
Nominate Fresh Futures as their 'Charity of The Year'
Organising or taking part in a sponsored activity where staff fundraise on behalf of Fresh Futures
Providing volunteering support to Fresh Futures during a 12-month period
Donating towards a specific Fresh Futures service
Providing “in kind” donations during a 12-month period
Fresh Futures will regularly thank the company on its social media pages
Fresh Futures will publish a thank you article on their website during the partnership about how the company is supporting Fresh Futures
Fresh Futures will add the company as a corporate partner on their website for the duration of the partnership which will include:
o a short bio about the company
o the company logo
o a link to the company website
Fresh Futures will thank the company on their social media pages at the time of the donations
Fresh Futures will add the company as a corporate on the Fresh Futures website for 6 months from last donation, which will include:
o the company logo
o a link to the company website
CORPORATE DONOR
A company that provides one off support / resources that Fresh Futures can use within their services
Donating a one-off amount to Fresh Futures
Supporting Fresh Futures through staff fundraising
Providing volunteering support to Fresh Futures
Supporting a Fresh Futures annual campaign such as the Christmas Toy Appeal
Fresh Futures will thank the company on their social media pages at the time of the donations
Our volunteers help to enrich the services we offer by supporting our work with children, young people, families, adults and older people. We’re always looking for new volunteers who would like to join us in our mission of 'improving lives and inspiring change'.
Our Community Friend volunteers visit people who have been identified as being lonely or isolated to provide a listening ear and, in some cases, form a special friendship This support is provided in person or over a telephone; we tailor the contact to each individual’s needs.
We have several volunteers that help within our services such as our Family Time sessions, delivering Safety Rangers, work with the students at Brian Jackson College.
We welcome volunteers who are looking to gain work experience in an office setting, build confidence within an administrative or reception role, or have existing work experience in an office role
Multiple studies show that volunteering improves mental health, lowers blood pressure, and increases happiness That’s why so many companies undertake volunteering each year in their local community They want staff to reap the mental, physical, and emotional benefits that come from helping others.
We frequently run volunteering events across our sites which include training days to provide our volunteers with essential skills and we also run events especially for volunteers, to thank them for their contribution to the charity.
Attending another networking meeting, it was the same people, same routine. Until we heard from Lynne at Fresh Futures. This felt different to the usual pitches. It was different. It sounded like a magnificent charity, doing magnificent work. Very humble voiceover, unlike some of the other rather sales focused pitches. I knew then I wanted to support in some shape or form.
Fast forward a few weeks and there I was, alongside business associates from the Mark Duffy Football School in Halifax, dressed like a criminal and being frog marched into a police van, as part of the wonderfully creative 'Bail Me Out' fundraiser. A great initiative, raising funds for a truly superb charity and all done with a smile on our faces. Oh, we weren't really being arrested, of course.
Those involved walked away having had lots of fun, raised some pennies and committed to doing whatever we can to support Fresh Futures going forward. And from a personal point of view, I have and I will always be at the end of an email or a phone to support further.
Please support
Fresh Futures. You will love it.
Gareth Ewingwww.pushingink.co.uk
#FreshFutures
THANK YOU for your support!
You can choose to tailor your support by choosing a combination of any of the elements mentioned in this booklet. For more information please email fundraising@freshfutures.org.uk.
With your support we can continue to make a difference to those we support and also enable us to reach more people in the future.
You will help Fresh Futures to Improve Lives and Inspire Change.
#FreshFutures
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND HELP SPREAD THE WORD!
You can find us on most social media platforms, just search @freshfutures charity
You can also tag us online using the hashtag #FreshFutures
Every like, share and mention brings us closer to the communities we support.
Thank you.
01484 519 988
fundraising@freshfutures.org.uk
www.freshfutures.org.uk
Brian
Jackson House, Huddersfield, HD1 5JP