Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Project

Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Project

This group will deliver a range of services for asylum seekers in the Linn Ward area of Glasgow.

15% as salary costs for an organisation offering a free furniture service to people coming out of homelessness in Glasgow.

To fund a Help Line and an increased level of furniture deliveries in Glasgow until the end of March 2021.

to contribute towards the costs of household goods for people coming out of homelessness.

NET, Comic Relief and Children in Need will use this funding to provide: increased support to vulnerable people and hidden groups, thus reducing the burden on public services; reach local grassroots ....more

NET, Comic Relief and Children in Need will use this funding to provide: increased support to vulnerable people and hidden groups, thus reducing the burden on public services; reach local grassroots and small organisations who can provide an on-the-ground community response to the crisis; and, support local charitable organisations to mobilise volunteers to enable better targeted support in communities through empowered local groups.

To maintain a helpline and a range of services for local people in need, including asylum seekers and people emerging from homelessness.

Detailed description not provided.

To contribute towards the cost of continuing to run the Help Line set up to support vulnerable people including refugees and asylum seekers when Castlemilk Baptist Church had to close their usual ....more

To contribute towards the cost of continuing to run the Help Line set up to support vulnerable people including refugees and asylum seekers when Castlemilk Baptist Church had to close their usual services, as well as enabling them to provide practical sup

Our Furniture Project provides help entirely freely to individuals and families in particular need of help to set up a first tenancy. These may be people newly granted refugee status, young mothers ....more

Our Furniture Project provides help entirely freely to individuals and families in particular need of help to set up a first tenancy. These may be people newly granted refugee status, young mothers fleeing violence, someone with a history of of addiction. All our service users face the effects of poverty. We are invited to help at a positive time in a a person's life when they have taken the steps to get a tenancy and come to us for help to settle. This means that we are made aware of other help needed for someone planning for a better future. This has led us as a group of staff and volunteers to develop other supports when our skills and funds allow. Thus we run English classes for parents with young children with very little English and provide child care support for this. Volunteers and service users cook an international meal most weeks allowing people to share their skills and providing a popular drop in for some local socially isolated single men. Many of our English class students have worked with our Community Work student for the last 3 months to identify what they see as the key areas they need to address to improve integration into Scottish society , reduce isolation and prepare for employment. This work has been facilitated by a couple of group members who have better English and by Scottish "peer educators" sharing about cultural issues. The group identified the following 7 priorities: Some of these can be met by our existing services, some will be met within the new mini-courses proposed: others need extra funding' (1) The opportunity to learn English. We already provide ESOL classes and our qualified volunteer will continue to teach. (2)Raising children in a society with different values and expectations. (3)Addressing barriers to cultural integration. (4)Cross cultural learning, (5) Increasing self confidence Much of this will be done by sharing in the new groups. For some of these issues we will use external visitors, such as a social worker who is available to explain Scottish child care laws and expectations. Similarly after 19 years of working with asylum seekers and refugees we have volunteers and friends who are happy to share their journeys with the group. (6) Navigating welfare rights issues, school dinners, Universal credit etc. (7) Accessing employment and CV writing. The group's work identifying need and our general experience of shows a clear need for welfare rights input. We wish to employ a 5 hour a week welfare rights assistant. We also wish to offer two workshops with "Radiant and Brighter" to help prepare CVs and look at realistic routes to employment The group work we have done has been funded out of reserves and one small grant for a workshop with Radiant and Brighter, a pre-employment service for BME people. So we are now applying for funding for two strands of the work we wish to do Firstly we propose to run 3 eight week mini-courses between late February 2020 to mid October 2020. Each "course" would run once a week for the eight weeks, facilitated by our Community Work Assistant. The course will address the priorities identified above and aim for the group to find ways to change. Much of this will be done by sharing in the group. Other issues will use external visitors, such as a social worker who is available to explain Scottish child care laws and expectations. Similarly after 19 years of working with asylum seekers and refugees we have volunteers and friends who are happy to share their journeys with the group. Secondly the groups' work identifying need and our general experience shows a clear need for welfare rights input. We wish to employ a 5 hour a week welfare rights assistant. We already have funding in place for a 5 hour a week "extra support worker" to work alongside families in crisis We would appoint one person to cover these two related remits.. . (Last year we found we had helped 30 families or individuals in need of major support to prevent eviction, deal with family breakdown basically in addition to our administrator's already busy schedule.)

Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Project

New Ford Transit Van, and repair of van loading area

Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Service

The Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Project started 5 years ago as a small group of 5 volunteers helping two families a week with a borrowed van. Last year we helped over 200 families; we now ....more

The Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Project started 5 years ago as a small group of 5 volunteers helping two families a week with a borrowed van. Last year we helped over 200 families; we now have an administrator/volunteer coordinator , a van and drivers, and are open 4 or 5 days week. We see over 35 families or individuals weekly; some new service users and some already know to us. As well as providing furniture and household goods we are able to provide volunteer training and other activities such as social events, some free food and Wednesday International lunches. A key need identified by our volunteers and service users is for more opportunities for refugee and asylum seeker adults to learn more skills to enable them to live well and contribute to Scottish society. This application comes from the suggestions of our Arabic speaking volunteers and service users. We are asking for funding to deliver a 7 month programme for between 6 and 8 of our volunteers who have very limited English language skills. The programme consists of up to 4 months of English as a Second Language (ESOL) classes, followed by 6 sessions on the basic issues which we know from experience our critical; this will include basic information on the benefits system, the roles of the Police and Social Services, access to College, tenants responsibilities, contacts with schools and how to sign post to other agencies for more complex issues. This will also include our normal sessions on the ethos of volunteering, how to help others, and Child Protection in Scotland . During the Programme the volunteers will also take part in our volunteering tasks which include being part of the van delivery team, sorting of donated goods, hosting service users on a drop in day and preparing food. By the end of the Programme at least 6 Arabic speaking volunteers will be able to get alongside new service users and advice them on basic issues such as access to College, contact with schools, how to manage a tenancy and to meet the conditions for claiming Social Security benefits. By the end of the Programme we will have produced a small booklet in Arabic, French and English giving information on local service and useful contact numbers. The 6 to 8 volunteers on the Programme will benefit from the Programme by being well equipped to help others, having more information, including CV writing skills, that will allow prepare them for College or employment. The volunteers will then assist (peer mentor) any new Arabic speaking service users. This is likely to help 18 new service users in the later stages of the programme and a further 24 the following year. 12 or more of our current volunteers will also be involved in the creation of the booklet and will benefit both from considering which issues are important to new service users and hearing the views of the volunteers in the Programme. The 6 to 8 volunteers will also gain the long term benefits of better English language skills and the preparation for work and College gained while volunteering. The Furniture Project is based in Castlemilk, Glasgow. We offer help to tenancies across Glasgow and also the nearby areas of South Lanarkshire, Rutherglen, Cambuslang and Blantyre. Last year 75% of our service users came for the 15% most deprived communities in Scotland.

We have the privilege of helping people coming out of homelessness at a key point in their lives where they are, at last, able to settle into decent accommodation and look to the future. Our service ....more

We have the privilege of helping people coming out of homelessness at a key point in their lives where they are, at last, able to settle into decent accommodation and look to the future. Our service users may be putting behind them years of addiction, family break up or the trauma of seeking asylum. Its important that we underpin this new start by the way we deliver our service. The ethos of our service attracts volunteers who wish to help others and we have the joy of working with volunteers from a range of cultures and beliefs. So its essential our volunteers have relevant training, both for their own future looking forward to employment and also for the sake of those they help. We are seeking funding for a tailor made volunteer training programme relevant to them and our service users' needs. The programme is 6 two and half hour sessions delivered over a 3 month period in early 2017 - these sessions will cover (a) Health and Safety, Lifting and Handling (certificated), (b) 'Red tape' Housing systems, holding down a tenancy, Employment issues, Working with other partners (c) Why we do what we do, sharing values, understanding others, addiction and trauma (d) Sharing our cultures, listening to others, sharing food (e) First Aid (certificated) (f) Individual or small group work on CVs and future aims and dreams. Followed by an Award night celebration. Our project is unique in supporting integration as asylum seekers, refugees, EU migrants and Scottish people mix, both at or weekly drop in and as part of our volunteer group. Joint training reinforces this and will help us all to learn from each other.

Castlemilk Community Church Furniture Service