Looking back: Charities brace themselves to repair social damage
Raikes revisits one of its first features on Gloucestershire. It's 2020, and the spectre of Covid-19 is laying its explosive charges across the charity sector. Ones it is still defusing to this day.
Greetings everyone,
A very warm welcome to the first edition of The Raikes Journal, a digital magazine supporting Gloucestershire’s businesses, its charities and vital education and training sectors.
And a huge thank you to all of you for subscribing. Subscriptions are vital for us to continue doing what we do. Please do spread the word to those not yet on-board - especially those who would consider paying to become a member!
This and every edition of Raikes that follows will be part of our drive to put back in place in the county some real community journalism, where a genuine reporter reaches out and talks to people, listens, and then tells the stories that matter. Raikes' mission statement is to show everyone what an amazing place to live, work, play, invest in and grow a business in the county is… to help create a sense of place and of community that will benefit us all.
Raikes is already backed by some incredibly generous businesses and organisations that share the vision and we look forward to introducing you to each of them over the coming weeks, along with anyone who has signed up to become one of our ‘Founding Members’ too. Thank you!
We have some great stories pending, but for the first few edition of our new era we’re treading carefully, reaching into our archive to revisit an article from the first days of Raikes back in 2020. We think it is perhaps more relevant now than then, and says something about why Raikes is here.
We also begin our regular introductions to county charities (although many of you will already know this one!), corral a few snippets of news we’ve spotted and like, unlock a Top 100 Businesses in Gloucestershire story for you, and throw in a few diary dates at the end of our big read. We hope you enjoy it.
Group subscriptions can get a 20 per cent discount here…
* Everything you read on Raikes is made possible by the generous support of our partners (who we will be revealing over the coming weeks) our founding members and our paid-up subscribers. A massive ‘thank you’ to all our other subscribers too. The support of all of you is invaluable! To get in touch email andrew.merrell@raikesjournal.co.uk.
Why today’s main story?
Raikes was founded during the UK's Covid-19 pandemic to help champion and support Gloucestershire's beleaguered businesses, third sector and vital education and training sectors. In its archive sits some extraordinary stories, but we picked this one – interviews with leaders from the third sector - because we think it speaks even louder now, and brings home a key element of why Raikes is back.
The article captures the fear and uncertainty of that very moment the lights went out, and face-to-face communication broke down between those who needed help most and those who delivered that help.
Leaders of businesses and all mAny of organisations were left steering their ships in what must have felt like complete darkness, guided only by intuition and emergency plans, while drawing up strategies for whatever the ‘new normal’ might look like when Covid-19 pandemic receded.
Many of the worst fears outlined below are still coming true. And what those charities and organisations need now seems to be connections in the world of business to those with the skills to help them become more resilient, sustainable, and not join the many others who have become the collateral damage from that terrible time. That is just one part of Raikes' mission. That’s why we picked this article.
Our chosen charity: Caring for Communities and People
😴 Every week Raikes will introduce you to and celebrate one of Gloucestershire's charities. As we have said above, they need our support more than ever, and the support of businesses especially. We hope through this space to help spark some new, meaningful relationships for all. An organisation already demonstrating how powerful that recipe can be is the amazing Cheltenham-based CCP (Caring for Communities and People), which at the weekend staged its annual Big Sleep Out 2024. Supporters roughed it at Brickhampton Court Gold Complex for the night raising nigh on £60,000. Truly inspirational! And ‘yes’, you can still donate.
Your Raikes’ briefing
🍕 One of the features of The Raikes Journal is our rolling Top 100 Businesses in Gloucestershire series, which follows the financial fortunes of the biggest firms by turnover in the county. We publish these in our Reports & Deals channel, and keep them locked for paying members’ eyes only. But every now and again we’ll unlock one, just to give you a taste of what you’re missing. This one is about a family-run cheese business that supplies the toppings for more pizzas any of us could eat. Even on a good day! And has just reached increased turnover by more than £34 million.
💪🏼 We’ll soon be publishing our version of the incredible story of Amy Brown, who became the Amazon Intermediate Apprentice of the Year Award at 2023 National Apprenticeship Awards. We’ll be focusing on all the factors we think make this so much more important than you might first think. In the meantime, we spotted that Gloucestershire College, where Brown is still completing her apprenticeship while working for Cheltenham-firm Tombs Developments, is not only promoting a number of apprenticeship vacancies, but an apprenticeships open evening in the diary for Tuesday 6 March. And before that there’s a jobs fair on Thursday 7 March.
🚜🥕👏 We saw this first on the mighty Stroud Times website. This is the story of the first Stroud Farmers’ Market vegan market of 2024, due to take place on the last Sunday of every month this year. Don’t panic is you are one of those who enjoys a crafty meat-based treat on your trips to the town centre favourite. The ‘classic’ Stroud Farmers’ Market mark will remain a staple throughout 2024.
🤛🏾 Not only is the picture on this LinkedIn post full of such infectious joy we just had to share the link, it flags up an incredible opportunity - to lead an organisation whose legacy is so incredibly valuable we barely know where to begin. This is Phil Nelson’s post about Gloucestershire Young Carer’s search for a new chief executive officer. Without this organisation the silent army of young people whose responsibilities belie their years would be all alone. This charity provides them with respite, support and the chance to taste what childhood is like for the rest of their generation.
Looking back: Charities braced themselves to repair social damage
By Andrew Merrell
It was early 2020 and as the front-line fight against the impact of Covid-19 received blanket coverage across our screens and airwaves, many were already fearful of what was taking place off-camera - and what the consequences would be.
Concerns were raised from the earliest days of the pandemic about our mental health and in particular the wellbeing of our most vulnerable; about domestic violence, abuse, the welfare of our children and how even ordinary families could put food on the table.
Charities that grapple with the realities of these issues for us in Gloucestershire had their hands tied as social distancing measures tightened, but continued to work hard to re-gear and reshape in readiness for, as one person so chillingly put it, “what might be in the room when the lights come back on post-lockdown”.
As big as that task was going to be they also faced the challenge all businesses faced at the time – doing all of the above with less cash. And today, in 2024, they are living with that reality – and still making their way through the minefields and tripwires laid by Covid-19.
Emma Griffiths was chief executive officer at Gloucestershire Counselling Service at the time, a charity then staffed by 60 part-time counsellors and which pre-pandemic was helping more than 220 people a week.
“When you speak to the charities in the county who deal with issues like domestic violence – like the Nelson Trust, Grasac (Gloucestershire Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre), Teens in Crisis, everyone says it has gone eerily quiet - until now. Slowly registrations are beginning to pick up,” said Griffiths, speaking at the time.
She was also a trustee of the VCS Alliance, a board that included Cordell Ray of Cheltenham CCP and GFirst LEP’s chief executive officer, David Owen and Tracy Clark, CEO of Young Gloucestershire and Infobuzz.
This was early 2020, the country was still in the grip of social lockdown, glued to daily Downing Street press conferences, and in Gloucestershire the picture already emerging was already stark.
"In the case of domestic violence – there are lots of people currently stuck at home with their abusers.
"Violence can sometimes stop when the abused and abuser are confined together – because the violence is used as control when the abuser doesn’t know where the other person is.
“But, when the lock-down is over, we don't know what the results will be of those toxic environments.
"I was on a call last week when someone was talking about the families that had kids about to be taken off them because they had already had their homes assessed as ‘not fit for children to live in’.
“But when lockdown happened the courts shut and no one knows what is going on in those homes,” said Griffiths.
“No one is doing any Ofsteds or inspections of any kind, which opens the door to institutional abuse.
“School has been open to those children deemed to be in a vulnerable group, but nationally only a small per cent has been attending.”
Figures since have raised all of these concerns again, and even now, in 2024, we are still trying to answer how, as a nation, we deal with the legacy.
Griffiths was in awe of the massive efforts already taking place during the pandemic, in all sectors, reflecting both a change in what people needed as well as an increased need for all sorts of support.
Some of those efforts were more public and obvious than others, and truly inspiring. Operations like Feed Cheltenham, Feed Gloucester, The Long Table, along with local authorities, colleges and businesses have all been working together.
It was then that a collective opinion began to emerge, that for many in the charity and volunteering sector it was businesses that could be the vital component for a successful future - for everyone. And now, in 2024, post-pandemic, that hope remains.
And ‘no’, that does not mean the cash and resource-poor sector was after the financial support from the business community. It was their energy and expertise and a long-term relationship that could prove more valuable than a one-off donation.
The problem was businesses themselves had also been badly wounded by the pandemic and the third sector knew they too would need time to recover.
For Griffiths this in itself was a major concern for the longer-term recovery of Gloucestershire as a whole: “There are entrepreneurs who have developed incredible business who suddenly had to deal with not much hope or support and probably never been challenged like this before.
"We should all be worried about the impact of that because these are precisely the sort of people our economy needs to recover.”
Matt Lennard, chief officer of the VCS Alliance, which continues to support and help coordinate the county’s voluntary sector (more than 2,000 charities) agreed, it was the skills within businesses that could be the key to helping so many vital groups tackle the huge issues society would need to unpick post-pandemic.
“It is not collaboration I’m interested in developing – 'let's all get together and dredge a canal or pick up litter and then go home'. They are good, but they are team-building exercises,” he said, careful to praise anyone who has offered their time and energy to a charity, but wanting to encourage businesses to see the organisation he represents as having similar needs to their own.
A new way of thinking needed to emerge, he said, that built relationships and delivered long-term resilience.
“I am interested in businesses taking some of those skills they have and putting them into charity organisations so they can develop them further and benefit the charity at the same time. Or they could give their time as a mentor. Either way, everyone wins.
“And ‘yes’, still give us your money too – if you have it – but give us your skills. We can develop a virtuous circle.”
Raikes mentioned a well-known Gloucestershire firm of accountants that does the books for one of the county’s charities for nothing.
That sort of relationship, said Lennard, was “brilliant”.
“But let’s take that further. There are 2,553 charities in Gloucestershire. The vast majority of those are turnover more than £10,000, so they have to submit company accounts. That costs £400 each.
“If that same firm of accountants offered to discount that fee on each one of those accounts the difference they could make is enormous. It would be hundreds of thousands of pounds extra in the pockets of the county’s charities immediately.”
(Raikes did the sums – the figure is more than £1 million. Although our advice would always be to hire a real accountant!).
“The challenge for our sector is to get the message across to businesses.
“Yes, charities need money, but they are always crying out for professional services, for IT, advice on how to work from home, HR advice, PR advice.
“As a sector I think we have been incredibly agile in the last few months, and I know businesses have had to be as well, but we cannot seem to get many interested in mentoring support.
“We have been going through the local enterprise partnership to try to connect us to businesses. We know there are a lot out there.
“I know some businesses think if they get in touch charities are only going to be after their money, but it is their skills and staff which can be invaluable. If we can just get that across, that is where the real treasure lies.”
Treading the line carefully, we talked about the incredible efforts of Cpt Tom Moore as he inspired by walking 100 lengths of his garden for NHS Charities Together.
An undeniably incredible effort, but the beneficiaries were a major charity with a PR machine supporting a state-funded organisation. And when money goes to one cause it cannot go somewhere else too.
Many in the charity and volunteer sector are battling locally for just a fraction of that funding. And yet many of them are on the frontline for our communities here in Gloucestershire.
And that, said Lennard, is why we should all bother to think differently. Because it is so incredibly important for our community that we do.
“Local authorities have been working tirelessly through this, and they will have even less money at the end of it which means even less for some of the vital support needed in the county.
“It relies on the good work of many charities to help tackle exclusion, domestic violence, child welfare issues, and the likelihood the challenges will get greater and not less,” said Lennard.
* This story was first published in 2020 on The Raikes Journal and we are currently working on a follow-up story. Raikes has been told that many of the sector’s worst fears have since been realised. Which is just one of the reasons we remain inspired to continue to help celebrate the efforts of our charities and volunteering groups and of the businesses that passionately support in any way they can. Those relationships now seem more vital than ever.
Our weekend ideas list
Thursday
🥂 Gloucester Brewery: Here’s a business that wears its heart on its sleeve when it comes to community and charity. Age UK’s social group comes to Gloucester Brewery’s TANK bar at the city’s Docks every Thursday from 12pm to 1:30pm. All are welcome. It’s described as ‘the perfect place to meet new friends, or have a catch up in a friendly, welcoming location’.
Friday
☕ If you have or know someone with FND (Functional Neurologic Disorders) you are invited along for a drink and a chat with like-minded people at this relaxed coffee morning event staged at The Charcot Therapy Centre, 71-75 Frampton Road, Gloucester, GL1 5QB. Similar events take place every first Friday of month. To find out more about FND contact us at info@fndfriends.com.
🍻 We flag this because it’s a small business offering something different in the hyper-competitive night-time economy of Cheltenham. We’re talking about the craft beer bar Planet Caravan, run by Jesse and Ben Fell, at 25 Bath Street. Tonight the bar stages a festival of Omnipolo offerings - 11 draft beers from the Swedish legends plus eight bottles and five five cocktails.
Saturday
🎓Interested in pursuing a post graduate qualification and would rather ask the question in-person than browse online? The University of Gloucestershire is staging a campus open event on Saturday 3 February from 10am to 1pm. You can find out about the courses and meet the lecturers. There is a range of masters degrees, postgraduate certificates, professional doctorates, diplomas and PhDs to choose from.
Sunday
🏎️The Cotswold Clouds Classic might sound like an event for those who want to stare skyward from a beautiful spot in the Gloucstershire countryside but it could not be further from the truth. Drivers of all manner of interesting vehicles will gather in Nailsworth, before running their cars against the clock, off-road, in a timed hill-climb event which is well worth a watch. Information for spectators is here.
Monday
👊 Dr Samantha Lynch helps high achieving women from all walks of life build their brands and supercharge their careers. As a marketer, senior academic, business innovation lead she helps women work smarter not harder and enjoy the journey! Join her for this one-hour coaching clinic. It's free and due to take place on February 5 at The Growth Hub, Cirencester.
* Everything you read on Raikes is made possible by the generous support of our partners (who we will be revealing over the coming weeks) our founding members and our paid-up subscribers. A massive ‘thank you’ to all our other subscribers too. The support of all of you is invaluable!
🔓 You’ve been reading a free edition of The Raikes Journal, for which we are grateful. Please do spread the word about what we are trying to do - create a real, journalistically-led, community-orientated, Gloucestershire-focused digital magazine. If you upgrade to paid, you will get on average eight extra members-only editions every month and will be able to see beyond any paywalls, as well as read Raikes’ rolling Top 100-plus Businesses in Gloucestershire series. You will also be allowed to comment on stories, make suggestions for what we should be writing about, vote in our awards, and might even be invited to our roundtable events. And you’ll be supporting the rebirth of high-quality journalism in Gloucestershire on a website championing the county you love — all for just £2.30 per week (£12 a month or £120 a year! Ask us about 20 per cent off for groups of two or more subscribers).