Author: Lynne Haigh

It’s a new year and we are ready for new challenges that running a large charity furniture store brings each day. We are very fortunate to receive good quality items to sell from our donors and we are grateful to all our loyal customers for the purchases they make, which help to support Fresh Futures with unrestricted funds which in turn assists all the good work that’s done for children, families, and the wider community.

All donated items are checked to ensure they reach quality and safety standards, from sofas and beds to fridge/freezers and kettles.  With the current cost of living increases, we believe that charity shops like ours will become even more important to people to help them get what they need and want.

This January, environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy is launching ‘Buy Nothing New Month’. We will be actively supporting this via our social media page Facebook Pass It On YCC – why not take a look and follow us?

Throughout January, Keep Britain Tidy will be sharing a host of tips and tricks on not buying new items and making the most of what you already have. They will be calling on the public to rethink what they want versus what they need, reconsidering if they can repair versus replace and think about whether they can rent, borrow or, of course, buy second-hand rather than new.

During February the Charity Retail Association, of which Fresh Futures are a member, are highlighting shops like ours with their campaign #CharityShopHome, celebrating the best in furniture and homewares found in charity shops and online charity retail. The campaign will run from 6^th – 12^th February and posts of members’ stylish room set-ups and expertly curated homewares will be promoted across their social media channels. Fresh Futures have sent in several photos which we hope will be shared far and wide!

Every day is different in Pass It On and we never know what’s in store. Why not call in and see us, one thing’s for certain, you will always receive a warm welcome.

Click here for more information on our Pass It On Shop and how you can support Fresh Futures.

Fresh Futures are so proud to have supported 781 children, across 263 families, from Kirklees this Christmas during our 2022 Gift Appeal.

We asked families living in Kirklees who were at risk of not being able to provide their children with a gift on Christmas Day to contact us and the response was overwhelming. 2022 was a particularly hard year due to the Cost-of-Living Crisis and for those already worried about Christmas, it was an even more stressful time of year.

We appealed to members of the public and businesses who donated 100s of brand-new toys and gifts for children aged between 0 – 18 years.

We were supported by an amazing number of local businesses including Fintel, Trust Ford, Arnold Clark, Turntable Vinyl Café, Barnardo’s, Tesco, Card Factory, Body Evolution, Kirklees Foster Carers Network, Linthwaite Clough Early Years Unit and members of the public through our Secret Santa campaign alongside JCI Secret Santa.

Without the support from these companies and members of the public we would not have been able to support so many families and children.

Lynne Haigh, Fundraising and Communications Coordinator at YCC, who helped coordinate the Gift Appeal said “It has been overwhelming to receive so much support from companies and members of the public who have wanted to help Fresh Futures. We were expecting to help around 500 children and surpassed this, reaching almost 800. It was such a heart-warming campaign to be involved in and I can’t wait to do it again, bigger and better, in 2023!”

If you would like to support Fresh Futures in any way, then please contact [email protected] and find out how you or your organisation could get involved to Improve Lives and Inspire Change.

As part of the White Ribbon Campaign Yorkshire Children’s Centre and EdShift presented ‘Speak Volumes – the importance of amplifying children’s voices in domestic abuse perpetrator programmes’ on Tuesday 6^th December 2022 at Brian Jackson House. This is an extremely important topic as The Domestic Abuse Act was amended in 2022 to recognise that children in a domestic abuse household are victims in their own right.

EdShift was founded in April 2019 by Ellie Brook and delivers quality, drama-based violence prevention programmes and digital resources to children aged 7 – 16. Their SpotLight Programme was developed in response to the deaths of two children and 14 women, caused by domestic violence, in the first three weeks of lockdown and aims to give a voice to children so they aren’t silenced or ignored. It ensures children know what to do in an emergency, have a safe place to go and also teaches them key aspects within the law and how to recognise red flags in their own relationships.

EdShift works with schools and other professionals linked to the child to ensure they take a trauma informed approach to how they are acting and give them the support they need.

Fresh Futures Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme (DAPP) is a 17-week high risk programme using both group work and 1:1 sessions. It has been running for 10 years and became RESPECT accredited in 2015. The team assess an individual’s suitability for the course before they join the pre group sessions and then the 14-week rolling programme. During the course they are encouraged to learn skills to help them deal with issues such as anger, negative thoughts, and aggression in their daily lives. Men who have completed the course have come back to discuss how it has changed their mindset and talk about their experiences which is a great way for those on the course to engage and see positive outcomes. Fresh Futures also has a Domestic Abuse Worker who is in contact with the victims and ensures they are supported and will notify the DAPP facilitators if they are experiencing any issues outside of the course.  

EdShift and Fresh Futures started to work together in July 2022 and have completed a successful pilot where individuals on the DAPP course were shown the SpotLight exhibition. The participants were encouraged to understand the impact that domestic violence has on children. A lot of the men admitted to being unaware of the effect domestic abuse was having on their children, especially when they weren’t in the same room when the abuse was taking place.

One of the tasks that had a huge impact on the men was the “Power Tower”, the men were asked to fill in a blank brick and write what they would say to their children if they could. They took their brick home and are encouraged to look at it as motivation to continue to change for their children. One of the participants on the course said “The most impactful exercise was when you asked us to write on the power brick – it was like a light bulb moment. It made me think – oh my god what have I done to my children. It was a period of introspection that really made me think – If I could, what would I say to my children and the only appropriate thing I could say is sorry but I couldn’t get the word out.”

The pilot has received amazing feedback from participants and Fresh Futures and EdShift will continue to work together:

• All of the men agreed the most significant impact was seeing it directly from the children and hearing it from the children’s voices.
• All of the men agreed that the session significantly increased their motivation to change
• All of the men agreed that they viewed the impact of their behaviour on their children differently after the session.
• 98% of the men agreed that their motivation to change significantly increased after the session.
• 100% of the men agreed that there was a significant difference in how they felt the impact of their behaviour had on their children.

“My motivation changed because I finally started to see things from my daughter’s perspective and not my own. The impact that my behaviour has had on her and what that might mean for her future is terrifying but that makes me want to change.”

To learn more about DAPP click HERE and to learn more about EdShift click HERE.

We are feeling Christmassy here at Fresh Futures and have several exciting Christmas Campaigns that members of the public can get involved with to help us raise funds for those that need our support over the festive period.

We are so excited this year to have our very own Fresh Futures Christmas Cards that were designed by Sam, a Year 11 student at Brian Jackson College. These are on sale NOW at Brian Jackson House and Jo Cox House.

Our Christmas Tree of Wishes is up at Brian Jackson House and companies can donate a personalised bauble for £50 which will then be proudly displayed on the tree.

Our Christmas Gift Appeal started in November, and we have already had several companies reach out to help us collect gifts. Members of the public can also get involved and this year we are the Huddersfield collection point for the JCI Secret Santa Appeal. All gifts donated will be given to families in Kirklees that need help this Christmas.

On Wednesday 14^th December, members of staff at Fresh Futures will be celebrating Festive Jumper Day and having an internal festive lunch get together. There will be a hamper and raffle prizes available to win on the day.

Lynne Haigh, Fundraising Communications and Coordinator at Fresh Futures said “It has been extremely busy in the run up to Christmas and it is so exciting to have all the different ways for people to reach out and support Fresh Futures. We are pleased that, as a result, we will be able to support so many families and individuals during these difficult times.”

All proceeds raised from our Christmas Campaigns will go directly back to Fresh Futures and support disadvantaged children, young people and their families.

If you would like to support Fresh Futures in any way, then please contact [email protected] and find out how you or your organisation could get involved to Improve Lives and Inspire Change.