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Author: Lynne Haigh

Volunteer of the Month: October

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

We love this time of the month: when we get to shout about our amazing volunteers and the quite literally life changing work that they do to help Fresh Futures run smoothly and effectively.

This month we are giving a very special THANK YOU to Tracey Mcknight, who started volunteering over two years ago as a befriender!

We caught up with Tracey to hear about her Fresh Futures Volunteering Journey so far…

  1. Name: Tracey Mcknight
  2. Tell us a little about yourself? My journey with Community Connections started during the covid pandemic, I spotted an advertisement on social media for the role, but I wasn’t quite sure what qualifications I would need.  Well, I took the first step and soon came to realise the only qualifications needed are to be a good listener, have a good bit of chat, and most importantly have a whole lot of fun. 
  3. How long have you been volunteering for the charity? Over 2 years 
  4. Please explain your volunteering role in a nutshell: I was originally matched with two gentlemen, and we had weekly telephone calls as we couldn’t meet during the pandemic. This didn’t stop us enjoying our time together, I learned so much about Liverpool football club, we did quiz time and singalongs to some great old songs, and nattered about how things were when my gentlemen were growing up in the 1930’s.  Despite our age differences, we loved sharing our life stories together. 
  5. What made you want to start volunteering with YCC? Having elderly parents, I realised that there were many elderly or vulnerable people in our community who were feeling lonely.
  6. Tell us a little bit about your role: My role has developed and now I not only have telephone conversations with my community connection friends but I am able to see them face to face.  I have recently been matched to the most interesting and lovely lady who has so many stories to share about her cruises and ballroom dancing I love looking over the old photographs and reminiscing with her.
  7. And finally, what advice would you give to people considering volunteering with YCC? This is such a rewarding role, and I would highly recommend anyone who has a spare hour or so a week to give it a go! Putting a smile on someone’s face is priceless and just being that bridge between loneliness and having a feeling of companionship is really what it is all about! Just give it a go and make a difference!

If you feel inspired to become a volunteer like Tracey, or if you would like to volunteer in any way for our charity, please contact Lucy on 01484 519988 or email [email protected]

News Update: Fresh Futures awarded Household Support Grant by tsl Kirklees

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

We are excited to report that tsl Kirklees recently awarded Fresh Futures a grant of £2,000 as part of the Household Support Grant 2022. We were able to use this money to help reduce hardship and offer access to essential supplies and services to eligible families and individuals through our Safety In The Home service.

Due to the cost-of-living crisis it was evident when speaking to families, they were having to make difficult choices and unfortunately sacrifice essential items.

With the help of the grant, we were able to offer extra support to 16 families and individuals by providing the following items:

  • 2 electric cookers
  • 3 washing machines
  • 1 fridge
  • 1 fridge Freezer
  • 1 single mattress
  • 1 landing / stairway carpet
  • 2 set of warm bedding inc. fitted sheet, duvet cover, mattress protector
  • 2 lots of autumn / winter clothing for 2 children
  • 1 drying rail
  • 5 ALDI shopping vouchers
  • 2 Morrisons voucher
  • 2 Deichmann vouchers for school shoes
  • 1 gas prepayment top up
  • 1 electric prepayment top up

All the families we were able to support were extremely grateful and we received some wonderful feedback:

“This charity has really helped me. They have stayed in contact and are always friendly on phone. Thank you again for all your support”.

“Thank you so much to the team – I honestly appreciate everything you’ve done for me and my family from day 1”.

At Fresh Futures we actively refer families and individuals on to other services they require. We are proud to report that we were able to sign up six families to the Healthy Start Scheme whist supporting them through the Household Support initiative. Healthy Start is a government scheme to improve the health of lower income pregnant women, and families with young children, that receive benefits and universal credits.

Fresh Futures works closely with other organisations such as Locala, HomeStart, Community Plus and many more. Working in partnership with such organisations means we can reach more families and individuals that need our support. A great example of this collaborative work was when HomeStart identified a family where Mum needed further help and Fresh Futures we able to step in and provide her with a washing machine as part of the Household Support Grant. Here is what the Mum said about the support we provided “I was struggling as a single parent, especially with the cost of living going up and a washing machine wasn’t something I would ever have been able to afford, I was having to travel to Bradford to wash my babies clothes, using public transport which was extremely difficult, it has made such a difference to me to be able to do my own washing at home – I’m so happy with my new washing machine, thank you”.

Fresh Futures enjoys working with other organisations to make a difference

If you have any questions about the safety in the home service, please contact us on [email protected] or 01484 415465

Meet The Team: Leah Butler

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

Name: Leah

Job Title: Child Contact Centre Coordinator

Date joined YCC: March 2022

Tell us a little about yourself: I enjoy socialising with my friends and family and spend a lot of time looking after my two young nieces.

Your role in a nutshell: I facilitate contact between children and their families, where there are issues around conflict and safeguarding. I am based in Brian Jackson House where we have two contact centres.

Why do you like working for YCC? Fresh Futures supports families as a whole and you can see that we are making a real difference. The people I work with are friendly and we all work well together as a team.

What’s one of your favourite work memories? I really enjoyed the Fresh Futures away day. It was a fun day and a great way to meet new people having only been at Fresh Futures for a few months.

And finally, what advice would you give to people considering working at YCC? If you want to make a difference in people’s lives, Fresh Futures is a great place to work. 

If you would like to learn more about the services that YCC’s Child Contact team offer, click HERE.

News Update: Fresh Futures continues to offer support to refugees

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

Fresh Futures is a charity that seeks to Improve Lives and Inspire Change by supporting children, young people and their families in our communities. Our communities are made up of amazing people, who have also recently welcomed many Ukrainian families into the community.

Fresh Futures recognises that refugees and evacuees can be extremely vulnerable and disadvantaged when they arrive in the UK, and we have previously made a commitment to support them and their families where we can.

We currently support the DWP with their programme to offer work to those arriving to the UK from Ukraine, and we are constantly looking at ways we can offer help to those that need it.

We caught up with Ryan Cross, Community Anchor Coordinator at YCC, who is supporting Ukrainian refugees as part of his role. Ryan told us: “For us at YCC, it’s about support and making sure that we can work directly with people to truly understand what they need, what is working, and what isn’t working. This can range from connecting a refugee to activities in the area or supporting a community group to set up a new activity”.

Ryan is involved in arranging Coffee Mornings for Ukrainian refugees where they can drop in and speak to Ryan about any questions or concerns that they might have. Ryan is also looking to set up a thank you event for Host Families who have welcomed Ukrainians into their home recently.

Ryan also told us: “I like to think the work I am doing is leading to a far more sustainable, and accessible third sector in Batley and Spen. It also gives the community a wider understanding of what we do and what we’re capable of doing at YCC.”

Following on from our promise to do whatever we can to support refugees through our charity, on Tuesday 27th September Fresh Futures attended the ‘Kirklees Welcomes – Job Fair and Advice for Refugees’ event at Batley Library.

Fresh Futures table at the Kirklees Welcomes Job Fair on 27th September

The event was open to local employers and set up to encourage members of the public that have recently arrived in the UK from Ukraine to discuss job opportunities in the Kirklees area.

The fair was well attended and Fresh Futures were able to engage with attendees about available jobs at the charity.

Samantha Latchayya, Leadership Team Coordinator at Fresh Futures said “I met with some lovely people who have arrived from Ukraine. Many of them have transferable skills, have graduated from University, or have worked in similar environments before. We are hoping that there could be some people who are interested in our roles and might apply for the jobs.”

At YCC, we value our employees and the incredible work they do to improve lives and inspire change. Our culture promotes development and diversification across all departments, from front-line service workers to in-house administration.

If you would like more information on current vacancies at Fresh Futures please visit Work With Us – Yorkshire Children’s Centre (freshfutures.org.uk)

Thank you so much: Tesco

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

Fresh Futures would like to say a huge Thank You to the Team Managers at Tesco, Huddersfield for supporting Fresh Futures.

Fresh Futures are grateful to the team at Tesco for all their support.

Tesco works with local charities through partnerships, helping people when they need it most. The branch in Huddersfield recently reached out to Fresh Futures to offer their support to our charity and support our local communities through events.  

Lynne Haigh, Fundraising and Communications Co-ordinator at YCC, said “We were absolutely thrilled to be contacted by the team at Tesco, Huddersfield. They were really welcoming and excited to learn about Fresh Futures. After being updated on our upcoming events they quickly provided us with some incredible raffle prizes and refreshments.”

On Thursday, last week, Fresh Futures held their first ever fashion show at Brian Jackson House. Members of staff modelled clothes from Complete Clothing Company and the whole community were invited to attend. During the event everyone enjoyed refreshments provided by Tesco.

The fashion show was hosted by Complete Clothing Company at Brian Jackson House

The evening was a great success and raised an amazing £350 for Fresh Futures.

Fresh Futures relies on support from local businesses, like Tesco, and we are excited to continue forming a great relationship with them going forward.

On behalf of everyone at Fresh Futures we would like to thank Tesco, Huddersfield for supporting this event. What’s more the team at Tesco, Huddersfield also provided Fresh Futures with some incredible raffle prizes ranging from non-alcoholic beverages to Tattinger Champagne. Keep an eye out for raffle prizes going on sale as this is one not to miss.

The evening was a great success and raised an amazing £350 for YCC

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.

Volunteer of the Month: September

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

We love this time of the month: when we get to shout about our amazing volunteers and the quite literally life changing work that they do to help Fresh Futures run smoothly and effectively.

This month we are giving a very special THANK YOU to Amarah Younas, who started volunteering just over a year ago for Child Contact!

We caught up with Amarah to hear about her Fresh Futures Volunteering Journey so far…

  1. Name: Amarah Younas
  2. Tell us a little about yourself? Passionate, kind, and helpful is the type of person I am. I use the initiative and put in extra work to allow effectiveness is ensured. I work collaboratively within a team, as I can complete tasks and my role. I have a patient approach and calm manner which is important when dealing with challenging situations, especially at times within the Fresh Futures. 
  3. How long have you been volunteering for the charity? I have volunteered for 1 year and 1 month. 
  4. Please explain your volunteering role in a nutshell: As a volunteer, I help deliver a safe environment for children and families. This is delivered through weekly contact sessions, and supporting (sometimes through words of encouragement) the carers to positively develop the relationship with their children. 
  5. What made you want to start volunteering with YCC? During COVID-19, it was really difficult to see others not being with their loved ones, either by separation or by the passing of their loved one. After the COVID cases and isolation had reduced, I felt like I had to give something back to the community. Hence, I searched volunteering places, especially within a family setting, and came across Fresh Futures. I read more into what the organisation did and was intrigued. I wanted to be part of the support that helped individuals reunite with their loved ones. 
  6. Sum up a typical day of volunteering for you? A typical day at the contact centre entails going into 2 or 3 sessions of either supported, supervised, or MS Teams meeting (for new families starting the contact centre). Sometimes, depending on the case, I even go out in the community with the team supervisor and observe the contact between the children and their carers. By the end of the day, I assist in cleaning up the creche/contact room, in order for the rooms to be presentable for the next families. 
  7. And finally, what advice would you give to people considering volunteering with YCC? Do it! You will not regret it, it is a good challenge and you will learn many things that will increase your outer knowledge about other families, and how difficult some of their situations are. It is a rewarding experience, and you know what makes volunteering even better? It’s the team at YCC, they will always support and teach you. 

If you feel inspired to become a volunteer like Amarah, or if you would like to volunteer in any way for our charity, please contact Lucy on 01484 519988 or email [email protected]

Meet The Team: Leon Alexis-Bailey

Posted on by Lynne Haigh

Full Name: Leon Alexis-Bailey


Job Title: Facilitator

Date joined YCC: December 2020


Tell us a little about yourself: In my spare time I enjoy painting, playing chess and spending time with my family. Outside of Fresh Futures I also help run out of school workshops and boot camps.


Your role in a nutshell: I teach my READY programme (a confidence building workshop) across both Huddersfield and Heckmondwike sites two days a week and carry out key worker duties, as well as health and fitness one day a week.


Why do you like working for YCC? Fresh Futures are champions of personal development and progression. Since working here, I have grown in confidence in my ability both at work and outside.


What’s one of your favourite work memories? Taking my first class in the READY programme and hearing that first “Thank you, I enjoyed that lesson.” It was a great feeling and a reminder that working with young people is my purpose.


And finally, what advice would you give to people considering working at YCC? If you want to be part of a positive movement and team mentality, then Fresh Futures is that movement.

If you think you would like to work in a College environment please check out our current vacancies, HERE.