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Category: Articles & Media

Fresh Futures are FINALISTS for the Covid Hero Award!

Posted on by Samantha Latchayya

Fresh Futures are incredibly proud to announce that on Friday 06th May, at the Yorkshire Choice Awards, Fresh Futures were FINALISTS in the Covid Hero Award nominations.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who voted for us, and to thank all of our staff and volunteers who worked throughout this difficult time providing support across our communities.

Although we didn’t quite take home the award on the night, this is still a fantastic moment, and highlights just how important and impactful our charity was during the pandemic. We couldn’t be more proud of the work that was carried out and the passion and dedication that so many individuals demonstrated, even in such difficult times

Mark Farmer, Chief Executive said: “”.

Fresh Futures would also like to congratulate Yorkshire Scrubs who took home the award on the night – another voluntary organisation who made and supplied over 23,000 sets of scrubs for frontline workers during the pandemic.

Fresh Futures Announces 3-Year Strategy & Launches Brand-New Website.

Posted on by Samantha Latchayya

Regional charity Yorkshire Children’s Centre (YCC) hosted a special event at their site at Brian Jackson House, Huddersfield on 15th March to launch their new three-year strategy and brand-new website for the charity. The event saw 50 people from across the Fresh Futures team, external partners and supporters come together to celebrate the exciting plans.

The event had a great turnout, including two students from YCC’s alternative provision college, who presented Proactive Code with a thank you gift.

Established in 1974, and looking towards their 50th Anniversary, this is an exciting stage in Fresh Futures history, that will bring focus to the services they deliver to improve lives and inspire change in vulnerable and disadvantaged children and young people, and their families across Kirklees and the surrounding areas.

Mark Farmer CEO said “It was great to get together to share plans that will shape the future of the charity over the next three years. It was also the launch of our brand-new website, and thanks must go to Martin Port (BigChange) and Dan Todd (Proactive Code) who have enabled us to complete this project.”

Fresh Futures is a regional charity that works with vulnerable and disadvantaged children, young people, and their families within Kirklees and surrounding areas. We are thought leaders and, together with partners, our mission is to deliver the best possible outcomes through four interwoven strands of activity – providing education services and facilities, building healthy relationships, promoting health and wellbeing, and improving employability skills.

YCC’s partners and stakeholders were invited to the event to meet with Fresh Futures departments and learn about their services

For more information about how you can support Fresh Futures please contact Sara Eltman [email protected]

Fresh Futures Stands with Ukraine

Posted on by Samantha Latchayya

During this difficult time, Fresh Futures stands with Ukraine.

Many of you have been asking about Fresh Futures stance on the events surrounding the Ukrainian humanitarian crisis, so we wanted to take this opportunity to share with you our position.

Even as a children and family centred charity, it is difficult to comprehend the full extent of the devastation currently ongoing in Ukraine, and we extend our greatest sympathy to everyone affected by the crisis.

To keep you informed, Fresh Futures have been in touch with the Huddersfield Ukrainian Group, who have advised us that donations of items are not required by them at this time. They have requested that should anyone wish to make a donation, that they do so via this link.

As a charity, we will be committed to supporting as many Ukrainian children and families in our communities as we can. This will only be possible once refugees start to arrive in our local areas and subject to them qualifying for the services we are accredited to offer. However, it is important to note that as we are not a refugee charity (and therefore do not specialise in the support that some other charities will be offering at this time) it would not be correct for us to try and ‘step in’.

Although our services do not respond to any of the current urgent needs communicated from Ukraine at this time, we are keeping a close eye on ways that we can support Ukrainian refugees through our Children and Family services, and through government incentives.

We are aware that there may shortly be the possibility for us to offer employment to refugees arriving from Ukraine, with a special 3-year work visa being granted to all Ukrainian refugees. Should this be the case, Fresh Futures will actively seek to employ Ukrainians to help them build skills and support their families, where possible. Fresh Futures will also reconsider running a collection of items, should this need arise. And of course, our doors will always be open to our new Ukrainian community friends when they arrive, should they need to access any of our services.

If you would like to get in touch with Fresh Futures about this matter, please email [email protected] or call 01484 51 99 88.

#WeAreFresh Futures #WeStandWithUkraine

Please vote Fresh Futures as Covid Hero

Posted on by Samantha Latchayya

We are delighted to have been nominated for this award that shines a light on organisations that have continued to go above and beyond to help people in their communities during the pandemic.

We would like to thank all of the amazing Fresh Futures team of staff and volunteers whose dedication and hard work ensures that we are always here for the children, young people and families that need us.

We’d appreciate your vote – it only takes a few clicks & every vote really does count

CLICK HERE TO VOTE

Children’s Mental Health Week

Posted on by Samantha Latchayya

Yorkshire Children’s Centre’s Thriving Kirklees department is proud to support Children’s Mental Health Week, created by Place2Be – a children’s mental health organisation that works with pupils, families and staff in UK schools.

Children’s Mental Health Week runs from 7th – 13th February. This year’s theme is ‘Growing Together’.

How are Fresh Futures supporting Children’s Mental Health

1. During Children’s Mental Health Week, the Thriving Kirklees Team at Fresh Futures will be sending out our Emotional Health & Wellbeing activity packs to all Kirklees Primary Schools. The packs are predominantly aimed at year 5 & 6 pupils, but they can also be used by professionals supporting families, or families themselves.

You can download a free copy of this activity pack, by clicking HERE. 

2. The Thriving Kirklees Partnership have also developed another helpful document for adults supporting children. This includes advice on supporting children that are struggling with lockdown, positive language to use when speaking with children, was to identiful anxiety in children, tips on creating a positive structure and routine, helping a child back into school, and much much more.

You can download a free copy of this children’s wellbeing guide, by clicking HERE. 

3. Thriving Kirklees, Northorpe Hall, NHS South West Yorkshire Partnership and Fresh Futures have developed a collection of free emotional health and wellbeing resources.

You can download a free copy of this document, by clicking HERE. 

4. To tie in with the theme of ‘Growing Together’, Fresh Futures will be giving away free packs of seeds to visitors to Brian Jackson House, who have children at home, to plant together. Gardening has long been credited for it’s positive impacts on health and wellbeing.

To read more about the 5 ways that gardening can be good for children’s mental wellbeing, click HERE.

To get your free seeds, please visit Brian Jackson House and request your seed packets from reception. 

Katie Lockwood, YCC’s 0-19 Health and Wellbeing Service Manager, said, ‘The Thriving Kirklees team at Fresh Futures are proud to support Children’s Mental Health Week this year and ever year. The mental health and wellbeing of a all children is fundamental to the work that we do at the charity, and we are dedicated to providing information that is free to access, and easy to understand, to everyone who cares for children, with no barriers to information.’

To contact the Thriving Kirklees team at YCC, please call 01484 519988 or email [email protected]

#WeAreYCC