The customer servcies team went back to school for a day this week to take part in a can do volunteering project. The team painted murals, floor paintings and a wendy house in the yard of Ystrad Primary School.
The result is a colourful yard ready for many summery playtimes!
On 22nd May the United Welsh Neighbourhood and Property teams headed off to Mill Close in Caerphilly to start clearing the ground alongside the riverbank in preparation for essential repairs to be carried out as one of their ‘Can Do volunteering’ days. The preparation work is part of the United Welsh Estate Improvements project.
The teams were joined by Groundwork Caerphilly who kindly offered to take charge of machinery and shred any bushes cut down so they could be re-used on flower beds on the estate.
“We had a great day the sun was shining and we enjoyed working together, taking it in turns to pick up litter, cut back trees and paint the fencing. It was tiring working in the heat but we kept on going and it was all worth the effort when we could see the progress we’d made and how great the area looked litter free and with a newly painted fence.” Said Julie Morris Neighbourhood and Participation Manager.
As part of the on-going estate improvement programme contractors will be on site in July rebuilding the riverbank where it has eroded over time and we will be back in September to clear another area.
The Hanbury Chapel Renovation Project, which breathed new life into a dilapidated building in Bargoed, Caerphilly, South Wales, has been rewarded for its innovative and community focused refurbishment of a Grade II listed building.
A partnership was created with the congregation of Hanbury Chapel, United Welsh Housing Association, Caerphilly County Borough Council and the Welsh Government’s Heads of the Valleys Programme, to design a modern education and community hub at the heart of the town centre in the rundown Grade II listed Chapel.
Action for Market Towns awarded the Bargoed Library project, which rejuvenated Hanbury Chapel into a state of the art library, customer service centre, café, with retained worshipping space, the Social and Community Award in the Welsh region of the UK’s most prestigious town community projec t award scheme in recognition for its efforts to nurture a thriving community.
The transformation of Hanbury Chapel was part of the larger project, The Bargoed ‘Big Idea’. An ambitious and dynamic scheme to revitalise Bargoed as a modern and sustainable 21st Century town centre, the ‘Big Idea’ included plans to demolish the town’s library building to make way for a new retail development.
Chris Wade, Chief Executive of Action for Market Towns, said, “The Action for Market Towns Awards celebrate these innovative projects and share good ideas allowing other towns across the UK to learn from our winners’ experiences.
“The quality and quantity of our entries shows that innovation and creativity is at the heart of many towns across Wales. This year’s entries really raised the bar - giving judges a difficult task - and the regional winners should be congratulated for the positive effects their projects are having in their communities.”
With over 17,000 visitors in its first month, Bargoed Library has also seen a massive 46 per cent increase in book borrowing between October 2011 and March 2012. The renovation of Hanbury Chapel has contributed significantly to improving the perception of the town centre and will continue to significantly improve access to education and cultural opportunities for the community.
Gareth Evans, Manager of Library Services for Caerphilly County Borough Council, said: “All those involved in the Hanbury Chapel project deserve huge recognition for the commendable job they have done, in turning a dilapidated and underused building into a modern and community centric centre for education and leisure. It is a privilege to be honoured by the Action for Market Towns Awards, and I hope that all visitors to the library, customer service centre, congregation space and café, enjoy the transformation that was made possible by the hard work of the entire partnership.”
Ian Gilbert, Chair of United Welsh, added: “This building is the result of an extremely successful collaboration between many partners. It’s safe to say that converting a chapel built in 1906 into a modern community facility whilst still maintaining the history and character of the building was a challenge. Hanbury Chapel is further evidence of real partnership working delivering tangible outcomes for the benefit of the whole community.”
(Source: towns.org.uk)
The Green House eco-families sign up and move in……….
Larch House and Lime House in Ebbw Vale will now be monitored to see how their passive nature reacts and works with everyday family life.
It seems that tenants living in United Welsh homes are getting their 5-a-day. Fruit & Veg Co-ops run by the local community for the local community are sprouting everywhere –with great results.
Fruit & Veg Co-ops are organised through the Rural Regeneration Unit, an initiative supported by Welsh Government. It strongly supports the Health Challenge Wales 5-a-day pledge. Fruit & Veg Co-ops are local community ‘markets’ through which customers access bags of locally produced fresh fruit, salad and vegetables on a weekly basis at wholesale prices. The groups are run by volunteers from the community which it serves – the volunteers look after everything from ordering, running the books and delivering the ordered produce to the customers.
United Welsh has supported the delivery of four successful groups in Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly with three more to follow shortly. Plas Hyfryd a ‘Housing with Care’ Scheme in Caerphilly recently launched their co-op with volunteer residents Dougie and Shirley at the helm.
The successful launch saw residents of the Living + housing scheme snap up 33 bags of fresh fruit and vegetables as they strive to get their whole community eating healthy fresh produce. The service is being run as part of their weekly coffee mornings in order to reach as many of the residents as possible.
Hannah James from the Rural Regeneration Unit which supports the co-ops said “The co-op’s aim is to provide fresh affordable produce to all. This is a great first day of sales – it’s social too as the residents are having fun.”
Jo Green Head of Living+ at United Welsh added; “The reaction of Living + residents to the fruit & veg co-operatives has been outstanding.
The Living+ communities have taken ownership of delivering this healthy eating initiative to their community which will help change lives; having an impact on both food bills and their health. United Welsh are proud to support such initiatives and look forward to seeing many more.”
Huw Lewis, Minister for Housing Regeneration and Heritage has welcomed two families to their new eco-homes in Ebbw Vale.
The lucky families won the Green House competition run by United Welsh and its partners to live rent free for 12 months whilst taking part in an environmental monitoring project.
Larch and Lime House are situated on the site of the former Steelworks ‘The Works’, which is currently undergoing an extensive regeneration programme; including the building of a new school, leisure centre, hospital and the eco-homes. Built as prototype social housing the eco-homes have been recognised for groundbreaking innovation winning multiple national sustainability awards. United Welsh, and partners Blaenau Gwent Council, bere:architects and Pendragon Design and Build worked collaboratively as part of the National Eisteddfod festival celebrations 2010 to build a house to showcase the ‘Passivhaus’ concept, with the support of BRE and the Welsh Government.
Nyree and Anthony Jones and their two daughters Shannon-Lee and Demi from Cwm were selected to live in Larch House, the UK’s first zero carbon passivhaus they said; “We are so excited to have won this competition and be given that chance to live in this eco-home. We cannot wait to have a garden where the girls can safely ride their bikes and have the space to grow as a family. We will share all that we learn about energy awareness and eco-living.”
The couple moving in to The Lime House are Chloe Thomas and her partner of six years Stuart-Carl Barnes. The young couple have been living with their parents until now saving for their own place. The news came just at the right time for them as they are expecting their first child in May.
Housing, Regeneration and Heritage Minister Huw Lewis said: “Many Welsh households are feeling the pinch of the economic climate and some are facing real fuel poverty, so making ends meet is as important as ever. This is a fantastic opportunity for two lucky families to experience how living in a low carbon property, developed with Welsh Government support and built using local expertise and sustainable local products, helps protect the environment while cutting down on household fuel bills.
“I wish the residents the best of happiness in their new properties and I look forward to hearing about their experiences of living in two of the most environmentally friendly homes in the UK.”
March 2012
I had the opportunity to contribute to a workshop on procurement at the TAI 2012 Housing Conference in Cardiff. The focus was on highlighting how to use procurement as a lever to deliver additional social , economic and environmental benefits in communities. We have done a lot using social clauses as part of our Targeted Recruitment and Training work. This was a chance to showcase where we have developed creative partnerships with social enterprises - especially with Vision 21 at our Housing With Care Schemes - giving students with learning disabilities important work opportunities - and PS Services who have just won our cleaning and caretaking contract for Cardiff - this will unlock more new work opportunities for people experiencing mental health issues.
As a direct result of us choosing to Vision 21 to provide our restaurant services to tenants at Plas Hyfrydd and Llys Nanty Mynydd we have directly created a whopping 12 salaried jobs: 2 volunteering roles: and 25 student work placements. And working with PS Services has created 3 work placements for our tenants - 1 who has since secured a paid contract with PS Services. As the Cardiff contract gears up more opportunities will be created.
These are great stories which highlight the potential of doing far more with good, ethical, honest and dependable social enterprise.
Steve Cranston Head of Community Investment United Welsh
http://www.blaenau-gwent.gov.uk/documents/Documents_Governance/Connect_spring2012.pdf
United Welsh gets GOLD!
In Olympic year United Welsh has been awarded The Investors in People (IiP) GOLD award.
United Welsh considers its staff as its most important asset. This is clear through its investment in training, learning, development and creating a culture of bravery and creativity empowering staff to unlock their potential.
The achievement of the Investors in People GOLD award reinforces this commitment to people, training, and development. United Welsh were required to undertake an audit for the IiP Award which they have held for over 15 years; the recent audit showed that the organisation marked ‘beyond the standard’ which resulted in the recognition of the GOLD standard.
Members of United Welsh staff and board members were invited to meet with the auditor and speak openly and honestly about their role, future goals and ambitions and feelings towards the company. The thorough process taking over two weeks led to the eventual recognition that the organisation was at the GOLD standard – a corporate objective for 2015! Only organisations that achieve The Standard plus 126 additional evidence requirements or more will be recognised as Investors in People GOLD.
Donna Howells, Head of Human Resources at United Welsh said; “This is the ultimate accolade and we are thrilled that all members of the United Welsh team feel this way about our business. We do not wish to rest on our laurels and intend to continuously improve and deliver this level of satisfaction amongst staff, customers and stakeholders. This accreditation is key to our business objectives and ethos, and we will work hard to maintain this high standard.”
Tenants of United Welsh Living+ scheme Fitzroy Lodge in Cefn Fforest, Blackwood are celebrating following news that they have been successful in applying for a grant from the Cefn Fforest Ward Communities First Trust Fund.
The proactive community at the complex set up their own residents association last year in order to help their own community get active and give themselves a voice enabling them to feed thoughts and views into United Welsh efficiently and effectively.
Following their ‘big launch’ in October, which was attended by local MP Chris Evans, the group worked hard on consulting with residents on what items they would like to bid for. A representative from GAVO supported the group in their application. They have been eagerly awaiting the news and are delighted to have been awarded £4921.13!
The money will be funding new computers and digital cameras for the complex as the group has set up a Facebook page and are taking part in digital photography classes. It will also be going towards events and trips for the resident’s throughout the year and a Wii Fit package.
The pro-active group is not simply resting on its laurels; they have been out and about at other United Welsh Living+ schemes highlighting the benefits of their work.
Delwyn Davies Chair of the group exclaimed his joy at the news; “We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded this funding from Communities First. The group has had a hugely positive impact on all those who get involved at Fitzroy Lodge and this money will help us to continue this work. We are planning trips to Swansea, St Fagans, Bridgend and Tenby for starters giving all the members of our community the chance to get out easily safely and above all have fun!”
Jo Green, Head of Living+ at United Welsh added; “United Welsh are thrilled to see that the Fitzroy Lodge Residents Association has come so far in such a short time. Their proactive approach has increased interactivity amongst their community, and with us. We are keen to support groups such as these to help them to release their potential and to achieve their goals.”
Fitzroy Lodge was built in 1980, there are 36 one-bedroom properties in the Living + complex. Living+ provides housing to people 55yrs of age and over. It is a service that specialises in meeting the lifestyle needs of this group of customers and is committed to developing services as people’s needs change.
United Welsh is a not-for-profit organisation providing housing and related services to people in South Wales. We offer a range of homes including family houses, apartments and bungalows. United Welsh currently manage over 4,700 properties across 11 local authorities
