About Us
Centre 33 is a non profit-making organisation that began in 1981. It provides independent, free and confidential services to young people aged under 26 in Cambridgeshire. We provide support through information, referral, counselling, advice, advocacy, support for young carers, outreach, pregnancy testing and access to the internet
Chair's Report:
Centre 33 is an extraordinary organisation unlike any other I have worked with. There's a real desire to make the place a vital haven for young people, it hits you as you come through the door. It doesn't work or think like other organisations!
I've had the pleasure and privilege of being its Chair for a year now, and what staff and volunteers have achieved, and continue to achieve is remarkable - increased numbers of young people helped yet shorter waiting lists. The difference we can make, as our young people and our partners know, is quite disproportionate to our size.
A telling marker of how our work is valued and recognised came as we drew up a simple strategic plan for Centre 33, for which we canvassed views from our principle professional and agency partners.
Typically, getting such busy people to respond is like getting blood from the proverbial stone! But not only did almost all respond (and fulsomely), but their comments were packed with thoughtful and generous praise for our work - one quote sums this up - "Your volunteers always seem very involved and keen to be effective in their work with you". They do, and they are. So I would like to begin my report, by thanking and paying tribute to our most valuable 'assets' - our volunteer information workers, young carers helpers, counsellors, outreach team, admin workers, and our staff team.
Committee members often get overlooked - but not at Centre 33. We have been very lucky - we have an exceptional band of very capable, committed and hard working volunteers, passionate about Centre 33 and who reflect long and hard on its work, its direction and its focus. Particular thanks go to Steve and Michael for all their hard work last year, to Jim, our Vice Chair, Sue our Treasurer, and to outgoing members Chris Wylie and Mark Phippen who gave so much.
For the year ahead there is no shortage of potential challenges. As part of its responsibilities the Committee has begun to look at its risk management obligations as recommended by the Charity Commission and these will be formalised over the year. We plan to increase funding and expenditure; we have still to determine the relationship between the Connexions service and ourselves; we have to keep the problems of young people in Cambridge and the County clearly in providers', policy makers' and the public's mind; we need to be able to respond judiciously to the rash of opportunities and initiatives that continue to emanate from the City, the County, and from Government; and we have to tackle our chronic lack of space.
But most important of all, we have the constant challenge to remain true to what we have always been known and admired for - the Centre 33 spirit. As we enter our 21st year, I'd like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to make us what we are, and to wish everyone very well for the next 21 years.
Affiliations:
Centre 33 is affiliated to: the British Association of Counselling and Pyschotherapy, Youth Access, The Federation Of Independent Advice Centres, Cambridge Council for Voluntary Services, Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Council for Voluntary Youth Services, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and other specialist umbrella bodies.
Donations:
Special Thanks...
to our main funders: Cambridge City Council, Cambridgeshire County Council & Cambridgeshire Health Authority
to our other major funders: Batterson-Chivers Foundation, BBC Children in Need, Dept of Transport, Local government & the Regions (DTLR), East Cambridgeshire District Council, East Cambridgeshire Primary Care Group, Lloyds TSB Foundation, South Cambridgeshire District Council, Tudor Trust. for generous donation from: ARM ltd, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire (Trustline Appeal) Cambridge Building Society, Cambridge RAG, Cambridge United Charities, Cambridge United FC (Community Shield), Communities Against Drugs, John Lewis Partnership (Robert Sayle), Long Road 6th Form College, Mary Owen & supporters, Parkside Community College, Parkside Fire Station, Swavesey Village College, Wilkinson Hardware Store...
and thanks to all those generous individuals we have been unable to mention here.
to those who donated equipment & services: Cambridge Building Soc, Cambridge On-line City, Cambridgeshire County Council, Office World and Pipex/UUNet
Managers Report:
My first full year as Manager of Centre 33 has been both fulfilling and challenging. The Centre continued to provide high quality services for young people thanks to the excellent work of our skilled, knowledgeable and experienced front-line staff and volunteers. Indeed, there was an increase in the number of referrals, which provided perhaps the greatest success as well as challenge of the year. Recognition must also go to all the back-line staff and volunteers for their sterling work, without whom the direct provision could not happen.
We have seen a number of other staff changes this year: Vicky Williamson joined us in May 01 as Information Service Co-ordinator, replacing Simon Moorhouse; Kathy Barlow succeeded Liz Collis as Outreach & Publicity Worker in Nov 02 and the new post of Ely Administrator was filled by Christiane Brew in Jan 02. And the year ended with more volunteers than ever before!
Particularly important is the continued support of our main funders, Cambridgeshire County Council, Cambridge City Council and Cambridgeshire Health Authority. Once again, these bodies renewed their commitment to us and therefore to local young people. We work closely with them to ensure the best possible use of their funds. Monies from various trusts and foundations, other organisations and individuals complete our funding picture.
Notable achievements in this year include:
Centre 33 prides itself on a professional and high quality approach to, and delivery of, services, through well-recruited, well-trained and well-supported staff, combined with good management, adequate resources and well- developed policies and procedures. As regards last year, feedback from young people, other stakeholders, and internally told us we were succeeding, but we cannot rest on our laurels!
Some aims for 2002-2003 include:
Young Carers:
"This year the number of young carers the Project supports has grown immensely. There are now 4 fortnightly groups, including 1in Ely, which provide a highly valued break. It has been encouraging to watch the confidence of many young people grow over the past year, building relationships with each other and opening up to workers about just how tough life can be for them."
7 volunteers and 1 paid member of staff (provided by Crossroads) now support the groups and members have enjoyed an exciting range of activities - many of which they'd never had the opportunity to try before. These included trips to Pleasurewood Hills and Alton Towers, a residential and a summer picnic (in the rain!) thanks to Sue Gladstone. All of this was facilitated by generous donations from ARM Ltd, the Batterson-Chivers foundation, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, and the Carers Contingency Fund, as well as medium-term funding from Cambs. County Council Social Services and BBC Children In Need.
This year has seen valuable partnership work with the Young Carers Worker for Crossroads in Huntingdon and social services on events for National Carers Week and the setting up of a Carers Link Project (to identify a carers link worker in every social services team and GP surgery). Also set up was a bi-monthly, county-wide newsletter, "Club Sandwich" for all the young carers known to the Project and over 3000 family carers and professionals. The Project also ran Focus Days, addressing issues young carers raised, first aid training, an art therapy workshop, and discussion topics including bullying.
The past year has seen four-fold growth in the 1:1 work of the Project as more young carers access the service for support emotionally and for social services assessments of their circumstances. This has proved very rewarding - real changes have been facilitated for some of the young carers. For the coming year we have set up a young carers steering group to inform the Project's development and express the opinions of young carers in a wider arena.
Centre 33 is supporting an ever-increasing number of young carers, many of whom have never before accessed any form of support outside of their family or school. The Project is giving them a break, recognition and acknowledgement, positive adult attention, and a voice, which even now is heard too infrequently.
Rob Harrison
Counselling:
The problems young people bring to counselling are varied, each client struggling in his or her own way with personal difficulties, social and family pressures and an ever changing world around them. Within the confidential space of their counselling sessions they are able to explore their feelings, trying to make sense of their inner, as well as outer world. With the help of their counsellor they are emotionally supported and contained in this struggle.
Despite the pressure on the waiting list, we have continued to offer long term counselling for those in severe emotional and mental distress. This is a great strength of the service. However, it is always difficult to balance the needs of those waiting for an appointment and those currently using the service.
Future developments were discussed this year, including more drop-in sessions, going on-line or running a counsellor-staffed help-line. These ideas are exciting and will be looked at in more detail; they may require further funding, training or staffing and assessment of the potential impact of any change. It is essential that we build developments on solid foundations. Counsellors need the support of strong core services if they are to continue to give young people the care and attention they need at difficult times in their life.
Running 2 geographically separate services (Cambridge & Ely) was not always easy to co-ordinate so thanks go to staff for their support. It amazes me to see how the team unites in reaching out to young people wherever they are. Finally, special thanks goes to all our supervisors and counsellors, who are so dedicated to the young people with whom they work.
Heike Plesse
A Counsellors Report:
" I am one of a group of supervisors who offer support to the volunteer counsellors. Our job is to offer space and some time in which the counsellor can talk about and reflect upon their work with clients. To be useful, this supervisory relationship has to be one based on mutual trust and openness. The way this develops over time often mirrors the relationship which develops between the counsellor and the client. Both supervisor and counsellor must not only be able to encourage and confirm but also be able to hold and contain uncertainties, doubts and anxieties. The supervisor allows the counsellor to explore the relationship between counsellor and client and creates a place to think speculatively and creatively.
I have supervised counsellors at Centre 33 since 1993 and throughout this period I have never ceased to be impressed by the hard work, dedication and high standards shown by all who work there. I feel particularly privileged to be associated with such a special and remarkable organisation"
David Hall
Information Service:
Several Information Workers gave their time to work on the physical environment - the waiting room was given an inviting 'new look', and the garden regularly maintained. This year also saw revamped publicity in the form of an appealing postcard. Encouragingly, the number of young people accessing the service has increased.
Several projects that we were heavily involved in came to fruition this year, such as the credit-card size, fold-out Youth Information Project resource (YIP card) and related website. Both these have proved to be very popular with young people; the YIP card is being held up as an example of good practice in other areas.
As Co-ordinator, I'm grateful for the huge commitment put into the service by the Information Workers. In all it has achieved, the service has benefited from a committed team made up of experienced long-term volunteers working alongside some excellent new recruits. The success of the centre in providing a warm, helpful and effective service to young people rests on the shoulders of these volunteers. Without them, we could not exist.
Vicky Williamson
An Information Worker's Report:
Bedford House Youth Project, Ely
What a year it has been since the last Annual Report! The Bedford House Youth Project is now in its third year of running the service successfully, in joint partnership with Time to Talk and Cambridge Housing Society. The service has grown and established itself as an important source of help for young people in East Cambridgeshire. We have offered a total of 150 counselling hours, seeing clients for varying lengths of time - some for over a year. By offering such long-term sessions we can help our young clients to work towards overcoming extensive problems.
We have brought further stability to the Project by securing 5 years funding from the New Opportunities Fund as part of "Healthy Living Centre East Cambridgeshire", and a part-time paid Administrator has joined the team.
And for the future? We are on the lookout for even better premises and are hopeful that a bid to Connexions will bring on board more partners and create a larger, more holistic range of services. It is also hoped that this funding will enable us to research the different ways of delivering services to young people in rural communities.
Administration:
This year Khatereh has, once again, kept Centre 33 functioning seamlessly. 2001-2002 has seen...
The beginning of 2002 was a very busy time in preparing and co-odinating the audit of Centre's accounts. For a detailed breakdown of our accounts please see the insert accompanying the Annual Report.
Outreach & Publicity
My predecessor, Liz Collis left in the spring of 2001and I was appointed in November on a 6 month contract. Main priorities in Publicity were the re-design and printing of the counselling leaflet and the completion of the information service postcard and the Bedford House leaflet and poster. I also distributed the Annual Report 2000-2001 (through Volunteers Plus!) and created a database to make the Centre's distribution system more efficient. In Outreach, I re-established contact with schools, colleges and youth clubs and visited as many as possible through assemblies, PSHE lessons and stalls at events for young people. The positive response to these visits highlighted how crucial outreach visits are in putting a friendly face to Centre 33 and ensuring young people get to hear about the organisation.
2002 also happened to be our 21st birthday - a great opportunity to publicise the Centre's achievements over the years. A reunion of ex-staff and volunteers (to be held in May) was planned as was a series of awareness-raising nights at the Junction Nightclub in Cambridge. Our celebrations were received very well by the local community and the media, with features run on us by BBC Radio Cambridge, Star 107.9 and the Cambridge Evening News. The support of the local media was another boost to our awareness-raising efforts and lots of young people said they had heard about us this way.
Up-coming plans for the year include:
Advice & Advocacy:
Dan's* mum has had mental health problems, on and off, for years. He's not in contact with his dad. He hasn't been able to keep a job long-term because of the problems at home. Lately the relationship has become really strained, the last row was the big one. His mum finally told him to leave. So he's out on his own, looking for somewhere to live.
Except Dan's only 17. Yes he can leave home but what landlord would take a 17 year old? Anyway, how would he know where to look for a place and where's he going to get his deposit? He's too young to claim for adult benefit, so how can he find out how to get some money? And in all this chaos he's on his own, tired and confused. His confidence is low but he still needs to find a way through a mass of forms and procedures and people. Would you know where to turn?
Luckily, Centre 33's Advice & Advocacy project is going strong into 2002. The number of young people accessing the service continued to rise over the year, illustrating the great need for this service and also highlighting its success, as both young people and professionals recommend it to others.
The young person's advocate is there to guide young people around the maze of services, explain to them what's happening and help them get the right information to the right people. And the Project doesn't only deal with housing and benefits, it provides advocacy on all sorts of issues (see stats).
The Advocacy worker has also been actively involved in several partnerships. This year saw the start of a consultation process between Connexions and those in the youth homelessness field. It is anticipated that the Project will be working closely with Connexions personal advisers. This year has also seen a new and very positive venture - a partnership project with the CATS team and other supported housing officers to undertake prevention work in schools. The format is class workshops designed to highlight difficulties of leaving home/homelessness.
Bryony Webb