Raising people’s aspirations through PLATFORM

I have recently reflected on the way working relationships established in my previous role with the National Lottery Community Fund have been strengthened by the broader support I now offer as a Group Development Officer and also on the sense of continuity this provides.

Just Straight Talk are a perfect example of this. I first spoke to Project Manager Kate Beale back in the summer of 2022 about the idea for a project, working in a holistic way with both economically active and unemployed people & in Dudley and Sandwell. We had a ‘broad brush’ discussion about what this might look like, and how it would fit with the Lottery’s priorities.

Not long after I started at Dudley CVS, I was delighted to learn from Kate that their proposal had been successful at stage one. She shared the stage two proposal with me and this time I was able to fulfil the role of ‘critical friend’ – making some suggestions to strengthen it before it went to panel.

Late last December, Kate shared the fantastic news that Just Straight Talk had successfully secured £453,900 to deliver PLATFORM. This is a three-year project (started April 2023) that has evolved out of the experience Just Straight Talk have gained over the last ten years and emerging needs in the communities that they serve.

Over the last three years they have worked with 689 adults, enabling them to reach a point in their lives where they are happier, healthier, and feeling like they contribute to their community. Support provided during the pandemic ensured no one was left excluded or isolated, with driveway visits, shop and drops, digital loan schemes, and virtual support via Zoom. These are the foundations on which PLATFORM has been built – responding to people’s needs.

The project will support people aged 18 + who are experiencing multiple and complex needs. Beneficiaries will include people with long-term physical and/or mental health conditions, those living in poverty, experiencing debt, insecure housing and/or homelessness, people leaving care, those who have experienced domestic abuse, ex-offenders, or people with substance dependencies.

PLATFORM has several aims:

• Providing short term, targeted one to one support, that progresses into participation in group activities.
• Improving feelings of wellbeing, by connecting individuals to wider support and by helping people to better manage their long-term health conditions.
• Supporting people to achieve stability (both financially and in their housing needs), through help with debt management, poverty alleviation and the securing of alternative accommodation.
• Helping people to become more socially connected, building networks and growing interaction with others through group & peer support and activities.

A little bit about Just Straight Talk for anyone unfamiliar with their work. They are a Community Interest Company working with people from across Dudley and Sandwell facing disadvantage. They do this by providing practical support, and the motivation to address and overcome barriers, turn their lives around and achieve their goals. They work with people aged 16+ with no upper limit. Nobody is turned away and they have projects to cater for a wide range of needs.

Since 2012 they have worked with over 4,100 people with a range of issues – from crisis situations to those that simply need someone to talk to. Their dedicated team provide person centred, bespoke support around the needs of individuals who have typically slipped through the net of mainstream services. The team have specialist experience in areas such as benefits, debt, alleviating poverty, domestic abuse, homelessness, physical and mental health, loneliness, isolation, training, and employability.

They respond to emerging needs and build projects around them. PLATFORM will join the nine projects they are currently delivering: from supporting young care leavers and the homeless (with Dudley MBC) to carers in Dudley (Yours Truly), and a loneliness and isolation project supporting older people (Pom Poms 4 Loneliness). They also have smaller, more bespoke projects providing digital support to older people, (Digi Dudley) peer to peer solutions for people whose lives are being negatively impacted by alcohol (Full Circle) and helping people with the cost of living & fuel crisis (Swift Responder/Action on Poverty)

I recently caught up with Kate and asked her why she thought the Lottery have chosen to support the PLATFORM project. She pointed to their strong track record of reaching those communities most in need and the way in which they had really proven their value by successfully delivering Building Better Opportunities projects. She also pointed to how they have been agile as an organisation, pivoting previous delivery to respond to new needs and using community voices to inform their small groups sessions, which will provide new connections, new friendships and promote greater independence for more people.

The size and length of the Lottery’s grant is testament to the confidence they have in Just Straight Talk and a significant investment in support for people in Dudley and Sandwell. A huge well done to Kate and her team.

If you would like further info on Just Straight Talk or PLATFORM, have a look at https://juststraighttalk.org/ or email them at info@juststraighttalk.org

Just Straight Talk are one of the many Dudley-based not-for-profits that the Group Development Team support each year. To find out more about the range of support we offer at Dudley CVS, visit: https://www.dudleycvs.org.uk/support-for-your-organisation-overview/