An Exciting New Initiative to Help Prevent Young People from Becoming NEET Unveiled at the Crown Court in Guildford.

On Thursday night HHJ Patricia Lees and I co-hosted a ground-breaking fundraising dinner at Guildford Crown Court where key members of the Surrey community, including the Lord Lieutenant and 15 past, present and in nomination High Sheriffs of Surrey were treated to a fabulous meal by ‘The Clink’ events team. The Clink is a unique success story having formed in 2009 with a mission of reducing reoffending by training and rehabilitating people in prison. Over 5,000 people since then have been trained and 2,600 city and guilds qualifications have been achieved as a result. Suzanne and I visited the largest women’s prison in Europe, Bronzefield, earlier in my Shrieval year with HHJ Patricia Lees and we saw a mock up coffee shop they had to teach inmates skills prior to their release. Patricia mentioned she was trying to reopen the kitchen in the Crown Court that had been shut for 13 years and perhaps it could be used to retrain young people. By coincidence, The Clink were providing catering for an event I was hosting and Patricia linked up with them, and the idea took shape.The intention is for The Clink to run a training kitchen in the Crown Court running 12 week courses for 40 young people a year, whether ex-offenders, carer leavers or NEETS. They will have the opportunity to study for up to five City & Guild courses and will each be assigned a mentor to help resolve any other issues they may be facing. The Clink have recently opened a café at Herne Hill specifically to train young people that fall into the NEET category to help them become qualified in various catering skills. To date 100% of those undertaking the course have gone on to further education or employment. The evening was a big success; the cuisine we enjoyed was sublime and the service immaculate. It costs £5,000 to take each young person on this journey that can change their lives forever – a drop in the ocean compared to the economic and social costs of remaining NEET or reoffending.To find out more about NEET’s you can visit the High Sheriff’s website where there is in depth information provided by a team at The University of Surrey as well as photos and video from the conferences held during the past year. If you want to support the Clink which would enable them to help more vulnerable young people then please also visit their website at: https://theclinkcharity.org/projects

 

The High Sheriff of Surrey – Peter Cluff
HHJ Patricia Lees
Lord-Lieutenant.of Surrey – Michael More-Molyneuxt

Photography; Andy Newbold

All Welcome at Woking’s Welcome Church.

Suzanne and I enjoyed a wonderful couple of hours at the Welcome Church in Woking. It already is the centre of a vibrant community with a congregation of over 1,000 people, a Friday night youth club with over 170 young people engaged, a vibrant Monday Café where anyone come along and enjoy a hot meal for £2 and many more community-focussed events and support groups.

They are now, however, embarking an exciting new initiative and will shortly be opening the Woking Community Grocery in a newly refurbished building they have acquired next to the church mainly financed through generous donations. The concept of the grocery is to offer a helping hand to those who need some support to meet the cost of their weekly shop by offering food and other supplies at a discounted price. It will operate through a membership programme and will be open four days a week. It is hoped that as well as helping with living expenses it will help further broaden the local community. There will also be a café on site and support groups offering services if required. The aim is to have signed up 1,000 members to the grocery in the first year.

The enthusiasm of Dub Everitt, the Outreach Pastor; Beryl Hunwicks, Community Links Coordinator; Darren Green, the new Grocery Manager; and Kathryn Cliffe the debt manager was plain to see as was their faith and commitment to this fabulous new initiative. 

Find our more at; https://www.welcomechurch.uk

The High Sheriff Bravery Awards.

This week I had the honour of officiating at one of the important roles of the High Sheriff as the Royal Representative of the County for the Judiciary – that of recognising the Surrey Citizens that have stepped in to help others in often dangerous or challenging circumstances. Held at Guildford Crown Court in the presence of HH Judge Lees and other Judges, I presented ‘High Sheriff Bravery Awards’ to six people in recognition of commendable actions which included the following;

  • A HGV driver who happened across a fatal traffic incident late at night and stepped in alone to secure the scene and alert the Emergency services. The situation which resulted in a death and a serious injury was caused by third parties who were convicted of murder.
  • A couple who encountered the scene of a fatal collision and attended the badly injured man until paramedics arrived.
  • A man who put himself in harms way to diffuse a violent disorder at a private event avoiding further serious injuries to people involved. 
  • A member of a property safeguarding and street patrol team who assisted the Police in the conviction of a prolific shoplifter and burglar. 
  • and a lone woman – an eyewitness to a violent attack by two people, who ran towards the incident to stop the assault and scare off the two men.

It was an honour to be able to thank these citizens for their selfless actions – exemplary people who are an example to us all. The awards ceremony was followed by a reception where myself and Suzanne along with the Judges were able to talk to them further and meet members of their proud families. 

Hearing the People Sing at St Catherine’s School!

I was treated last year to a musical interlude including a song (One Day More) from Les Misérables. at St Catherine’s School in Bramley, when it’s Patron, Queen Camilla paid a visit.

I was thrilled therefore when the Headmistress, Emma Watson, invited Suzanne and I back to see the full production of our favourite musical. We had a wonderful evening and were astounded at the professionalism of the production from the acting, staging and the incredible orchestra. The whole school should be hugely proud of their achievement, it was such an ambitious endeavour and was brilliantly realised. I hope half term has provided some much needed respite for all!

The Guildford Shakespeare Company – David Copperfield.

I was delighted to have been invited by Howard Smith, Mayor of Guildford, to the opening night of Guildford Shakespeare’s David Copperfield, which was being performed at Holy Trinity Church in Guildford High Street. It was an absolute treat, and quite how the cast of three managed the choreography of costume and character changes as well as their lines was a wonder to behold. It is the first production in GSC’s 20th year. As a long-standing Guildfordian, I have been around for all twenty of those years and seen numerous wonderful productions. But GSC also do so much more for the wider community, last year offering over 29,000 participation opportunities (of which nearly 22,000 were free to access) from mental health programmes to young carer dramas to intergenerational hubs with care homes and primary schools. Last year they also ran an eight week ‘Put up Your Swords knife crime’ awareness project designed for schools on the back of their Romeo and Juliet production.

At a reception ahead of the opening night, co-founders Matt Pinches and Sarah Gobran reflected on how far GSC has come in its first 20 years, and I for one am very much looking forward to the next twenty!

Fire & Iron – The Quinnell School of Blacksmithing – doing their bit for the Community!

My year as High Sheriff certainly has provided variety and an introduction to many wonderful hidden treasures in Surrey; and my visit to the Rowhurst Forge in Leatherhead was another wonderful eye-opener.

There has been blacksmithing here since 1932, but it also is home to the oldest house in Surrey and sits atop a hill outside Leatherhead, on the site of an iron age fort!

Run by Lucy Quinnell and her son Tom, it combines being a working forge undertaking commissions and detailed projects with also running programmes for schools, one to one sessions for SEND young people and those with neurodivergence, as well as courses for members of the public. They are very keen to develop their offer to those furthest from employment and likely otherwise to become or remain NEET, 

Their shop and museum has some very exquisite pieces and open to the public at certain times. Once my Shrieval year is over I will certainly look to sign up for one of their courses.

Find out more at; https://www.fireandiron.co.uk

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Kevin Delf – an Ever Present Force for Good.

I had the honour of joining Kevin Delf at his retirement party at the Guildford Pavilion last week.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Kevin for many years. The first grant award from Guildford Philanthropy was to the Guildford Bike Project, which was launched by Surrey Lifelong Learning Partnership. Both through the Community Foundation for Surrey and Guildford Philanthropy, I have been in regular contact with Kevin and seen first hand the incredible support he has given to our local community.

Since August 2000, he has been an ever-present force for good, helping to improve learning opportunities and engagement across Surrey. He leaves SLLP in very capable hands but he will be sorely missed. I wish you, Kevin, a very happy and well-deserved retirement!

Surrey Wellbeing Partnership.

Surrey Wellbeing Partnership is a consortium of 13 charities with a common goal of providing emotional well-being and mental health services in Surrey as part of the Mindworks Surrey alliance for Surrey County Council and Surrey Heartlands Integrated Care Board. In its first four years it has held 272,170 support sessions, both one-to-one and targeted groups.

The services are provided by Barnado’s, The east to west Trust, the Eikon charity, Emerge Advocacy, Learning Space, Leatherhead Youth project, the National Autistic Society, Peer Productions, Searchlight, Step by Step Partnership, Surrey Care Trust, The Matrix Trust and YMCA East Surrey.

I was delighted to be asked to speak about my NEET initiative and to congratulate SWP on their amazing work. They encapsulate what I believe is necessary in helping our young people by both encouraging collaboration and cooperation between organisations, and also by targeting early intervention to help reduce both the social and economic cost that can otherwise be incurred.

From my years with the Community Foundation for Surrey and Guildford Philanthropy I have previously helped fund a number of these charities and this year, as High Sheriff, I have been to visit most of them and see the incredible work they undertake in our Community.

The Prostate Project – So Many Lives Can be Saved if Prostate Cancer is Detected Early Enough.

Sadly, due to Shrieval duties, I had to cancel my holiday this week, but as that freed up a few hours, I took the opportunity to doing something positive for myself. Medefer and the Prostate Project were offering free testing today at the Cathedral in Guildford. Normally life gets in the way and arranging to have a blood test, which only takes a couple of minutes, never seems to find a place in the diary. However, as Martin Davies, Chair of The Prostate Project explained, so many lives can be saved if prostate cancer is detected early enough. Currently in the UK, 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetimes. Unfortunately, many cases go undetected in the early stages because symptoms often don’t appear until after the cancer has advanced. 

The Grange at Bookham – A Unique, Creative & Vibrant Place for People with Special Needs or Learning Difficulties.

Suzanne and I certainly did not pick the best day weatherwise to visit The Grange and tour round its 8 beautiful acres; but we enjoyed a very warm welcome from Alison Keeley (CEO), Felicity Parsons (Marketing, Communication and Fund-raising Lead) and many members of staff and residents.

The Grange has at its heart a beautiful old 19th century house which became the home of the School of Stitchery and Lace in 1938 with the aim to ensure women with disabilities developed skills to earn an income and live independently. Over time this developed into as place offering housing and support to both men and women with learning difficulties. They are a regulated care provider, a charity and a housing association and provide three services – Residential Care for those with higher care needs, Supported Living for people working towards independence and Skills & Activities – a wide range of training, work experience and mini businesses.

We saw a number of activities in action including, pottery, woodwork, horticulture, cooking, creative arts (mosaic, needlework, embroidery) and also learned many activities occur off-site with residents participating both recreationally and in gainful employment locally. The highlight was a delicious afternoon tea with raspberry and white chocolate scones made and served by the residents. Anyone can come for afternoon tea if they book in advance and it is also possible to hire the beautiful ballroom and conservatory for events.  I will certainly be booking in another visit, hopefully when the sun shines.