153 The small but important charity grows!

[00:00:00] Well, welcome back to Thoughts On The Social World, Social Work Podcasts. I'm Dave Niven

[00:00:18] and as always it's a pleasure to have your company. Now it's been a month but it's been

[00:00:24] a holiday season and here we are back again at the start of the next 10 years of recording

[00:00:33] and fantastic guests. But I would racing across the world recently talking to all sorts of people

[00:00:42] to do with massive world issues, with vulnerable people to do with human trafficking, anti-slavery, etc.

[00:00:49] And you can't forget though that there's enough a lot of work that goes on at home at all levels.

[00:00:55] So today you may remember some time back there I did a podcast with George Livingston from

[00:01:03] Grant & Remakerie, a small but important local charity. Well the small but important local charity

[00:01:12] is growing and George Livingston's back to talk about it and I'm really delighted. Hello George,

[00:01:18] welcome back. Good morning David, it's nice to be back with you. Okay now I hope we've got time

[00:01:25] to get in all the changes that Grant and actually experiencing. Let's just start since the last

[00:01:33] time we talked to you. You told me that we've got different days now one for young people, young

[00:01:40] learning disabled adults and another day for unemployed and others who are just sort of having

[00:01:46] troubles in life, poor well-being, medical care, whatever and you're trying now to broad note

[00:01:51] and you've managed to be successful with quite a few grants which are really helping. But obviously

[00:01:57] you still need more finance. No, taking all of that as one, let's hear it from your side. What's

[00:02:03] the changes from your point of view that have been happening? Well I think we need to go back

[00:02:09] a fraction just before the changes if I made to start with. I think one of the strengths of

[00:02:15] a small community social work charity is that they can actually create partnerships with their

[00:02:22] community and begin to listen to the needs of that community and there are then two ways of running

[00:02:29] a charity. You provide a service and you continue to provide it regardless or you adapt to meet

[00:02:35] the needs that you can because you will never meet them all but you adapt to meet the needs that

[00:02:40] are being expressed within your community. Good sense. We form lots of partnerships in our local

[00:02:49] community but one of the things we did this year, we started a process of carrying out an annual

[00:02:55] community survey of our services and the things we do and to us it was a delight actually I have to

[00:03:05] see in that 92% of respondents thought our services were highly effective or very effective and

[00:03:16] that just felt wonderful as you might imagine. Powerful number but that doesn't mean you can't

[00:03:23] change an improve and we've always got to hold on to that. Don't get caught up in today,

[00:03:28] we need to look at tomorrow. There were other things that came back in that survey. Things being

[00:03:34] expressed a bit of need for more services for adults. Now it was as non-specific as that

[00:03:43] so we actually then had to go out and begin to talk to people. Okay George, just a second actually

[00:03:48] I just suddenly thought sorry interrupting you but just a second. It's okay. Two sentences very

[00:03:53] quickly for those that maybe didn't hear the first podcast about what the status quo was before

[00:03:59] any changes started. I mean what was the charity doing? In the main way we were working with

[00:04:09] young people from the school who were struggling with academic work, teaching them work skills

[00:04:14] who are appropriate to getting them on to employability skills courses and moving them closer

[00:04:19] to work or into work. And our work stream success if you like continues because 85% of the people

[00:04:29] we've worked with who were eligible for work are in jobs. Again a very powerful figure for us.

[00:04:38] So we're doing something right. It sounds like it does sounds like it. Okay look,

[00:04:43] but you're developing so yes we're developing and there were two reasons behind that. One

[00:04:52] the main one being the community driver, the need for more services for adults and we went out

[00:04:59] and the Kerrngorm National Park employee, a health worker who looks at well-being amongst the

[00:05:08] population and provides services. And he was very clear that there's a number of adults that come

[00:05:15] through onto his books and many of them he would arrange for them to go out walking or go out

[00:05:21] hill walking or go out and help rangers do some work in the woods and in the forest.

[00:05:30] But there were some who needed some indoor things to do and he felt that our services

[00:05:37] would support that. So with that in mind we've started to talk to really two main groups.

[00:05:46] First of all, our local medical practice and we've had initial discussions the final meeting

[00:05:53] happens early in February but we're looking to become an organisation that GPs could use for social

[00:06:01] prescribing for people who's well-being is suffering for whatever reason but they don't hit the

[00:06:09] thresholds for mental health support services. So they're in a kind of a limbo? They are.

[00:06:19] They're in that spot where nothing really happens and one of the things that was fed back to us by

[00:06:25] some of the young people we worked with. A young girl who worked with us for a time and has now

[00:06:31] moved on into work just said the best thing she got out of being at the remaker was able to build

[00:06:37] personal confidence. Now if people are suffering from poor well-being they almost always have a

[00:06:45] complete lack of self-confidence as well. So those are things that we can work on.

[00:06:51] There's also lots of research out there about the benefits of working with wood,

[00:06:56] reducing stress levels, reducing blood pressure, reducing heart rate,

[00:07:01] just the feel-good factor of producing something with wood is relaxing.

[00:07:07] So we're working towards developing a course which has the working title of well-being through

[00:07:13] working with wood. Yeah I love your alliteration here George, it was great. Oh yes you know me.

[00:07:22] So we're working on that but we're looking to become an organization that can accept social

[00:07:28] prescribing from local GPs. Well that would be quite strong, that would be quite in advance,

[00:07:33] wouldn't it and and a very strong kind of community link? Yes I think it is and that brings me back

[00:07:41] to my very first point that we're a community social work charity. So the stronger those links are,

[00:07:50] the more sense it makes to me. And I know there's more so please tell us more.

[00:07:55] The other discussions we're having are with people who support

[00:08:03] forces veterans, ex-forces personnel, many struggle to get fully into the community

[00:08:11] or into the workplace when leaving the forces because the forces is a big family to them

[00:08:17] and suddenly they're without that family. So I have a meeting at the end of this week in fact with

[00:08:25] with a captain who represents ex-forces personnel to discuss how we begin to provide

[00:08:33] the same supports here, us about working with wood to those people.

[00:08:40] Is that a local kind of development or is it something to do with, for example,

[00:08:46] Safa, you know the soldiers, sailors and air force kind of organization that looks after?

[00:08:53] The people we're speaking to are not part of Safa, they are veterans associations.

[00:09:00] All right okay well I mean obviously good luck with that. It is more local and in fact in many ways

[00:09:06] that's good because we've spoken to Safa, we've spoken to Redpop, we've spoken to everybody

[00:09:12] and we come up against the same barrier. We can't tell you anything

[00:09:18] because of GDPR. So we get stuck so I'm hoping...

[00:09:25] I don't say what GDPR is for some listeners, for the listeners.

[00:09:28] Sorry it's data protection. Yeah I know okay.

[00:09:31] I should know better than talking acronym shouldn't I?

[00:09:36] Well that's the first. It's okay you're a loud one, okay.

[00:09:39] Okay but that could be... I mean have you any idea of local numbers or are you just kind

[00:09:48] of going to find out after your conversations you think?

[00:09:51] No we'll find that out after the conversation.

[00:09:53] Alec Dottili there are a reasonable number of people and we're not talking about hundreds

[00:10:01] we're talking in the tens probably. But anecdotically there are a number but we don't have the facts.

[00:10:10] So the first step is to have the meeting with the association and see if I can go.

[00:10:14] Yeah for the size of Grant and Remakery, I mean you know that's a reasonable sort of

[00:10:21] size of numbers to start with I think. I mean I know that it's a massive issue in some

[00:10:26] of the bigger cities with like some people even saying that about 20% of all homeless people

[00:10:34] are ex-forces which of course is a scandal but I mean there's so much going on and being

[00:10:42] and and and group like that being affected and not being getting enough support

[00:10:46] that I think it's excellent at your local level that you're even thinking of doing something

[00:10:50] about it that's really good. But I think what people miss when they talk about the cities

[00:10:56] is that one of the most fertile recruiting grounds for the army in particular are the Highlands

[00:11:03] of Scotland and that is mainly rural right? Many of many you know the Highlanders for example

[00:11:12] and I know they're not that now because they're all part of the Scottish regiment but

[00:11:17] but the Highlands were a main recruiting area and still are so there are lots of people

[00:11:24] and in some ways that makes it worse because where we're situated we fall completely within

[00:11:33] the government definition of rural deprivation and that that's deprivation due to lack of services

[00:11:41] poor transport, poor broadband although I have to say Granton is moving its own way out of

[00:11:47] poor broadband they're fitting a radio broadband system that's a 1GB system but the rural areas

[00:11:54] roundabout don't have that. Right. Because of where it is much work there is in the tourist

[00:12:03] trade so it's a low wage trade. So there are all sorts of issues in an area like Granton

[00:12:12] which is a lovely area to work in I must say it was wonderful people but there are people who

[00:12:19] will need the kind of services that we offer. What this might mean of course is that we expand

[00:12:24] from our three days to four days and that's what we're hoping then to gain the funding for.

[00:12:29] Well that creates funding around for community mental health support and waiting to hear on

[00:12:36] our application about that just now and there's funding around for for those veterans.

[00:12:42] Well you're growing that's the point I mean I get it and indeed you might have to go to four days

[00:12:48] but I'm guessing you wouldn't go to four days if it wasn't appropriate and you couldn't manage it

[00:12:54] so if you are and if you do perfect example of how we introduced today by talking about how you're

[00:13:02] growing. Yes I mean I see it as both growth and service development because some of the developments

[00:13:12] are about how we might change some of the things we're doing and I talked about talked earlier

[00:13:17] about the course in terms of working with wood which is slightly more formal than some of the

[00:13:22] things we've done up to now. Well let's talk about that. Well let's pause a moment could we

[00:13:27] George just talk about that because that essentially is your core work as you call it.

[00:13:32] Yes now if one other thing that haven't talked about yet but I know that you've told me that

[00:13:40] it's in your plan is talking to this circular community Scotland. Could you just say a little bit

[00:13:47] what that is what it might mean and how that might be relevant for you? Well I think before

[00:13:55] that for people who haven't listened before and I've talked about teaching people work skills

[00:14:00] and employability skills we do it by collecting furniture that would otherwise go to landfill

[00:14:08] and we repair refurbish or upcycle it for retail. So that links us into the circular community

[00:14:16] Scotland bit. Circular community Scotland was set up with the Scottish Government to begin

[00:14:21] to support organisations to have a circular economy in other words not always buying you

[00:14:28] but getting what you have upgraded improved or replacing it from the used market.

[00:14:38] Now we are a member of circular community Scotland because while our core work is about employability

[00:14:43] and personal development that work is facilitated by us doing the work that circular communities want

[00:14:51] to see happen. I can't talk too much about the future of that just now because we are in an

[00:15:01] assessment process with them for some possible work. So I can't say too much just now

[00:15:09] other than the fact that circular community Scotland are very creative and how they are thinking

[00:15:13] about supporting all sorts of businesses to adopt. What is the positive thing? Do you know what

[00:15:21] their core funding is from? Where do they get their core funding? It's a government.

[00:15:27] Where it came from initially now I'm not sure but I think it's still Government funded.

[00:15:32] Okay. That's a real, I mean such a kind of almost sounds like a win-win to me you know.

[00:15:41] You've been doing all this work about refrecycling, furniture etc, gathering it up, bringing it back,

[00:15:48] repairing it and at the same time teaching by the moment mainly young people but you know

[00:15:54] about how they can learn the world of work through working with wood and through kind of serving

[00:16:02] the community. So I mean, I think honestly at the end of the day having something like this

[00:16:08] if you're successful or if they want you and if you want them will be a real feather in your camp.

[00:16:17] Well I think it is and I would go slightly further and say it's actually a win-win win

[00:16:24] and the third win is that not only do we not only teach the young people the skills of work

[00:16:32] and being at work and not just young people. We've got to young learning disabled adults come in as

[00:16:38] well currently but we teach them about protecting the environment while we're at it

[00:16:46] and that's from me is the third win. Okay so let's tell you this up, let's tell you this up

[00:16:54] from what you were doing. When we talked last and we've talked a couple of times you know I know

[00:16:57] that but I mean people listening carefully will have remembered but what you talked about before was

[00:17:04] incredibly helpful for the community but it was a bit limited in terms of it was kind of had

[00:17:11] its boundaries you know there kind of a few young people referred from the school would work

[00:17:18] collecting the furniture doing it up etc. It was mainly and you've got obviously modest premises

[00:17:24] I know that but generally you weren't talking about anything like the courses, the wellbeing

[00:17:31] courses, the working with local GPs for social referrals. We weren't talking about the the

[00:17:38] ex-forces members that you might be able to kind of offer some support to and now of course the

[00:17:45] circular community Scotland thing about the whole kind of a bigger recycling organisation that

[00:17:51] essentially is taking all the boxes at the moment in terms of environmental support. So

[00:17:58] you know what a change George. Yeah well to me that makes sense it takes five years for a business

[00:18:06] to grow into something sustainable. We started in November 19 and I think okay we were

[00:18:15] interrupted by the pandemic obviously we survived that which was I think in itself a bit of a miracle

[00:18:23] but there we go and we're now at the stage of beginning to develop having consolidated what we do

[00:18:32] shown that what we do works and I think the mistake that many people make is to want to do 100

[00:18:41] percent immediately whereas I think you need to grow incrementally and manage that growth

[00:18:48] and for me that's what we're doing. We've consolidated what we do, we've shown it works by the numbers

[00:18:54] we get into work by the feedback from the community now it's the time to take the next steps

[00:19:01] and I suppose you're overflowing with money. Not at all, we are extremely

[00:19:09] there are some things our charities are yeah yeah most charities are and anything that operates on

[00:19:14] the high street in a retail environment struggles just now and and I suppose part of the struggle is

[00:19:22] of our own doing because there are services that happen that weren't planned that have just happened

[00:19:30] but we endorse them and one of them for example would be lots of young families in our area have been

[00:19:39] in rented furnished accommodation and there's quite a bit of building going on and they're moving

[00:19:45] into their own house for the first time. Now I would hate to furnish my own house from you right now

[00:19:52] it's an incredibly expensive thing to do so we can support young families by giving discounts

[00:20:01] on already reduced furnished prices to enable them and in some way for me that it's very small

[00:20:10] but in some way that helps towards the relief of child poverty because the families are not

[00:20:18] the Australian households. Yeah I do understand that linkage that you're making can I just ask a quick

[00:20:24] question on that before you move on would you just offer or help try and help the kind of if you like

[00:20:33] young couples sort of struggling to start out in furnished place from existing stock or would

[00:20:38] you literally go out and seek stock on their behalf to try and help them with? We do both

[00:20:45] and I mean we have significant stock. We've got a container shipping container that's

[00:20:52] absolutely full of stuff and just an example of partnership with the community that container

[00:20:58] was donated to us by another small company and a company who does woodcladding sent a

[00:21:06] lorry from Can You See to Eldon which is a reasonable travel to pick the container up and bring it

[00:21:12] back to Granton and cite it in the schoolgrounds, the school gave us the grounds to put it on

[00:21:18] and none of them charged anything for doing that work they supported what we were doing.

[00:21:23] Oh that's good I mean these kind of you know backs sort of if you like back stories that are going

[00:21:29] on and the kind of the kind of the support that you don't see it you know but when you extract the

[00:21:34] surfaces it's fantastic sometimes what people will do to support you with one and that's exactly

[00:21:40] what it costs us up to one and a half thousand to do that. Yes, we know and that's the kind of

[00:21:47] the partnership with the community and businesses locally that we talk about so you know these

[00:21:56] developments can I just can I just see other services so they can just no you go on you go on

[00:22:01] the other service other than supporting young families can it just a bit or finish that

[00:22:07] bit first actually is that yeah they look at stock but we also we keep we keep a book if you like

[00:22:14] we jokingly call it the lookout book with people's names and addresses and the furniture they're

[00:22:19] looking for and as soon as somebody offers us something we can contact them and say we've been

[00:22:25] offered this do you want to come and have a look at it so we do look out as well but the other

[00:22:31] service that's definitely developed and I didn't see it coming are the number of people who appear

[00:22:38] in the shop and there are some who will come in and say have you anybody who could swap a button on

[00:22:44] my coat or can I have a look around and actually you mainly find that those are people living on

[00:22:51] their own what they're actually saying is is there anybody I can speak to yeah lonely. Oh but

[00:22:59] you're the only person I've talked to today you know that kind of thing yeah they don't

[00:23:02] explain it in that way and in fact we've got more coming in now because you spoke about getting

[00:23:07] grants and I get enough grants to fully insulate the building and fit an air source heating system

[00:23:15] so our building is now comfortable whereas last word today was freezing it's now

[00:23:19] comfortable and warm so we've got more people coming in we're saying oh it's lovely in beer.

[00:23:23] Hey, I'm running a cafe next George. No because that would be in competition with all our local

[00:23:31] cafes. But I mean yeah of course I mean to my mind what you've just described there about

[00:23:40] the drop-ins if you like and so forth are just a perfect example of you actually making a

[00:23:46] statuering name for yourself in the community that charity and actually being a kind of if

[00:23:51] you're like a bit of a hub and I think that development is very very positive because it really

[00:23:59] indicates that you're being so you're being kind of accepting very well. Well I think I think

[00:24:03] what if I can quote from our survey in the comments part that there are three I mean there are lots

[00:24:15] that say no we've nothing more to say but we've got keep up the great work thank you for a great

[00:24:20] service Grand Turn Main Street needs you and for me I think one of the most important ones is

[00:24:27] I think you do a wonderful job and bring integrity kindness and wonderful resourcefulness

[00:24:34] and creativity to the community. Now isn't that wonderful statement to get about the work you do?

[00:24:40] It's lovely I mean of course it's lovely I mean I and it wasn't your own family was it?

[00:24:48] No wasn't. Yeah but I mean these comments are what you keep you going sometimes I mean

[00:24:55] absolutely because it's not just kind of anonymous Mrs X or Mr Y from 500 miles away

[00:25:04] it's somebody that you're actually there for and work that's the whole purpose of the remakeery.

[00:25:11] Yes. Talking about that just quickly before I forget as always on the front page of this

[00:25:18] podcast we're going to put all the contact details for you or the remakeery and a couple of

[00:25:24] things about what you've been doing again and changes and so forth and also I'm guessing

[00:25:32] if people wanted to help and look into it a bit further your website and everything would

[00:25:37] indicate where they might just be interested in making some donations.

[00:25:46] We're hoping shortly to start a fundraising campaign right so I would let you know about that

[00:25:56] but we're not quite at the stage of doing it yet. No no no but I mean what I'm saying essentially

[00:26:02] is that I want I really would like people to begin to follow you. I think that's what I'm

[00:26:07] thinking as much as anything and when the time comes you know if you do need more funding

[00:26:17] that's the way to do it building up your audience. So yes right okay now you say you've got

[00:26:26] is it next week did you say that's very good timing with the medics the conversation will be

[00:26:31] no first week in February. First week in February right yes because that could be significant are

[00:26:37] there many GP practices within striking distance or is this one main one? This is one main one at

[00:26:44] this point where we're starting with the local grant and on spade practice which covers all the

[00:26:49] small villages roundabout but following that we hope to go and speak to the Avemore practice

[00:26:59] and there's also a mental health social work team in Avemore that covers the area. One of the

[00:27:07] things they have expressed is that they work with people but at the end of that work when

[00:27:16] they no longer fit the criteria for a mental health team there's still off in a gap before

[00:27:22] they're fully ready to move back into the workplace and fully networked with society and they're

[00:27:29] wondering about that gap the people who fit that as may be coming to us for the last bit if you like

[00:27:35] of the work to help them fully integrate back into the workplace and so but that's some time down

[00:27:44] the line. Well look we'll make sure I mean what I want to do is make sure that people who are

[00:27:50] interested have listened to you today and and so forth and understand that you know you are a kind of

[00:27:56] a slow growing deliberately but increasingly important development in Grantum. They can follow us on

[00:28:08] Facebook right well there you are we'll get that well make sure we get it all on that front page

[00:28:13] so people can just have a kind of a link to whatever you feel is appropriate.

[00:28:20] Okay look we're kind of at the end of time again I suppose. A couple of minutes worth let's

[00:28:27] have a chat about where this could go because obviously all the things that you've talked about

[00:28:33] happened you're going to be a busy boy but at the same time I know you and I know you've probably

[00:28:40] got one or two others developments or approaches or projects that you've got in mind is there

[00:28:47] anything you can say right now or should we just wait and see for the next one.

[00:28:52] No I don't think there's anything more I would want to comment on at this point

[00:28:59] it's become a bit of a standing joke it's I'll go into the shop and the project manager's there

[00:29:07] and I'll say to him Peter I've been thinking and he burries his head in his house

[00:29:13] to say it's all no what now. I've stopped telling him I've been thinking for a little while

[00:29:19] we need to consolidate the developments we have we have coming up we need to work through them

[00:29:25] because there will be learning for us in them. We need to have a good story in

[00:29:30] interrupting you have a good relationship with local statutory services social services police

[00:29:38] and so forth. There's no police station in Granton there's no social work service based in Granted

[00:29:48] it's one of the issues and that services are parachuted in and taken out again

[00:29:54] how close is the nearest social services office. I'll be more it's about 12 13 miles away but

[00:30:03] not good public transport and police again I'll be more as well yeah yeah I think that's

[00:30:13] good though because it gives people a sense of some difficulties that you might run up against in

[00:30:20] terms of accessing local support. Yeah yeah good okay I think the one that you were asking about

[00:30:29] the future I think the kind of important thing is you know I'm 10 years retired and

[00:30:36] supposedly winding down a little bit what I'm doing and I think the biggest thing we need to find

[00:30:44] is somebody to replace me in the work I do with the remakeory and my job is jokingly called

[00:30:53] development manager but my main job is actually writing funding applications and getting in the money

[00:30:59] that keeps the place running and we need somebody in the future in the next couple of years

[00:31:05] who can begin to take over that and I'm happy to spend time with them developing those skills

[00:31:11] because I had somebody spend time teaching me how to do it and I find that very important.

[00:31:18] Let's make that the child I mean obviously that's that's that's important to you and I think let's

[00:31:24] let me try and help wherever I can by making sure there's something on the text for this podcast

[00:31:33] that actually says anybody in the regional area that wants to have a chat about it to get in touch

[00:31:40] with you. That would be very helpful we will I mean the project manager is the same age as me and

[00:31:46] he'll be going in the next couple of years as well so we need to replace him too. Oh you people

[00:31:50] retire at 30 how it's crazy yeah well it has been said second childhood although if you ask my wife

[00:31:59] she would say I haven't left for childhood anyway look George it's been a pleasure as always

[00:32:07] I'm gonna we're gonna have to stop right there but thanks ever so much. I want to thank

[00:32:15] thank you David for taking the time to do this because it's very supportive of us and we really

[00:32:19] appreciate it. Well we'll keep it going all right thank you George Livingston, Granton, Remakery

[00:32:27] we'll see you again in the future thank you. Yes indeed bye