Updates

Let’s Get Bradford Talking

Click here for resources to help your child develop their speech and language.

From January 2025 Communityworks will not open the main building on a Friday until 3.30pm. Nursery will continue to be open on Fridays – just not the rest of the building. We don’t run any activities during the day until the After School Club starts at 3.30pm. Nursery parents should use their entrance as normal. Thank you.

Communityworks will be closed from Monday 23rd December and will reopen on Monday 6th January 2025.

We wish you a peaceful and joyful Christmas and that 2025 will be a great year for you, perhaps you will start something new?

Communityworks is looking forward to yet another year of doing all we can to support the area to thrive and you to be the best you can be! We are very blessed to have a great staff team who go above and beyond.

NOTICE & AGENDA FOR THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

OTLEY ROAD & UNDERCLIFFE COMMUNITY WORKS

Tuesday 26^th November 2024 7.00pm

Agenda

1) Chair’s Opening Remarks

2) Declaration of Interests & Apologies for Absence

3) Minutes of the AGM 5^th December 2023 – Accuracy + matters arising not on this agenda

4) Approval of Statutory Accounts for year to 31 March 2024

5) Approval of Directors Annual Report for year to 31 March 2024

6) Election of Directors on rotation (3-year terms)

7) Appointment of External Auditors for 2025

8) Any Other Urgent Business

Changes to After School Clubs (starting 20/9/24)

As you know we have been running After School Clubs for as many years as we have been here, and we want to continue running them into the future. For a very long time we were funded by Children in Need, and they paid for the salaries of the staff, but in March 2023 they told us that they could not fund us anymore. In March 2024 we were able to ask Children in Need again for funding but again they said no. Last September we reduced the number of days we could run After School Clubs to Wednesday through to Saturday. From this September we are going to run After School Clubs on Fridays and Saturdays. We will continue to run holiday playschemes as they are well attended.

The reasons are:

• Not many children come to the clubs anymore.
• We have not been given any funding to run the clubs.
• There are more clubs run by schools than before.
• Families don’t seem to want their children to come like they did in the past.
• As the numbers have been too low it has been decided that offering 3 clubs per week meets the current level of demand and we are using our reserves to cover this cost.

We realise that this will come as a shock to those of you who come along regularly, and we do feel very sad about this. It costs over £500,000 a year to run Communityworks and it is difficult to get funding to continue and therefore when a group is not well attended, we need to consider whether it can continue.

We have thought long and hard about this decision and if the situation changes in the future, we will look at it again. I hope you understand and that you will continue to support the clubs we deliver.

These are some other sessions that run, with a couple of local options:

Race Equality Network have put together a checklist of safety guidance to keep yourself and communities safe in light of the recent riots and unrest.

In plain text, these steps are:

• Stay informed – keep up to date with reliable news sources and local authorities for information on which areas to avoid. Stay connected with local organisations such as Bradford Hate Crime Alliance and the Race Equality Network. You can also email the Race Equality Network directly.
• Misinformation – always seek verification of anything you see online or which is circulating on social media and is not an official notification. Verification can be sought by contacting the Police through the community hub.
• Avoid high-risk areas – if you know of any planned protests or areas of unrest, steer clear of those locations for your safety
• Avoid travelling alone – if you must go out, do so in groups. There is safety in numbers and having a friend can be crucial in case of emergencies. Stay in brightly lit areas and avoid wearing headphone in order to be vigilant. For example, stand to the back of platform edges and keep an eye out for your surroundings. Make sure someone knows where you are at all times.
• Emergency supplies – keep essential items on hand such as a fully charged phone, water and first aid supplies.
• Dress – for any Muslim women who wear the Hijab, consider tucking your Hijab into your clothes to prevent any Islamophobic attacks.
• Report suspicious activity – if you witness any suspicious or dangerous behaviour, report it immediately to the relevant staff of the Police.
• Neighbours – times like these can be isolating for some communities so please support your neighbours, check in on those that may be vulnerable and offer support where possible.
• Mobile phones – ensure you have access to a mobile phone that is charged, in case of an emergency.
• Communication – Racism and Islamophobia are serious hate crimes so reach out to your friends, family, employees, colleagues, volunteers and services users to offer support and provide a safe space for them to express their feelings and concerns about current affairs and how it has affected them.
• Mental health – those individuals and communities that experience racial unrest can significantly impact mental and emotional wellbeing. If you are experiencing feelings that are difficult to cope with, please visit Healthy Minds for a range of online self-help resources. You can also contact Sharing Voices or Roshni Ghar who offer culturally appropriate mental health support.
• Bradford Police have set up a virtual Community Hub. The purpose of the Hub is to collate information from our communities and provide twice-daily updates regarding what is happening and key messages to be passed out. You can pass information into the hub such as messages and posters spreading misinformation via Assistant Inspector Toby Newton-Day. This is to report tensions, engagement and potential emerging issues. This is not to report crime or anti-social behaviour – you can do this via the normal channels which are WYP Online, or calling 101 for non-emergencies or 999 if a crime is in action.

We are pleased to say that we have been funded to deliver a 40 place summer play scheme for local children entitled to free school meals. The programme runs for 4 weeks Mondays to Thursdays.

This is available for children entitled to free school meals due to parent’s income. There are only 8 places left so contact asap. Ring 01274 200589 to check if your children are entitled. 4 hours of great fun for 8 days. Give your children something to remember this holiday…..

Mahnoor Malik, one of our parents said “A lovely report for the Nursery, my daughter loves it, and I would recommend it to everyone and anyone. Congratulations to Community Works Nursery and thank you for looking after our children with the best care. We feel happy, confident, and safe sending our children to this Nursery, thank you to all staff – well deserved.”