your quarterly magazine from family mosaic summer 2015

summer on a shoestringmake every penny count

2 3

today as i write it is a bright sunny day. Hopefully we will have many more days like this over the summer but, come rain or shine, this edition of Connections has plenty of ideas for ways to enjoy your summer.

i have been thinking back to summers gone by and have found that some of my happiest memories are of holidays: holiday camps with my parents when i was a young boy then, later on, camping trips with my own children.

my holidays have not involved a lot of exotic destinations, but i realise that i’m lucky to have these

happy holiday memories or to be in position to take a holiday.

looking back i also realise that it’s not a five-star hotel or 35°C heat that makes a great holiday. sometimes it’s just about spending time with the people you care about most, even if it’s spent listening to the rain bucket down on your tent in Wales! and that is how i shall be spending my summer holiday in september.

since the last edition of Connections came out we have had an election and a new government has taken over the country.

you will probably have seen stories about housing in the news.We are waiting to hear more about the government's plans for housing. some ideas have been suggested but it won't be until the autumn before we know the details.

i will be spending the summer trying to influence the government so that all of you benefit from any measures it introduces.

finally, i hope you enjoy your summer, however you spend it.

brendan sarsfieldchief executive

summers past & present

inside this issue

cre

dits

: ed

itor

ial

port

rait

ban

d Co

ver

sHot

by

rory

CH

ampi

on

4-6 special feature

summer on a shoestring

Where to go, what to do: low budget ways to keep the kids (and you) happy over the summer - at home, in the woods, by the seaside or at one of our great, free museums

7 regional news

local news and services from down your way. plus what's going on (and should cost next to nothing) near your home

8getting involved

rainbow marathonvolunteers join family mosaic staff to cheer on brave charity runners

grants for goodCause for celebration: a new small grants fund for your good works and celebrations ahead for our community foundation

9finding work

up the ladderapprentice Cem's new scaffolding career has got off to a promising start

nursery naturalpride of place for childcare starter liana

10moving home

online swappinginternet comes of age

11your services

blooming winnersgarden competition prizewinners announced

12noticeboarduseful dates and and some unbeatable offers!

editorial we can... news round-up

rent draw winnersthe following win £250 in our quarterly prize draw of tenants with a rent account in credit.

east: ms n dang, e9essex: mr p, Colchesternorth/west: ms z sullivan, n5south: ms e imeh, se12

big rise in young voter numbers in may election election day saw a big increase in the number of young people voting, with a 16% rise in turnout compared with the 2010 general election

With the votes counted, and after a very busy year, our be heard campaign came to a close. many of you have since told us our campaign activities, like posters, events and articles in Connections, inspired you to engage with politics and use your vote on 7 may.

if you were one of those who voted you should feel good about it. your vote was heard and did make a difference – whether the result was one you voted for or not.

slightly more people turned out to vote than in 2010, which means the country had the best election

turnout since 1997.

However, the biggest success story was the marked increase in the number of young people who voted, with 60% of 18-24 year olds turning out at polling stations compared to just 44% in 2010.

remember, you don’t have to wait five years to be heard again. there are lots of other ways to be heard, from signing or starting a petition to voting in london’s next mayoral election in 2016.

introducing ashling: your services in new hands

We have appointed ashling fox to the new role of group director of all your customer services.

strong track recordashling joins us from the aa where she was head of home emergency operations. ashling brings with her a wealth of experience in customer service management.

Chief executive brendan sarsfield said: 'i believe we have hit gold with ashling. i know she will be working hard to get the best services possible for our residents.'

ashling will, among her many other responsibilities, oversee your repairs, our housing management and the customer care line.

ashling said: 'i am really excited to be joining such a strong and experienced team at family mosaic who are both committed to and willing to invest in the continual improvement of customer service.'

connections is your magazine

Connections is written for you, to tell you about service changes and local news. We are always looking for people to contribute ideas, write news or features or take photos of things of interest happening in your community. if you would like to contribute, contact editor Charlotte sexton by email at charlotte.sexton @familymosaic.co.uk or call Charlotte on J020 7089 1140.

if you would like to get Connections by email, or not at all, please let us know!

familymosaicconnections.co.uk

calling the customer care line... just dial ✆ 0300 123 3456 » then press 2 open 8am-8pm ● mondays to fridaysopen saturday mornings ● 9am-1pm

readers' survey replies: what you told us about connectionsthank you to everyone who responded to our Connections survey. We really appreciate your taking the time to share your thoughts and observations and congratulations to our prize draw winners: ms s Kissun and mr l Jose.

We’ve now had responses from over 300 of you and are looking at the data systematically to decide the best future for Connections - what will go inside the magazine and how you read it.

rest assured that we’re not about to stop sending it out as a print edition for those of you who want to continue reading it on paper.

key facts so far…

Connections appeals to a wide age range, with most regular readers aged between 34 and 65, but 18- to 24-year-olds are least likely to read Connections.

those of you who read it regularly told us the parts you value most are information about our services, money advice and special features, such as our feature on voting.

We also found out that lots of you don’t know that you can read Connections online and, perhaps unsurprisingly, older readers want to continue getting a paper edition.

4 5

special feature pound stretchers back to nature

vitamin d is essential for healthy bones, and we get most of it through our skin from sunlight. so get off the sofa, turn off the tv and go outside.

park lifeit doesn’t matter if you don’t have a garden because there are so many parks and green spaces where you can walk, run, cycle, play or simply relax. How about organising a picnic with your friends and family?

if you do have a garden why not use the summer to spruce it up so you'll want to spend more time in it. you could ask friends and family to help out, though you might have to bribe them with ice cream.

if you want to improve a shared outdoor space, get in touch with our greening communities team.

from talks about bats, to gardening and bird walks, the london wildlife trust regularly holds free events across london.

www.wildlondon.org.uk

bring the past back to life or go culturalso it’s raining outside and you’re bored….what to do? london and essex have hundreds of museums and galleries and lots are free.Here are some of them:

● museum of london ● the science museum ● v&a museum of Childhood (near bethnal green tube)

● the british museum ● the natural History museum ● the national gallery ● tate modern ● tate britain

day trippingif you can, put some money aside each week to pay for some day trips over the summer. putting a date in the diary might also give the kids a good reason to be as good as gold.

for sea, sand and (we hope) sun…

● if you're in essex, pop along to southend, clacton-on-sea or canvey island. if you're in london, the train's your best bet. trains to essex travel from liverpool street.

● brighton: trains from london victoria or (may be cheaper) from london bridge or Clapham Junction

● whitstable or margate in Kent, or rye and camber sands in sussex: trains from london Charing Cross. to get to the fabulous Camber sands, catch the 711 bus from rye railway station.

fun at home…

why not challenge your kids to write and perform their own play or musical, on a theme they pick. they could recruit other local children and you and your neighbours (with lots of popcorn) can sit back to enjoy their debut performance.

if you or your children are outside for longer than a few minutes be sure to wear sun cream, at least spf 15. and remember a good suncream doesn't have to cost a lot!

got a tent? take it for a break!

if you’ve got a tent, go camping. if you have access to a safe back garden, pop your tent up. make sure the garden is secure, stick in some bedding and sleeping bags and have a picnic or barbecue. before bed, you can play campfire games or tell spooky stories, although you might want to swap the camp fire for a torch! if the weather turns bad you can always run indoors.

if you want to venture further there are 100s of campsites all over the uK. the cheapest way to travel could be bus or coach. national express coachs have over 900 destinations while megabus does budget coach-train options for as little as £1.

summer on a shoestringmake the most of your summer without breaking the bank

no cash to spare for a fancy summer holiday? no problem. there are plenty of ways to have a fun summer without breaking the bank or dusting off your passport

if you're in essex and want some more ideas, why not check out www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/search.php?county=essex

turn to page 8 to find out how to apply for money to help fund your summer group day trips and other 'feel good' activities for you and your family mosaic neighbours.

a £30 family and friends railcard can save a 1/3 on adult fares and 60% on kids’ fares.

for a sense of british history…

● by train just 35 minutes from waterloo is hampton court, Henry viii’s sumptuous riverside palace and gardens, pictured above. take a picnic.

● Just 25 minutes from paddington or waterloo is windsor castle, the queen's official residence.

● from victoria, it takes 45 minutes by train to reach historic rochester in Kent, which has its own medieval castle and a norman cathedral.

if you have kids, get them busy working on a creative project. it will keep them occupied and give you some peace and quiet.

diaries are a great way for your kids to practise their writing. spend £1 on a notebook, get your child to decorate it and, hey presto, a holiday diary. in years to come you’ll also have a reminder of fun memories and funny stories.

every child needs to learn to read. finding a book that fires their imagination is the best way to make them really want to read.

books can be expensive so go to your nearest public library. most of you will have a library close enough for you and the children to walk to.

public libraries have things to entertain all ages. they're not just a place for books - you can borrow films and music, use the internet, and they also put on events and activities for different age groups.

6 7

Winning streak: Michelle leads the field in the 300m hurdles

local news from Essex

going full circle

Basildon customer Sarah English flourished so rapidly with our support, she’s now set to switch roles and help others in need. Sarah tells her story

“Just 16 months ago, I embarked on a journey into the unknown.

As a customer getting support to live independently from Family Mosaic, I was put forward for the Preparing to join family Mosaic course by my fantastic support worker, Angie West.

I enjoyed the course, and with the support and encouragement I was given, I realised I wanted a career in support work.

I was lucky to be selected for a six-month trainee programme. On the course I learned the foundations of care and support work. I also gained valuable work experience, got qualifications and

I earned some money.I then completed a six-month

secondment at two support schemes for young people in Essex: Arne Court and Rylands Hotel. It was here that my career as a housing support worker really got started.

giving backI now have a permanent post and love my job. I love that I am now able to give back something to the people I support.

I remain forever grateful for all the help given to me on my journey and would like to thank the Family Mosaic employment team.

I really do feel like I have now come full circle.’

suPer successful eMPloyMent boot caMP now in essex!Don’t forget that our award-winning employment boot camps, to help people into work, are now available locally for those of you in Essex. See our back page for course dates or call q020 7089 1345 or email employmentteam@familymosaic.co.uk

sweet touch: A newly planted camomile lawn will soon add a sweet, apple-like scent to the award-winning garden of one of our Essex care homes. Staff at the scheme and volunteers helped Essex Greening Communities worker Ella Dixon plant 300 dwarf camomile plants to create a second lawn at Beridge Road. ‘I can’t wait to see the lawn in a few months time when the camomile has spread out,’ said volunteer Gav. ‘It was great to be out in the sun planting.’ The garden has won the Halstead in Bloom award for best garden.

camomile is a daisy-like plant often used in herbal tea infusions to treat ailments like stomach upsets and insomnia.

scented gardensuMMer fun on the cheaP in essex

country ParksEssex is home to 10 country parks. All offer free entry but most charge for car parking. For more information about events and activities check out www.visitparks.co.uk

treeMendous tuesdaysVery messy fun organised by the park rangers at Weald Country Park near Brentwood. free every tuesday in august, from 11am to 12.30pm and 1.30pm to 3pm.

lakesidefree activities for the children at Lakeside Shopping Centre all  august, from 10am to 6pm. A new theme every week.

clacton airshow

Turn your gaze skywards on Clacton seafront on 27-28 august, 10am to 5pm, for a free treat from the airshow. Fun filled-events, aerobatic displays, exhibitions, trade stands, food court and on-site entertainment. For details see www.clactonairshow.com

historic colchesterWhy not visit historic Colchester for a walking tour. Tours start from the visitor centre and cost less than £5 per person. Some historians say Colchester is the oldest town in Britain and that in Roman times, the country was run from here, not London. www.visitcolchester.com

beeleigh abbeyTwice a month in summer the gardens open to the public. Near Maldon and the river Chelmer, the abbey is one of the oldest, always occupied, homes in Britain, built in 1180 and extended in the 1600s. Woodland walks and three acres of garden. open on 3, 17, 31 July and 14 august. Entry is £5 for adults, £2.50 for 5-16 year olds, free for under 5s. Children must be supervised because of deep water. www.visitmaldon.co.uk/beeleigh-abbey/

......fffffffff......

8 9

getting involved

going the extra mileA Sunday in April saw Family Mosaic staff and volunteers pack out the sidelines to cheer on marathon runners raising money for the rainbow trust by completing an exhausting 26-mile run.

money-spinnerBacked by more than 50 runners and 70 volunteers, the London marathon is on track to fundraise £97,000 for the charity.

The Rainbow Trust supports over 1,500 families that have a child with a life-threatening or terminal illness. Last year it also helped us find places for some of you wanting to do voluntary work.

The marathon money will help pay for vital support for families 254 days a year, in hospital, at home or coping with bereavement.

A spokesperson from the Rainbow

Trust said: 'A huge thank you to Family Mosaic for all your help. We couldn’t have done it without you and your volunteers. We’re so grateful to you all for throwing

yourselves wholeheartedly into cheering our runners on at Tower Bridge.

'A lot of the runners said the cheers spurred them on and kept them going when times got tough.'

Cheerleaders: staff and volunteers cheering on the Rainbow Trust's marathon runners

up the ladder Life is on the up for young tenant Cem, who has one foot firmly on the career ladder after starting a scaffolding apprenticeship

Hostel tenant Cem came along to our apprenticeship road show back in February. Having been homeless, Cem was keen to start an apprenticeship but worried that at 24 he was too old.

Background worryHe was also concerned that his criminal record might put potential employers off. Our apprenticeships are there to help you get work, no

matter what your background.At the roadshow, Cem spoke to

the employment and skills manager from construction company Mace.

Mace helped him to update his CV and spoke to a scaffolding contractor on his behalf. One successful interview later and Cem was offered a job placement at GKR Scaffolding.

At his own expense, Cem travelled to Kent for two weeks of training from our Islington hostel. Impressed that Cem was travelling so far and getting there on time each day, GKR agreed to pay his travel costs.

Cem is now completing his probationary work period in London for GKR, working on several Mace sites. He says he's enjoying the job and is working with a great team.

Once Cem is through his probation he will go on to a full apprenticeship with GKR. All things going to plan, it will lead to Cem becoming a qualified scaffolder.

finding employment

Bright Career in ChildCare BeCkons for tenant elainaIn January, young tenant elaina muskoe became our third customer to start a level two apprenticeship in childcare at Bermondsey Community Nursery.

'Elaina is very much part of the team,' said deputy manager Marlene Nicholls. 'She interacts positively with the children and uses her creative talents to let them express ideas imaginatively. We are glad we gave her the chance she deserved.'

Over 80 of you are now trained to register as childminders with an accredited qualification gained through our apprentice partner- ships with other organisations.

CeleBrating 35 Years of CommunitY effortThis year, the family mosaic Community foundation celebrates 35 years of solid achievements, among them making it possible for us to help 1,000 of you get a job.

reasons to be cheerfulTo celebrate we'll be holding events right through the summer and autumn including a summer party in a community garden.

We are also launching the maisie sheed awards, putting aside a pot of money so you can apply for small grants of £50-1000 to help pay for projects that benefit health and wellbeing in your local community.

Past grants have been given for community events like summer parties, improving shared spaces, and day trips for young people.

Originally known as the maisie sheed trust, the foundation was first set up in 1980 with a donation from writer and publisher Maisie Sheed.

The Family Mosaic Community Foundation carries on the trust’s aim of supporting vulnerable and socially isolated people, particularly if they are young, unemployed or on a low income.

to find out more about the maisie sheed awards, or to ask for a grant application form please contact mads arif on q020 7089 3997 or email mads.arif@familymosaic.co.uk

if you'd like find out how to become a foundation trustee turn to the back page.

1000 of you into work and Jubilee street parties are among the many activities the foundation has funded

emploYment Boot Camps set to ContinueWe are continuing our successful boot camps in London and Essex – to help you find work by teaching you better nutrition, fitness, money management and employability skills, and improve self-confidence, motivation and presentation skills.

to find out more, call our employment team on q020 7089 1345. turn to the back page for dates of the next boot camps.

if you are interested in starting a career in childcare call maxine rose on q020 7089 1272 or email maxine.rose@familymosaic.co.uk

“ Bootcamp has given me the determination to continue with my weight loss and health goals and personal and professional ambitions.

“ We're so grateful to you all for throwing yourselves wholeheartedly into cheering our runners on at Tower Bridge.

free training to help You get a joB, Boost Your Career or Brush up skills!

Want to get back into work but lack the right skills? Why not try our FREE training? We run courses all year round on topics including: accredited vocational training, employability skills, personal and professional development and recreational/creative workshops. To find out more call q020 7089 1252.

10 11

your servicesregister or find out more aBout

house exChangewww.houseexchange.org.uk

Bidding gets Better: twiCe a week and lots more homesTo help you move, until october we have two bidding cycles, giving you more opportunities to bid for a new home.

The first bidding cycle runs from Wednesday morning to Friday night and the second cycle runs from Saturday morning to Monday night. We are also increasing the number of homes we make available.

A reminder that you can use the computers in our head office reception for free (see overleaf for the address). You don't need to make an appointment.

moving home

transfer Bands B and C set to Closedon’t forget the important changes being made to our transfer policy This October we will be closing bands B and C and removing all tenants registered in these bands from our transfer list. We have been publicising this change for some time and in

January we wrote to remind all of you who will be affected. A copy of this letter is available on our website. If you will be affected by this change, make the most of our bidding system while you can and also look at other rehousing options.

swapping's still BestFor most of you, a swap will always be the best way to find another home that suits you and your family. That's why we offer you free membership of the two largest online schemes, Homeswapper and House Exchange

Around 1,800 of you are members of homeswapper, which has just totally redesigned its website to make it even easier to swap.

new signingsAround 300 of you have also joined house exchange since we signed up six months ago.

Now there’s another new scheme called swap and move. We haven’t yet signed up to it but you can try it for free on a three-month trial.

If you carry on using it after those three months you’ll be asked to pay £5.99 for another three months. We’d love to hear from you if you’ve tried this new scheme.

To find out more about mutual exchange and to register with a swap scheme, call us or come to one of our monthly mutual exchange surgeries. For dates, please visit the Changing your home section of our website.

still not ConvinCed? debbie had been our tenant since October 1995, living in Newham. But when the bedroom tax came in, Debbie’s rent became unaffordable so she joined our transfer list.

sights on essexShe also talked to Will, one of our bedroom tax project officers, about finding a smaller home. Debbie told Will she was keen to move to Essex so he started calling the councils there, and our Essex colleagues, to try to find a suitable home for Debbie to move to.

After Will's calls drew a blank he explained to Debbie that a mutual exchange was her best option. He also stayed in regular contact, encouraging Debbie to carry on searching for a swap.

In January, Debbie's luck changed. Through the new house exchange scheme she found a tenant in Essex

who needed to move closer to London for work and wanted a bigger home for his family.

His two-bedroom terraced house was, however, just right for Debbie and her daughter. Debbie applied to us for permission to swap, we approved the move and, in April, she and her daughter moved into their new home in Essex.

Because Debbie was moving to a smaller home, she qualified for our downsizing package. That meant we arranged her removals and Debbie also got a one-off payment of £500 for moving to a house with one less bedroom. The £500 helped to pay off some of the rent arrears Debbie had built up from cuts to her housing benefit caused by the bedroom tax.

Debbie said: 'I was thoroughly impressed with Family Mosaic and the mutual exchange process! I rate them highly and am happy to have been a tenant. William always kept me updated and I couldn’t be happier with the service.'

housingmoves to give higher prioritY to overCrowded households In May this year, housing moves gave extra priority to overcrowded families wanting to move to another part of London.

new bandFamilies living in overcrowded conditions, who had been in band four have now been moved up to a new band three.

Housing Moves is the Mayor of London’s scheme to help social tenants in London move to other parts of the capital. for more details or to register go to www.housingmoves.org

best gardens

and the winners are...Last year we launched our Best Gardens competition, sponsored by estate services contractor Accuro. In June our judges – Accuro operational director Barry Joyce and estate services manager Michelle Levy – visited all of you who entered and we're delighted to announce their verdict.

●● Best private garden Mrs Kelly, Hackney●● Best container basket display Trinny Lovett and the gardening club, Kensington & Chelsea

●● Best shared garden Judy Oakley and the residents, Hackney ●● Best for wildlife Valcie Mcintosh and the gardening group, Lambeth

Accuro's Barry Joyce said: 'We are really pleased with the number of people who entered. The standard was very high and it was very difficult to choose winners.

Congratulations to the winners and to everyone who took part. We hope the vouchers will help the winners maintain the excellent standards on display this week.'

best

container

display

best

private

garden

best

garden for

wildlife

best shared garden

Football match for under 16's

we play/train every saturdey at

two oclock in matlock park. Call paul for info at 8

tait house or andre

in 16 weston court

WANTED: Used clothes for girls age 6 to 8. Please call Cyndi on 06557 332 459

PRINTED AND DISTRIBUTED BY COUNTRYWIDE PUBLICATIONS ON PAPER FROM SUSTAINABLE SOURCES q 01502 725 832 EDITED BY CHARLOTTE SExTON SUBEDITED & DESIGNED BY THOMPSONS q 01732 750 433

head office

Albion House, 20 Queen Elizabeth St, SE1 2RJ q020 7089 1000 www.familymosaic.co.uk

essex office

Pembroke House, Northlands Pavement, Pitsea SS13 3DU q01268 498 500

report repairs

q0300 123 3456, then press option 1. Report repairs to us online at www.familymosaic.co.uk

leasehold enquiries

Call q0300 123 2209 h CClhomeownership @familymosaic.co.uk

tenant enquiries

Call q0300 123 3456 then press option 2. Lines open 8am 8pm on weekdays, 9am to 1pm on saturdays h CustomerCareline @familymosaic.co.uk

employment team

q020 7089 1345

Care and support

London q020 7089 1000 Essex q01268 498 500South q01273 468010

welfare rights officers

London north/west q020 7089 1323 London south/east q020 7089 1187Hackney/Essex: q01268 498 563

Staying in touch

lost Cat £20 reward

Much loved family cat. Answers to

name Popsicle. Last seen on 15 June

in Evering Road, E5. Please call 07444

319 432 or email popsicle@gmail.com

message from the resident sCrutinY panel: Continuing our review of CommuniCationIf residents would like to give feedback on how Family Mosaic communicates with you, please email the scrutiny panel at fmirsp@outlook.com or write to us c/o family mosaic, albion house, 20 Queen elizabeth street, se1 2rj.Family Mosaic would like to form a resident anti-social behaviour panel. The panel’s purpose is for residents to influence how Family Mosaic deals with anti-social behaviour such as noise disputes.

Please note, the panel is not open to residents involved with an open antisocial behaviour case.if you would like to be involved, please contact the scrutiny panel and we will pass your interest on to Family Mosaic. If you would like to know more about the resident scrutiny panel or want to help us with our work, please get in touch using the contact details (see above left). We look forward to hearing from you.

catfordS GOT

TALENT

text ami if you want to be

in

our talent show. sing, dance,

rap, DJ, acting. Also need

help with make up and

costumes, video and sound

engineering. no time waster

cheats. 03452 57857

Steve - please call round to see nanny Osborne. She's still got your birthday present and says it's starting to hum a bit. Cheers, Jo

BootCamp dates!

Youth emploYment Boot Camp: havering 27 july to 7 august5 days a week over 2 weeksessex: pitsea15 september to 21 october2 days a week over 6 weeksYouth emploYment Boot  Camp: london se13 august – 14 august5 days per week over 2 weeks

Your opinion matters…

Be in with a chance of winning a £100 gift voucher from M&S by completing a survey about anti-social behaviour. If you have been involved with an anti-social behaviour case, we want to know how we did, what we could have done better. After your case has been closed we will either write or phone you to ask you to complete a survey.

BeCome a familY mosaiC

CommunitY foundation

trustee

The Family Mosaic Community

Foundation (previously the

Maisie Sheed Trust) uses gift

aid funding donated by Family

Mosaic to hand out grants to

projects that will help your

health and wellbeing .

Over the last 35 years it has

invested millions in projects run

by community groups or activists.

The foundation’s board of trustees

help decide how its funds are

used each year and having

customers on the board makes

sure the money goes to causes

that really matter to you.

With three customer reps due

to retire soon, we are looking

to recruit three replacements.

If you are interested in

becoming a trustee, especially

if you are already active in your

community, please get in touch.

for more information and

an application form, email

mumtaz samad at mumtaz.

samad@familymosaic.co.uk