As
part of L4G SW Herts’ commitment to helping charities remove the ‘cloak of
invisibility’, I have undertaken an interview with Watford Mencap and I hope
that the information provided helps enlightens you about the work they do.
1) Can you briefly summarise the
charity’s history.
Watford Mencap was started in 1951 by a group of local parents of
children with learning disabilities. During the sixties we were at the
forefront of actively campaigning for services nationally, while also
developing services of their own. The “Stepping Stones Club” was opened in
September 1956 for children aged 10 upwards and was followed by the Tuesday
Club in 1960 for those aged 16 plus. In 1962 Watford Round Table agreed to
raise money for the purchase of St Matthew's Church Hall (Table Hall) which
enabled the organisation to use the facility for nursery groups, meetings and
fundraising activities.
By the end of the 1970s the Society had purchased 2 properties
with a view to providing supported accommodation for people with learning
disabilities. The first play scheme for special needs children had run, along
with a weekly club for older children.
The organisation grew again during the 1990’s with a small office
opening in Rickmansworth, 3 more properties for supported living as well as
other community services being started including the Community Support Service,
Advice & Advocacy Service, Children’s Services and Leisure Together.
Change continued to be part of Watford Mencap, with another move
for the Head Office to the Old
Town Hall
2) Can you explain what you do as a
charity, who you look to help and how?
At
Watford Mencap we believe that people with learning disabilities have the right
to enjoy equal opportunities and be valued as members of society, enabling them
to lead the kind of life they want for themselves. Our services support both children and adults
and over the last 5 years we have developed a range of creative and innovative
new services. We offer more personalised support to local people, ensuring all
services are client focused and promote independence and choice for people,
while balancing risk. The organisation is always open to new ideas and strives
to seek out best practice, with the aim of achieving high standards in
everything we do.
3) How does the charity raise money at
the moment? Is it easy to compete against the charity ‘big boys’ with large marketing
budgets?
We organise
a number of fundraising initiatives such as the recent Ricky Pancake Race and
the Watford 10km which is being held in Cassiobury Park London – Amsterdam Watford
as well as selling goods on eBay.
We
are affiliated to National Mencap but we are an independent charity and are not
financed by them. Each year we need to raise money to both maintain and develop
our services. As a very local charity,
this can be a real challenge especially as people sometimes think we are part
of the national charity and that we get funds from them. However, because we are smaller, we can offer
a more personalised service than some of the larger organisations, especially
for local companies that want to support us.
4)
Are there any challenges that you as a
charity suffer from?
Learning
disabilities are not always the first choice of people to donate to and we are
much smaller than some other local charities such as the hospices. This makes it a challenging environment for
us. However, since I have worked for
Watford Mencap, I have seen the real difference our support can make to the
lives of people in the local community. If we can clearly demonstrate the value
and quality of our services, I am sure we can continue to raise funds to enable
us to develop our services.
5)
How can people help you as a charity
in ways that may not require money? Volunteering or providing a service for
example.
We are
always interested to hear from people that would like to support us – we have a
large number of volunteer opportunities which are posted on our website http://www.watfordmencap.org.uk/get_involved/volunteering/
or else you might think about donating goods to our charity shops or
eBay enterprise. If you are sporty, why
not take part in one of our challenges?
If anybody would like more details on any of these opportunities, please
contact Carol on 01923 713622 or at ctunstall@watfordmencap.org.uk
6)
What are the future plans for the
charity? Where do you want to be in 2-3 years time?
We
have plenty of ideas for new creative ways of supporting people with learning
disabilities and their families. We just
need to raise the funds to pay for them!
In particular, we would like to develop our support services for parents
of children with learning disabilities.
What
have we learnt from this interview? It is great to see that the charity is
looking at all possible ways of raising the money they need to fund their
projects. Ideas such as bike rides, Snowdon climb and the 10km run are great
way for people to work on their fitness, keep healthy and also raise money for
a charity that needs all the help from local people. With no funding coming
from the national Mencap organisation, it is up to local people in Watford and
SW Herts to help the charity that solely works in our area.
I
also believe that volunteering with Mencap in any of their roles can provide
them with a service that needs to be done to ensure the success of the
charity. I also feel that when it comes
to gaining work experience for younger people or as a way to enjoy your free
time, working for a charity in any role is very rewarding and can offer you a
chance to give something back to the local community.
I
hope you have enjoyed this week’s charity segment and I hope to bring you one
every week from one of our four remaining charities from March.
Until
next time....
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