Your Own Place

Norwich

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Jackson Pollock comes to Your Own Place

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That got your attention!  It’s not quite true, however, the truth is just as fabulous.  We were contacted last week by a local artist and Marketing Coordinator from Us2UConsulting, Kerwin Blackburn, who offered to paint some art for The Training Flat (in brand colours naturally!).  When he said that it would be inspired by Jackson Pollock, we had to jump at the opportunity.  Kerwin identified a large space on the generous staircase and is now busy creating our masterpiece.  We hope to hang it at the start of September and all those at the launch on 27th September will get to see it.  I can’t wait.

Them and Us

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A week of contrasts.  It started wet and windy and ended hot and sunny.  I started the week full of energy and fell into a ten-hour sleep on Friday night after our exertions in The Training Flat.  And the young people this week were contrasting too.  It’s easy to be nonchalant and think you’ve nothing to learn as you get older, but it’s good still to be shocked and even challenged and prodded in your professional life.  We were lucky enough to be joined by the National Citizenship Service last week.  They worked tirelessly painting The Training Flat last Friday.  It’s a great scheme and I really hope it results in more young people engaging with their local communities and in building empathy.  The young people (eleven young women and one young man) that joined us were not the same as the young people we work with.  Much has recently been said about social mobility, and here it was for all to see.  These entitled, confident and UCAS form obsessed young people brought into stark relief the gulf in our communities.  Exactly the same age as many of the young people we work with, they may as well have been from a different country, such were their different outlooks, obsessions, levels of confidence and dreams . This makes me sad.  I’m sad that society is so unequal for many young people by virtue of nothing more than where they were born.

Social enterprise steps up

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This week has genuinely been one of the most amazing of my career.  We’re all very good at telling everyone how amazing everything is on social media, but this week it’s really true.  Those who know me know I’m capable of cynicism with the rest of them.  However, with the development of our Tenancy Training Flat I have genuinely had my eyes opened to corporate goodwill and the scope of social enterprise to do differently against a backdrop of local authority cuts.  We have been overwhelmed by personal and corporate donations.  Individuals have recognised immediately the value of our work and reached deep into their pockets to help us.  As a fledgling social enterprise we are able to act quickly and efficiently and take advantage of these amazing opportunities.  We are leveraging support we never knew was possible.  Partners such as B&Q and Ikea, whilst wanting to help us furnish and equip our venue, now want to offer our young people work experience and develop a long partnership with us.  Is this the future?  Is social capital and social investment how we are going to make up for the shortfall of the state?  If it is, then it’s great fun, full of possibility and has the potential to reap rewards we didn’t know existed.

#thetrainingflat is here – can you help?

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We’ve been informed by Norwich City Council that we’re being ‘signed up’ this Friday.  We’ve been planning this moment for a long time and it’s a fantastic milestone in our development.  It’s the moment that a small social enterprise gets its first premises.  And it’s not just any premises.  It’s a uniquely innovative Tenancy Training Flat in which we’ll be changing lives forever.  Before our Autumn Programme gets underway in September, we’ve got to kit it out.  On Friday I will get the keys to an empty two-bedroom shell.  Next week will be a flurry of activity of press visits, donor visits and decorating.  If you’ve yet to make a donation and would like to, we’d love to hear from you.  Even a small donation will make a difference, for example a pack of tea bags, bin bags, loo roll or light bulbs.  We want to stock up for future delivery.  We’ll be receiving visitors on 11th August in the afternoon, 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th August.  We’d love to see you especially if you can lend a hand with any painting!  Tea, coffee and refreshments will be non-stop!

SAVE THE DATE:  Official launch 29th September.

Quiz answers

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The Answers

1.  What is the average amount of debt (excluding student debt) that a 16-25 year old is in? £3000
2.  What is the average age young people start shopping online? Ten
3.  What is the average house price in Norfolk? £280,ooo
We’re getting tricky now…
4.  What is the shared accommodation Local Housing Allowance rate for Norwich £61.45
5.  What’s the new name of the social enterprise for young people’s supported housing services that was part of Flagship? Empanda
6.  Which ward is our Tenancy Training Flat in? Town Close Ward
7.  To the nearest 20 how many young people has Your Own Place worked with in the past year? 134
8.  What is the APR at Norwich Credit Union?  19.6%
9.  Which type of rented accommodation is responsible for most evictions?  Social or private? Private
10.  Most young people lose their tenancy by being evicted because they don’t pay their rent.  True or False? False.  Young people tend to abandon their tenancies because they get in a muddle and don’t know when, how or where to get help.

This is why Your Own Place exists.  We aim to prevent failed tenancies from ever happening to ensure all young people have a safe and secure home.