Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has teamed up with Derby-based visual marketing agency, Briight, to document the charity’s journey of creating their new city centre premises.
Safe and Sound has secured the purchase of 8 Bold Lane, a former restaurant in Derby’s Cathedral Quarter. This will enable the specialist team to support more young people and families and provide a broader range of services. The charity will also make space available for other charities and organisations to deliver their services. The team at Briight will be documenting the progress throughout the refurbishment journey– culminating in the planned official opening in January 2025.
The first chapter in the story has just been released with Safe and Sound CEO Tracy Harrison taking the camera on a tour of the building. Mrs Harrison said: “We are incredibly grateful to the team at Briight for their support in this. Showcasing the refurbishment journey will particularly engage and resonate with young people, families and other charities who will make use of these facilities and allow us to showcase the facilities that will be made available for their use.
“It will also help us to better communicate with the funders and the many generous individuals, companies and organisations who have pledged money and other pro bono support.” Briight’s director Rob Dawes continued: “It’s vitally important for any organisation to seize every opportunity to capture great visual content to share and grow their audiences. Especially when it’s such a key moment in their history, like this is.
“As an agency with a strong sense of community and a mission to inspire the people of Derby, we are delighted to be using our expertise to help such a worthwhile charity who are working hard to protect young people and their families across Derbyshire from those looking to exploit them and do them harm – both online and in person. “It was fascinating seeing behind the scenes in these early days of the refurbishment project, and we look forward to returning regularly to capture video updates so that everyone can see how their fundraising and support is translating into city centre facilities that will help so many local people.”
Safe and Sound works with children as young as seven, young people and their families across Derbyshire whose lives have been affected by child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines, trafficking, modern slavery and radicalisation. Thanks to £250,000 funding from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ Community Ownership Fund, plans are now being drawn up for the restoration and refurbishment work required to make the three-storey building fit for purpose.
The vision is to provide safe and welcoming ground-floor space for a community hub and a wide range of activities delivered by both Safe and Sound and other youth and family- focused organisations including YMCA, Derby County Community Trust and Umbrella.
The flexibility of the space will enable activities and therapies to be expanded ranging from arts and crafts and music to drama and sport. The other two floors will include space for 121 and group support, meetings and workshops as well as office accommodation for Safe and Sound’s team and volunteers who are based there.
Mrs Harrison concluded: “Demand for our services continues to grow – reflecting the reality that any child, anywhere – regardless of their age, sex or family background – is at risk of child exploitation. “Our role is to help young people and their families who have been victims of or at risk of child exploitation move forward positively with their lives so having a dedicated building to base our expanding programme of activities, support and therapies is vital.”
For more information about Safe and Sound, the work it does and how to support the charity, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has taken on the staff and activities of fellow Derby organisation, the Enthusiasm Trust, to expand the range of support available for some of the most vulnerable young people and their families in the city and county.
From the 14th June Enthusiasm will formally no longer operate as a separate charity and staff at Enthusiasm will be part of the wider Safe and Sound team in Darley Abbey.
Safe and Sound is currently working to refurbish and open a city centre base in Bold Lane. In the meantime, Enthusiasm’s current youth hub in Cotton Lane will be the base for the majority of engagement with young people and families currently supported by both charities.
Safe and Sound CEO Tracy Harrison explained: “Both Safe and Sound and Enthusiasm have elements of a shared common vision to support vulnerable young people and to provide activities and services that help to transform the lives of young people in our local communities by building self-esteem and confidence.
“When the Trustees of Enthusiasm reached out to us about transferring their charity into the Safe and Sound fold, we recognised the benefits that this would bring to the young people and families we both work with and to the staff and supporters of our two charities.
“Coming together and moving forwards under the Safe and Sound banner will enable us to expand the breadth and reach of our support for young people and their families and build further resilience into our business model in this ever-challenging financial climate.
“This is an exciting time for Safe and Sound and our partners with plans forging ahead for new premises to open early next year.
“We have always been committed to working in partnership with like-minded organisations who support some of the most vulnerable people in our local communities so the merger with Enthusiasm is definitely a positive move for everyone concerned.”
This was echoed by Enthusiasm Chair Gary Parkin who continued: “We are proud of the work that Enthusiasm has achieved in our local communities.
“It has always been rewarding to watch many of the young people we support go on to make great life choices and improve their lives thanks to the support they have received from our amazing staff and volunteers.
“Under the Safe and Sound banner and, although the name Enthusiasm will not continue, our ethos will be upheld and the services we provide will go from strength to strength.”
Formed in 2002, Safe and Sound works with children as young as seven, young people and their families across Derbyshire whose lives have been affected by child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines, trafficking, modern slavery and radicalisation.
Last year, Safe and Sound supported a record 343 children and young people who had been victims of or at risk of child exploitation. The charity largely works with 7-18 year olds but includes up to 25 if there are special educational needs and or disability (SEND) issues or children leaving care.
The charity works with boys and girls. Around 30% of the young people have SEND and 29% did not identify as White British. Workers also regularly support young people who identify as gay, non-binary and trans.
Safe and Sound offers a range of innovative, hands-on programmes to help young people understand what has happened to them, rebuild their confidence and move onto a place of emotional safety, protected from further harm.
Support services include:
– 121 and group support
– Outreach work in local communities
– Practical support for families including parents and siblings
– Positive activities for young people
– Support through the criminal justice system
– Longer-term support to transition into positive outcomes such as education and employment
– Specialist support for New Communities and young people with special educational needs.
Enthusiasm has been helping thousands of children from disadvantaged backgrounds reach their full potential since the charity was launched in 1992 and was re-launched in March 2022 under the leadership of new CEO April Allman and a board of trustees.
This enabled the charity to expand its work reaching out to young people providing clubs, workshops, homework support, one-to-one mentoring programmes, delivering programmes in schools for those young people at risk of exclusion and working with parents and families to offer opportunities to gain skills, employment, knowledge, and experience from a variety of activities.
Children who attend Enthusiasm are primarily drawn from Osmaston, Allenton and Alvaston with smaller numbers from Chellaston, Sinfin and Shelton Lock. They are usually aged between 11 and 18 years old and are often referred to the centre by schools, police and other agencies if they are deemed to be at risk of exclusion, offending or anti-social behaviour, including the influence of negative peer groups and gangs.
For more information about Safe and Sound, the work it does and how to support the charity, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, has celebrated Volunteers’ Week (June 3-9) by recognising the work that individuals do to support its work across the city and county.
Volunteers’ Week, which marks its 40th anniversary this year, is a national celebration of the amazing contributions volunteers make to communities across the UK.
More than 50 people volunteer their time to Safe and Sound in various capacities to enable the charity to maximise the impact of its work to support and protect children, young people and their families whose lives have been affected by child exploitation.
The charity has also, for the first time, presented an award to a particular volunteer in recognition of the work that they have done.
Julia Hodder, who lives in Burton-on-Trent, has been aware of Safe and Sound’s work throughout her career of supporting vulnerable young people.
So, when she gave up her full time job to set up her own business Paladin Education to provide safeguarding and mental health advice to the charity sector, she was also keen to volunteer for Safe and Sound.
Julia has supported the work that Safe and Sound does to raise awareness of child exploitation amongst young people in schools and also provides business administration support. She has also met with the parent peer group – providing relaxing hand massages -and delivered mental health training for staff.
She said: “There is a real sense of belonging here and volunteers are not treated any differently to full time members of staff.
“It has been a very positive experience and I feel that I am contributing my skills which is helping to make a difference to the lives of young people.”
This was echoed by other volunteers at Safe and Sound.
Mother-of-two Persha Ward’s initial motivation for volunteering with Safe and Sound was to thank the charity for the support they gave her as a young person.
Persha, now in her mid twenties, was referred to Safe and Sound when she was 13 and in a downward spiral of exploitation at the hands of a group of older men.
She is also an Ambassador for the charity – supporting fundraising events – and continues to do business administration work to support the team.
She said: “The support I had from Safe and Sound was amazing. They helped to open my eyes to what was going on, taught me to respect myself and gave me the support and strength to realise that I deserved better.
“As a mum, I am determined that my girls have the best childhood they can and part of that is to support the charity that helped me move on with my life after exploitation.”
Vicki Clarke is a former police officer who is now learning mentor, mental health lead and deputy safeguarding lead at a city junior school.
Keen to get involved in a young person-focused charity, she signed up as a volunteer more than two years ago and has been involved in several aspects of the work – particularly outreach – so much so that she has now taken the post as volunteer lead for this important work in the city centre.
Vicki explained: “I wanted to get involved in something meaningful that would make a difference in our local communities and I particularly enjoy the outreach work.
“I get a lot out of volunteering for Safe and Sound. It brings me into contact with people I would not usually meet and getting out and about is good for my mental and physical health.”
Environmental scientist Obinna Okoro has just started volunteering for Safe and Sound as part of his research programme at the University of Derby which has a focus on communicating with young people.
“Throughout my career I have been involved in many aspects of education from working with organisations such as Unicef to mentoring in schools.
“My research programme in Derby has a strong focus on communication with non-specialists and young people about energy efficiency and climate change so I know that the volunteer work with Safe and Sound will help me improve those skills in the classroom.”
University of Derby student Amber Dalton continued: “The outreach work and being part of Safe and Sound’s HAF work to provide healthy meals and holiday activities for young people has been amazing. You really feel that you are making a difference.
“As a university student, I am also hoping that my volunteer work will help to boost my CV – especially as I hope to work with young people as a career after I graduate.”
And barista Pete Marris has been volunteering his time to Safe and Sound to take him out of his comfort zone and develop different skills.
Pete supports the charity with writing funding bids which he is able to fit in with his other commitments.
He said: “I have worked in hospitality for many years but wanted to expand other skills and saw that volunteering was a great way of doing that as well as putting something back to the local community.”
Safe and Sound CEO Tracy Harrison concluded: “Choosing just one of our volunteers for an award was a really hard task as they all do such an amazing job for us. Julia has helped the organisation in so many ways and is an asset to the team.
Mrs Harrison continued: “We are proud to be a volunteer-led organisation with more than 50 people utilising their lived experience and expertise to work alongside the 20-strong team with the shared objective of keeping our local communities safe.
“Volunteers from all walks of life join the charity’s community outreach and youth work teams whilst others provide vital support to behind the scenes work from marketing communications to HR and accountancy advice and support. They are also integral to the HAF programme – delivering meals to vulnerable families.
“We also benefit from the input of our Board of Trustees, Ambassadors, young people and parents.”
Safe and Sound works with children as young as seven, young people and their families across Derbyshire whose lives have been affected by child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines, trafficking, modern slavery and radicalisation.
Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound, is forging ahead with plans to create a safe place in Derby city centre for young people and families where they can engage with an expanded range of support services and activities to help them re-build their lives.
The charity has secured the purchase of 8 Bold Lane, a former restaurant in Derby’s Cathedral Quarter, which will enable the specialist team to support more young people and families and provide a broader range of services. The charity will also make space available for other charities and organisations to deliver their services.
Safe and Sound works with children as young as seven, young people and their families across Derbyshire whose lives have been affected by child exploitation including online grooming, sexual exploitation, County Lines, trafficking, modern slavery and radicalisation.
The charity is currently based in rented offices in Darley Abbey and rents further space for activity and therapy work.
Thanks to £250,000 funding from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities’ Community Ownership Fund, plans are now being drawn up for the restoration and refurbishment work required to make the three-storey building fit for purpose. Work is due to start imminently and take around six months to complete.
The vision is to provide safe and welcoming ground-floor space for a community hub and a wide range of activities delivered by both Safe and Sound and other youth and family-focused organisations including YMCA, Derby County Community Trust and Umbrella.
The flexibility of the space will enable activities and therapies to be expanded ranging from arts and crafts and music to drama and sport.
The other two floors will include space for 121 and group support, meetings and workshops as well as office accommodation for Safe and Sound’s team and volunteers who are based there.
Fundraising for equipment and specialist facilities will continue under the charity’s Butterfly Appeal banner with the first donations secured including the donation of office equipment from Geldards solicitors and a £4,299 grant from Toyota Manufacturing UK to pay for youth activities equipment at the centre.
Last year, Safe and Sound supported a record 343 children and young people who had been victims of or at risk of child exploitation. The charity largely works with 7-18 year olds but includes up to 25 if there are special educational needs and or disability (SEND) issues or children leaving care.
The charity works with boys and girls. Around 30% of the young people have SEND and 29% did not identify as White British. Workers also regularly support young people who identify as gay, non-binary and trans.
Safe and Sound offers a range of innovative, hands-on programmes to help young people understand what has happened to them, rebuild their confidence and move onto a place of emotional safety, protected from further harm.
Support services include:
– 121 and group support
– Outreach work in local communities
– Practical support for families including parents and siblings
– Positive activities for young people
– Support through the criminal justice system
– Longer-term support to transition into positive outcomes such as education and employment
– Specialist support for New Communities and young people with special educational needs.
Safe and Sound chair Mark Richardson, who is a director of BBJ Commercial, has been working with fellow trustees, CEO Tracy Harrison and key partners in the city to bring the vision to reality.
He explained that the purchase of 8 Bold Lane was the culmination of two years’ discussions and site visits and was a milestone moment for Safe and Sound, the wider voluntary sector and for the vibrancy of the city centre.
“We have outgrown our rented offices in Darley Abbey Mills and there has always been a desire to have city centre premises to provide a safe and welcoming space for the young people and families that our specialist team supports.
“I am delighted that we have found the premises that will be the long-term home for everyone who works at and is supported by Safe and Sound as well as providing much needed accessible space for other organisations supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our local communities.
“The property has been vacant for some time and is in disrepair so this is an excellent opportunity to see it brought back to life. Its location next to the Electric Daisy environmental social enterprise further brings new cultural diversity and community to the area
“I am particularly grateful for the support shown by fellow professionals in the commercial property, construction and legal fields who have recognised the value that Safe and Sound brings to our city and county and who have provided us with their expertise to enable us to secure this purchase.”
CEO Tracy Harrison outlined the importance of upscaling facilities and capacity to support young people and their families whose lives had been affected by child exploitation.
She explained that child exploitation was a rapidly growing problem:
Almost 34,000 online grooming crimes against children were recorded in the past six years
6,350 Sexual Communication with a Child offences were recorded in 2022/23
In 2021/22, there were 17,486 crimes logged by police in England in Wales where children had been sexually exploited – an average of 48 offences a day.
She said: “Referrals for our services have doubled since the pandemic – reflecting the reality that any child, anywhere – regardless of their age, sex or family background – is at risk of child exploitation.
“However, we have been constricted by having to rent premises not only for our team but to provide an expanding programme of activities, support and therapies which are so vital to help young people and their families affected by exploitation to move forward with their lives.
“The Bold Lane premises will be an amazing community asset that will increase our impact by providing a centrally located safe and welcoming space for children and young people who are at risk of exploitation as well as their families.
“Our youth participation and parents as peers groups will continue to be heavily involved in the project plan – advising us on the facilities they want and we will continue to consult with our Youth Alliance partners throughout the process to ensure that this facility will benefit everyone.”
Mrs Harrison continued: “With the purchase secured, the Community Ownership Fund grant has enabled us to move quickly on the renovation of the property and we hope to be ready to open our doors in early 2025.
“We still have a long shopping list of equipment that we want to buy and special features that we want to include in the community hub so will be stepping up our efforts through the Butterfly Appeal to make this a reality.”
For more information about Safe and Sound, the work it does and how to support the charity, please visit www.safeandsoundgroup.org.uk
Local companies and organisations are being invited to recapture their childhoods and compete in a series of fun sporting challenges based on the traditional school sports day.
The Derby Business Games return this summer after a six year gap and will be held at Derby Rugby Club in Haslams Lane, Darley Abbey on Thursday July 4th between 4pm and 8pm.
Teams of eight will compete in the rounders tournament followed by individuals and pairs going head to head in mini events from wheelbarrow races to the firm favourite – egg and spoon. The afternoon will then finish with the tug of war and welly wanging finale before crowning the team with the most points accrued.
Derby Business Games is being organised by Will Evans who was behind the original Business Games in 2017. The event is supported by Marketing Derby and a percentage of the profits will be donated to Derbyshire’s specialist child exploitation charity, Safe and Sound.
Will Evans explained: “The Derby Business Games were last held in 2018 and were really well supported by local businesses of all sizes who relished the opportunity to harness their friendly competitive spirit and take part a host of fun activities.
“The feel of the event is an old-school sports day for grown-ups that should know better. The events are planned so that there is something for everyone to get involved in and enjoy.”
Tracy Harrison, CEO of Safe and Sound, added: “As active members of the Derby business community, we are delighted to have been chosen as charity recipients of the event and our staff and volunteers will be taking an active part in proceedings throughout the evening to ensure everyone enjoys themselves.”
The cost of the event is £300 per team with free entry for family, friends and colleagues who are invited to cheer on their teams.
