G roundwork West Midlands is a “can do” organisat ion, del iver ing

regenerat ion and susta inable development in a way that is community led, par tnership -based and hol is t ic . We invest in local assets – people, p laces and organisat ions – to del iver maximum publ ic benef i t – soc ia l ly, economical ly, and environmental ly. We work where we are needed most . That ’s why we’re on the ground in communit ies that face the b iggest chal lenges, del iver ing pro jects a l l across the W est Mid lands. Whether i t ’s help ing people out of fuel pover ty , engag ing people in physical act ivi ty and a healthy l i festyle , br ing ing out the best in young people by help ing them in educat ion and tra ining , bui ld ing stronger communi t ies by

improving green spaces or get t ing people back into employment , we make a massive d i f ference each year , but want to do more for the communit ies we serve. We’re proud to work wi th a wide range of par tners to make th is change happen, f rom our commit ted vo lunteers to major brands and businesses. We benef i t f rom the suppor t of the Big Lot tery Fund and work c losely wi th Government Depar tments, Local Author i t ies and Housing Associat ions across the W est Mid lands.

Better local environments

More people sat is f ied w i th the

places w here they l i ve

More people empow ered to

engage in local decis ion making

Better equipped people and

organisat ions connect ing w i th

economic opportuni ty

Heal th ier communit ies w i th

people behaving in w ays which

are heal th ier, and more

respect fu l o f the natura l

environment .

B eing in a fu l f i l l ing

job is a major

factor in help ing

people to s tay we l l

and happy and enab l ing

them to put something back

into soc iety. We also know

there is much work to be

done to make local

communit ies bet ter p laces to

l i ve and to tack le some of

the b ig chal lenges l ike

money management and

l iv ing a heal thy l i festyle on a

budget .

We are commit ted to work ing

in every corner of the W est

Mid lands to g ive people the

best s tar t in l i fe and to open

up new oppor tuni t ies in the

job market .

No one should be

disadvantaged because of

where they live or because

of their background. We

want to stop talent and lives

from being wasted due to

long-term unemployment or

a poverty of aspiration.

Ski l ls and Employment

Unemployment remains a major issue and th is year we have

doubled our ef for ts to help people deve lop their conf idence,

sk i l ls and employment prospects through government

in i t ia t ives such as the Work Programme , Ski l ls

Support for the Unemplo yed , and Support for

Fami l ies , and as a resul t have seen over 600 people

progress into susta ined employment .

Heal th and

Wel lbeing

This year we have run a

range of Heal th and

Wel lbeing pro jects such as

Living Wel l for Less ;

teaching pract ica l l i f e sk i l ls

wi th embedded heal th and

f inancia l conf idence

messages for young people;

Green Days ; explor ing

act iv i ty in loca l g reen spaces,

and a var iety of Physical

Act ivi t y projects .

Our Cook and Eat Wel l

project has del ivered over

200 heal thy eat ing

workshops in schools ,

workplaces and community

cent res around Coventry.

Sorted is a Big Lot tery

funded pro ject that a ims to

improve the f inancia l

conf idence of soc ia l housing

tenants in Covent ry,

del ivered f rom a purpose bui l t

f la t , and has seen 757 people benef i t f rom 1 -2 -1

suppor t to manage their

tenancy wi th pract ica l home

sk i l ls , budget ing and bank ing

and understanding tenants

r ights.

Youth, Educat ion

and Train ing

Pay Ahead, Stay Ahead

project has helped to improve

the money management sk i l ls

of 265 young people in

soc ia l housing in Birmingham,

a iming to help young people

to deal wi th money in

general , help ing them stay

out of debt, save and avoid

loan sharks.

In 2014 our Independent

School , specia l is ing in

young people wi th

Behavioural , Emot ional and

Socia l d i f f icu l t ies, has

del ivered a range of

vocat iona l t ra in ing

oppor tuni t ies inc lud ing 19

qual i f icat ions achieved in

Const ruct ion, Motor Vehic le,

Employabi l i t y and Maths and

Eng l ish.

Our Achievement

Coaches provided suppor t

to over 50 young people in

school , inc lud ing steps to

bui ld mot ivat ion and ra ise

aspirat ions for their fu ture.

“Work ing wi th Groundwork has changed my l i fe . They

have helped to show me what I can actual ly achieve in

l i fe . The pro ject was br i l l iant at g iv ing me more

conf idence in mysel f and my communicat ion sk i l ls

have improved having met and worked wi th d i f ferent

people in the community . I real ly enjoyed work ing

outdoors and doing something pract ica l" .

- Liam, Accelerate programme

Liam had been unemployed

for near ly a year , and star ted

on our Accelerate programme

wi th low sel f conf idence and

was uncomfor table in new

environments. L iam lef t

school wi th few qual i f icat ions

and was confused about

where to s tar t career wise.

L iam was look ing for

pract ica l , hands -on vocat iona l

exper ience and came across

Groundwork 's Hort icu l tura l

programme del ivered as par t

of Accelerate.

Liam immediate ly took to

work ing outdoors on

Groundwork 's a l lo tment p lots

in W ednesbury. Groundwork

had an oppor tuni ty to suppor t

the refurb ishment of the

a l lo tment s i te and were

approached by Interserve who

were look ing to suppor t a

local community pro ject .

In terserve were so impressed

by L iam they put h im in touch

wi th Hor tech, a local g rounds

maintenance and landscaping

company, who invi ted L iam

for an interview. W hi ls t on

Accelerate L iam had

completed a Ci ty and Gui lds

Leve l 1 Dip loma in

Hor t icu l ture, Funct ional Sk i l ls

in Maths and Eng l ish and an

ASDAN Employabi l i t y Award.

Al l o f which, a long wi th

L iam's character and

commitment , cont r ibuted to

h im being of fered an

Apprent iceship by Hor tech to

work on a local school

pro ject .

Groundwork 's pro jects on

local a l lo tments g ive young

people a posi t ive out let for

negat ive energy and a c lear

focus. Educat ing young

people on p lant ing , nut r ients

and how to ut i l ise such

ingredients to cook heal thy

meals, enables them to

apprec iate and understand a

susta inable way of l iv ing .

Liam was gratefu l to be

involved wi th Groundwork and

the Al lo tment project , The

Al lo tment pro ject wi th

Interserve had such an

impact local ly that is was

nominated for a

Wolverhampton Express and

Star Award, in the

'Outstanding Not for Prof i t '

Category. L iam, a long wi th

h is manager f rom Hor tech,

came back to the Al lo tments

to meet the panel of judges to

share h is exper ience and

h ighl ight how far he had come

over the last year .

People who live in places that

are greener, cleaner and safer

are healthier and happier.

Places that look better and

where more people know their

neighbours and volunteer, have

lower crime rates and higher

levels of investment.

E very year we help

hundreds of people

of a l l ages to

organise and work

together to protect , preserve,

improve or create parks, p lay

areas, a l lo tments, nature

reserves and many other

spaces and p laces that matter

to them. We help people

create ' f r iends groups’ and

mobi l ise suppor t and

funding.

We help young people get

their vo ices heard and

demonst rate that they can be

a power fu l force for good in

their community. We help

people who are iso lated or

suf fer ing heal th problems to

get involved, get act ive and

re -connect wi th nature.

Si lverdale Count ry Park

Si lverda le Country Park has been voted the ‘S i te of the

Year ’ by the Land Trust .

This means out of over 40 s i tes nat ionwide Groundwork W est

Mid lands have been seen to be the best in terms of

environment , community engagement, management and much

more. This is testament to the work the who le team have put

in to the s i te over the last few years. We wi l l not rest on our

laure ls , but cont inue to work to make Si lverdale as good as i t

can be.

The Cracker

Project

This pro ject is a partnership

approach to improving a

p iece of green space in

Sandwel l , the Cracker . Every

Thursday we lead volunteer

sess ions on the Cracker

green space where we look

to cut back overgrown

bushes, improve access

routes, mainta in paths by

dra in ing puddles and f i l l ing

in wi th s tone, paint ent rance

furn i ture etc.

Our volunteers are a l l

cur rent ly in rehabi l i ta t ion for

drug or a lcohol misuse and

through these sessions we

are able to get them outs ide

and act ive, work ing in a team

and gett ing a real sense of

achievement .

Love Your River

Love your r iver is about

encourag ing people to

reconnect wi th their r ivers

and the natura l envi ronment .

Over the last two years

Groundwork W est Mid lands

have been work ing wi th

par tners, l ike the

Environment Agency, on

pro jects a imed at improving

the qual i ty of our in land

waterways.

The focus has been

on improving water qual i ty

(due to the poor state of

many of our r ivers and

brooks) and we are focussed

on engag ing the wider

community in their waterways

so they can take s imple

s teps to help us make a b ig

d i f ference.

Forest Schools

We have del ivered a fu l l

school year of Forest School

provis ion at Burnwood

Pr imary School in Stoke -on -

Trent and have been in every

week dur ing term t ime. This

has invo lved work ing wi th

d i f ferent c lasses, PPA cover

and a lso chi ld and parent

act iv i t ies which he lp in -bed

the idea of nature based p lay

in to parents as wel l as

chi ldren. Act iv i t ies inc luded

scavenger hunts, animal

gang games, parachute

games, habi tat bui ld ing and

much more.

Si lverda le Country Park was created on the former Si lverdale

Col l iery as par t of a restorat ion pro ject funded by the

government 's Homes and Communit ies Agency, us ing money

f rom their Nat ional Coal f ie lds Programme. Si lverdale Country

Park is now owned by nat iona l char i ty 'The Land Trust ' and

managed by char i ty 'Groundwork W est Mid lands ' as a s i te for

local peop le to enjoy quiet recreat ion and wi ld l i fe

conservat ion.

The park is character ised by a largely open grass land

landscape wi th a number of d is t inct level changes

created as a resul t o f the stockpi led col l iery spoi l . The

resul t ing p lateaus are separated by s teep

embankments colonised wi th natura l grass and young

t ree p lant ing . A smal l p lateau at the h ighest point of

the s i te, af fords extensive v iews to the surrounding

area. Skylarks are a l ready abundant on the s i te in

spr ing t ime and great crested newts can be found in

the smal l ponds.

"Being at the park doing th is sor t of vo lunteer

work is something I have a lways wanted to do.

I t is exact ly as I had imagined! ! So far I have

helped to make and p lace benches, erected

fencing and s ignage, c leared d i tches, thinned

out woodland by pruning and fe l l ing smal l

t rees, p lanted sapl ings and seeds, dry hedging

and helped to keep the park c lear of l i t ter .

Being a volunteer enables me to g ive to the

community . I have made f r iends and we work

wel l as a team. The other benef i ts are lo ts of

f resh a i r and lots of exerc ise! Watching the

Park change through the seasons and

benef i t t ing f rom al l the work we do. Perfect ! ! ”

- Louise, Silverdale Volunteer

"Being at the park doing th is sor t of vo lunteer

work is something I have a lways wanted to do.

I t is exact ly as I had imagined! ! So far I have

helped to make and p lace benches, erected

fencing and s ignage, c leared d i tches, thinned

out woodland by pruning and fe l l ing smal l

t rees, p lanted sapl ings and seeds, dry hedging

and helped to keep the park c lear of l i t ter .

Being a volunteer enables me to g ive to the

community . I have made f r iends and we work

wel l as a team. The other benef i ts are lo ts of

f resh a i r and lots of exerc ise! Watching the

Park change through the seasons and

benef i t t ing f rom al l the work we do. Perfect ! ! ”

- Louise, Silverdale Volunteer

A ddressing

environmental

chal lenges

successfu l ly wi l l

require people everywhere

to learn to l ive d i f ferent ly.

We help people and

organisat ions to make

choices and changes that

del iver pract ica l benef i ts

now and sow the seeds of a

more susta inable future.

Think ing di f ferent ly about

the way we use f in i te natura l

resources helps people lead

bet ter , heal th ier and more

comfortable l i ves, provides

oppor tuni t ies for people to

vo lunteer and work together

in their communit ies to get

th ings done, improves local

fac i l i t ies and creates jobs.

It is a stark reality that global

environmental challenges

impact first and worst on those

people and communities that

have least. We help people and

organisations to make choices

and changes that deliver

practical benefits now and sow

the seeds of a

more sustainable future.

Green Doctor

Groundwork W est Mid lands are now del iver ing the th i rd year of

the h ighly successfu l Energy Doctor pro ject on behalf of Orbi t

Hear t of Eng land and Midland Hear t housing associat ions.

Our Green Doctors are independent , impar t ia l exper ts who

have been he lp ing fami l ies to make their homes warmer, cut fuel

b i l ls and reduce their carbon footpr int by of fer ing home vis i ts

and advice on energy, exp la in ing how to access grant suppor t

for improvements and g iving suppor t on other environmental

issues such as recyc l ing , compost ing and water use.

Green Doctors show people

in target areas around

the West Mid lands how to

make their homes more

environmental ly f r iendly and

cheaper to run .

Over the last year we have

suppor ted over 400

customers and demonst rated

an average potent ia l sav ing

of £180+ per household per

annum alongside increased

thermal comfor t .

Orbi t Hear t of Eng land are

so proud of the project they

entered i t for a Nat ional

Housing Federat ion

Community Impact Award, in

wh ich Groundwork West

Mid lands were one of 12

pro jects shor t l is ted out of

180 ent rants.

Envi ronmenta l

Business Serv ices

We have suppl ied our

Environmental or

Heal th and Safe ty

Legal Services to 40

companies th is year . In most

cases th is represents annual

cont racts to supply

compl iance audi ts and

quar ter ly updates to their

legal reg is ters.

Ten companies have both

environmental and heal th

and safety legal services.

We work wi th a wide range

of organisat ions f rom

var ious sectors -

automot ive, aerospace,

const ruct ion and mater ia ls ,

inst rumentat ion, general

manufactur ing , waste

recyc l ing , food and even

emergency services . The

companies range in s ize

f rom smal l SME with 30

employees to nat ionals wi th

250 -300 employees per s i te .

We have worked wi th or are

work ing wi th 5 companies to

implement environmental

management systems and

we have t ra ined 70

employees in

environmental ly based

subjects .

M ick ie is a s ing le woman in her 50s. She has

suf fered f rom i l l heal th and has lost her

independence fo l lowing a s troke. Although in i t ia l ly

nervous about our v is i t we were able to reassure

her about what the service could of fer , and we br iefed our

Advisor so he was able to adapt the service.

The vis i t ra ised a number of concerns inc luding her broken

f ront door, which is cur rent ly damaged due to vandal ism by

her ex -husband, th is means that the proper ty is draughty

and heat is lost through the gaps.

As a resul t of her stroke, Mick ie s t rugg les wi th her memory

and our Advisor spent t ime wi th her wr i t ing down the key

points f rom the vis i t in her f i le where she keeps informat ion.

We were able to provide her wi th some low impact solut ions to

ass is t wi th her keeping warm and have a lso refer red her for

fur ther suppor t . W e have referred her to the Sanctuary Team

at Birmingham City Counci l and they have of fered to support

her wi th these repairs .

“As a provider of social housing with over 70,000 customers across 32,000 of our properties, it’s important we put the needs of our customers first. Since we started working with Groundwork West Midlands in 2013 in partnership on our Energy Efficiency works, we’ve seen over 100 of our customers receive a energy advice service from Groundwork. The team at Groundwork have consistently delivered a professional service in the way in which they engage our customers, their communication and how they’ve supported behaviour change. All of which has enabled our customers to realise the full potential of utility savings and help Midland Heart realise the full benefits these works bring to our homes” - Michael Wood, Energy Strategy Manager, Midland Heart.

“We help people to take practical steps to stay warm,

save money, and save energy in their homes. A Green

Doctor visit can help reduce isolation and

improve health and wellbeing, so knowing

that spending a hour with someone can

make such a difference to their lives is the

best thing about being a Green Doctor.”

- Jenny Owen, Green Doctor

“As a provider of social housing with over 70,000 customers across 32,000 of our properties, it’s important we put the needs of our customers first. Since we started working with Groundwork West Midlands in 2013 in partnership on our Energy Efficiency works, we’ve seen over 100 of our customers receive a energy advice service from Groundwork. The team at Groundwork have consistently delivered a professional service in the way in which they engage our customers, their communication and how they’ve supported behaviour change. All of which has enabled our customers to realise the full potential of utility savings and help Midland Heart realise the full benefits these works bring to our homes” - Michael Wood, Energy Strategy Manager, Midland Heart.

"Groundwork West Midlands has been

excel lent in responding to our P lay

Pathf inder programme. Groundwork has not

only des igned some rea l ly interest ing new

spaces, but have insta l led these us ing the

land apprent ice programme."

Sarah Campbel l , Ch ie f Cul tura l Services

Of f icer , Wolverhampton Ci ty Counci l

"Sebast ian looked forward to

Forest School every week. He is

more eager to play outdoors now

and takes more interest in plants

and l ikes ident i fy ing mini beasts ."

Sebast ian ’s mum, Loca l Resident ,

Forest School pro ject

"This par tnership has rea l ly

f lour ished. The res idents are real ly

p leased and f rom a business point of v iew

i t is fantast ic to have a par tner which

adds so much value to the communi t ies"

Paul Booth, Regenerat ion Manager,

Rivers ide

"The importance of good envi ronmenta l management

has rapidly moved up the agenda and Groundwork

West Midlands has played a major ro le in guiding the

company through th is unfami l iar , and at t imes,

daunt ing business issue. The support that we have

received has been essent ia l . "

Paul Cowley, Corporate Af fa i rs Manager, A.F. B lakemore

"Work ing on the a l lotment helped me give

the communi ty something back and

he lped me learn how to grow food."

Paul , invo lved par t ic ipant

W e re ly on the support of a huge

range of ind ividuals and

organisat ions to achieve the

change set out in th is report .

Work in par tnership w i th us

We are focused on br ing ing about as much change as

possib le in the p laces that need i t most. W e can’ t do i t

a lone. W e can work wi th you to improve l ives in a

par t icu lar neighbourhood or c i ty or col laborate on a

programme that has an impact in the West Mid lands.

Volunteer w i th us

Your t ime and sk i l ls could be of huge value to our

work . W e can help you under take team chal lenges to

improve a community a l lo tment or chi ldren’s p lay area

or help you become a mentor to young people to help

them succeed in l i fe .

Make a regular donat ion

We want to provide long - term support to people and

communit ies in need. Regular donat ions can help our

Green Teams improve more green spaces or our Green

Doctors help more people s t rugg l ing to cope wi th their

b i l ls .

Become a friend of Groundwork West Midlands

Groundwork West Midlands

@GWWM

Groundwork West Midlands

www.groundwork.org.uk/westmidlands

Company Registration No. 06823225.

Charity Registration No. 1128858.

Registered Office: Groundwork West Midlands, Dolton Way, Tipton, West Midlands DY4 9AL.