Partnership Newsletter

The Thriving Community Fund: The story so far

In 2017, the Community Chest, a valuable local partnership fund established between Aylesbury Vale District Council and ourselves, then known as the Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust, ended. Recognising the fund's vital role in supporting local individuals and organisations, we wanted to ensure that our community could still receive this crucial support. Therefore, we set up the Thriving Communities Fund.

The Thriving Communities Fund allocates up to £250,000 annually across three funding streams: Springboard, Micro, and Project Grants. Springboard Grants offer up to £300 to support residents in wellbeing, education, training, or employment opportunities, while the Micro and Project Grants provide up to £3,000 and £10,000, respectively, to community or voluntary groups. Since the inception of the fund, there have been a number of unprecedented events, having the Thriving Communities Fund allocations overseen entirely in-house has allowed it to adapt to changing circumstances, the most notable being COVID-19. Not long into the 2020 financial year, the Grants Panel was able to introduce a fourth, temporary stream quickly, the Coronavirus Support Grant, which provided grants of up to £4,000 for community groups and voluntary organisations to help alleviate the impact of the pandemic. Applications were reviewed weekly to ensure that essential funding was quickly accessible. Again in April 2021, as the government's COVID support drew to a close the Grants Panel was able to reconvene, and since the fund had not yet been fully allocated, it was decided that the remaining budget would be split among seven local charities that were providing a lifeline for the most vulnerable, such as food banks and mental health charities.

Over the years the Thriving Community Fund has not only enabled us to support our community but build lasting relationships with those working and volunteering at its heart. As we look to the future, we remain committed to evolving the Thriving Communities Fund to meet the emerging needs of our community. By listening to feedback, staying responsive to challenges, and fostering strong partnerships, we will continue to empower local initiatives that create positive change. Together, we will ensure that the Aylesbury Vale and beyond remains a place where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Read more about the Thriving Community Fund here. https://www.fairhive.co.uk/thrive

The Fund In Action

Thornborough Cricket Club received a grant from the Thriving Communities Fund which was used to purchase new equipment. Take a look through our slideshow at some of the other organisations and residents that have benefitted.

Thornborough Cricket Club received a grant from the Thriving Communities Fund which was used to purchase new equipment. Take a look through our slideshow at some of the other organisations and residents that have benefitted.
Springboard grants

"I applied for £270, and used the money to pay for driving lessons and towards the cost of my practical test, which I wouldn’t have been able to afford previously.

Being able to drive has hugely boosted my independence and improved both mine and my young daughter’s wellbeing. I would highly recommend the Thriving Communities Fund to anyone who is in a similar position to myself.”

Springboard grant

One of our residents received a Springboard grant to help pay for driving lessons.

“After seeing an article about the Thriving Communities Fund in a local newspaper, I thought I had nothing to lose by looking further into it. I found an application on the website and applied straight away. The forms were straightforward to fill out and I’d had a response within a few days.

"I applied for £270, and used the money to pay for driving lessons and towards the cost of my practical test, which I wouldn’t have been able to afford previously.

"Being able to drive has hugely boosted my independence and improved both mine and my young daughter’s wellbeing. It has also opened up opportunities for full-time employment once my daughter is at school full-time. I would highly recommend the Thriving Communities Fund to anyone who is in a similar position to myself.”
“Cerys has benefited from Hippotherapy (physio on horseback) due to having low muscle tone and hyper-mobility as part of her having Down Syndrome. It was key to her walking a few years ago.

With the current financial situation, we were looking at having to stop but the Springboard Grant means she will benefit for a little bit longer from a therapy that she enjoys.”

“Cerys has benefited from Hippotherapy (physio on horseback) due to having low muscle tone and hyper-mobility as part of her having Down Syndrome. It was key to her walking a few years ago.

With the current financial situation, we were looking at having to stop but the Springboard Grant means she will benefit for a little bit longer from a therapy that she enjoys.”
Mirco and Project Grants

Brackley Foodbank

“The grant we received from Fairhive allowed us to focus all of our volunteer efforts and resources on providing support to families and individuals in our area who found themselves in food poverty, rather than diluting these efforts in fundraising activities."

Paul Collins - Hon Treasurer

Brackley Foodbank

“The grant we received from Fairhive allowed us to focus all of our volunteer efforts and resources on providing support to families and individuals in our area who found themselves in food poverty, rather than diluting these efforts in fundraising activities."

Paul Collins - Hon Treasurer

Brackley Foodbank

“The grant we received from Fairhive allowed us to focus all of our volunteer efforts and resources on providing support to families and individuals in our area who found themselves in food poverty, rather than diluting these efforts in fundraising activities.

With sharply increasing food and energy costs over the past twelve months, the demand for what we provide has grown by over 40% year-on-year.

Because of this, we increasingly rely on financial contributions to supplement, and offset the downturn in, the food donations that we are receiving."

Paul Collins - Hon Treasurer
Action 4 Youth

“The young people we are working with are struggling with a range of issues such as anxiety, low mood, relationship issues, low self-esteem, or challenging behaviour.

Thanks to the grant from Fairhive, the sessions have provided each young person with a consistent weekly space to talk about their feelings, thoughts, and aspirations for the future.”

Action 4 Youth Team

“The young people we are working with are struggling with a range of issues such as anxiety, low mood, relationship issues, low self-esteem, or challenging behaviour.

Thanks to the grant from Fairhive, the sessions have provided each young person with a consistent weekly space to talk about their feelings, thoughts, and aspirations for the future.

100% of the young people who have completed their mentoring sessions have progressed in at least one area of their life, with feeling more supported as the main area of improvement.”
Thomley - Worminghall

“Fairhive's Thriving Community Fund recently made a grant towards Disability Family Days at Thomley, which are inclusive and adapted play and learning activities for people with disabilities, their families, and their non-disabled siblings and friends.

A huge thank you to Fairhive for helping Thomley achieve its vision.”

Thomley Team

Thomley - Worminghall

“Our vision is to enhance the lives and experiences of people with disabilities, their parents, carers, and families.

Fairhive's Thriving Community Fund recently made a grant towards Disability Family Days at Thomley, which are inclusive and adapted play and learning activities for people with disabilities, their families, and their non-disabled siblings and friends.

A huge thank you to Fairhive for helping Thomley achieve its vision.”

“Our vision is to enhance the lives and experiences of people with disabilities, their parents, carers, and families.

Fairhive's Thriving Community Fund recently made a grant towards Disability Family Days at Thomley, which are inclusive and adapted play and learning activities for people with disabilities, their families, and their non-disabled siblings and friends.

A huge thank you to Fairhive for helping Thomley achieve its vision.”
Autism Early Support Circle Centre

“We are thrilled to be a grant recipient of the Fairhive Thriving Community Fund!

They are a wonderful organisation to work alongside – always helpful and easy to contact throughout the application process. Their donation is making a huge difference to autistic children, children with sensory, communication, and interaction differences, and their families in the local area. Thank you.”

Ellie Walsh, Trusts and Giving Manager

Our Property Team: Setting the benchmark high

The Social Housing White Paper, released by the previous government in December 2020, suggested to implementation of a new set of tenant satisfaction measures. These measures would allow residents to assess the performance of their social landlord, promoting transparency and accountability within the housing sector. Following consultation with various stakeholders, including residents, the Regulator of Social Housing has outlined 22 measures aligned with the 5 themes in the White Paper. All social housing providers must report on the new Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) annually starting from April 2023.

The Fairhive team has worked tirelessly to meet the new measures, and we are pleased to announce that our overall satisfaction rate for 2023-2024 was 81.18%. This surpasses not only HouseMark's median benchmark of 72.3% but also the upper quartile of 79.2%. Additionally, results from the TSM's survey show that nine out of eleven questions to residents achieved or exceeded the upper quartile of HouseMark's benchmark. Specifically, 81.89% of tenants expressed satisfaction with repairs, and 81.13% were pleased with the timeliness of our service, compared to sector medians of 74.5% and 70%. The team excelled in areas such as respect, helpfulness, and engagement, again scoring above the upper quartile. This achievement highlights our team's dedication to our company's key objectives, including exceptional service to meet customer needs. The full report presented to the resident’s forum can be found here .

While we celebrate these results, we remain committed to continuously improving our processes finding more efficient ways of working and ultimately providing a service second to none for our residents.

Property team

Disability Confident: Being a Leader

We pride ourselves in not only being Fair in name but in principle too. Last year we were absolutely delighted to achieve the top ranking status of Disability Confident Leader. The Disability Confident scheme is a three-level scheme implemented by the government, to aid employers in recruiting and retaining disabled employees, addressing the UK's 29.8% disability employment gap. This program encourages employers to value the talents of disabled individuals, enhancing their recruitment and retention practices.

The highest level, Disability Confident Level 3 or Disability Confident Leader, is held by only 2.79% of the over 17,000 UK businesses in the scheme. In Buckinghamshire, aside from Fairhive, only two other businesses have achieved a level of recognition that involves an independent assessment by disability experts. We have successfully passed assessments conducted by Dr Kathy Hoffman, NHS Lead on Diabetes for Buckinghamshire and Chair of Diabetes UK in Aylesbury Vale, as well as by Talkback, an autism and learning disability charity. Dr Hoffman commended Fairhive's inclusive approach, while Talkback praised the organisation's commitment to supporting individuals with disabilities.

By becoming a Disability Confident leader we are not only able to demonstrate the inclusive culture at Fairhive to current and future employees but we are more representative of those whom we serve, in Buckinghamshire just over 13% of the population state they have a disability, a close match to the results from a recent internal survey showing that, out of the team that responded, 12% have a disability. Over the coming newsletters we will be discussing and providing tips on how you can get involved in this scheme, however if you wish to find out more please get in touch with the team at hello@fairhive.co.uk