Posted on February 24th, 2022 by Elaine Davies
Artwork created by survivors of sexual violence in Coventry is to go on display next month.
Coventry Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre (CRASAC) are hosting the exhibition to mark 40 years of supporting victims and survivors of sexual violence across the city, and we are funding the exhibition through the Citizen Local Fund which was set up to help people in local communities with groups or initiatives that promote mental or physical wellbeing.
A group of survivors have taken part in workshops delivered by by Arty Folks – a charity that runs art for wellbeing classes – and the artwork will be showcased at an exhibition at the Artspace Arcadia Gallery in Coventry from 7 to 11 March.
Their artwork showcases their voices and will focus on their journey to recovery.
Sharon Walters* is one of the survivors who took part in the workshops and said how much it had helped her wellbeing.
She said: “These workshops have been really important to me. It’s the first time my mind has been able to focus on something else and I’ve had the opportunity to publicly express myself in my own personal way.
“I’ve valued being part of a group where everyone has had a relatable experience.
“It has been an opportunity to let go of my anxiety and have fun.”
Our Director of Care and Support Martyn Hale said: “Providing support and working with those who help people that have experienced violence escape from its grasp is dear to me. We work with partners who deliver services on our behalf for those fleeing domestic abuse as well as provide accommodation for refugees. It seemed natural therefore to get involved in a project like this.
“To support an exhibition like this means in a small way we are making a difference and supporting those who have a hidden story to tell it through expression. Art is a fantastic way of doing this and it will be inspiring to see the exhibition and artwork portray so vividly the artists’ experiences.
“Anything that a person can use to tell their story, be it art, writing or poetry is to be celebrated. Often the telling of a person’s story is part of their recovery and coming to terms with what happened to them.
“I am due to visit the exhibition soon and it will be fantastic to see the artwork that has been produced.”
CRASAC is a registered charity and rape crisis centre which provides specialist counselling, advocacy, and emotional support services to all those who have been affected by rape or sexual violence at any time in their lives.
Chief Executive of CRASAC Natalie Thompson added: “We are delighted that Citizen have been able to support this project. For over forty years CRASAC has been providing victims and survivors of sexual abuse with a place to feel safe, heard and believed – enabling them to survive and thrive in life.
“Through a series of art workshops and individual contributions we have enabled a group of survivors to find their voice and validate their experiences.
“The exhibition will represent a snapshot of the hopes, frustrations, and determination experienced by the hundreds of victims and survivors we support every year.”
The exhibition will take place at the Artspace Arcadia Gallery from 7 to 11 March and will be open from 10am to 2pm. For more information about the exhibition, click here.
For more information about CRASSAC click here.
*not real name
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Posted on February 23rd, 2022 by Elaine Davies
We have recently finished the recruitment of our new Customer Scrutiny Panel which will oversee the standard of our services and hold us to account.
We received over 70 applications for the panel and have successful recruited 10 customers who have now been approved by our board.
Members of our Scrutiny Panel will take part in a series of scrutiny reviews. They will work together to assess our services and report back findings and recommendations to help us improve.
The panel will report into our Customer Assurance Committee, which is a part of our formal board structure. This means its work will feed directly into the highest levels of our organisation and exert real influence over our services.
Will Walker, our Director of Transformation, said: “We want to continue to do more to involve our customers in our work and our Customer Scrutiny Panel will play an important part of this.
“Our Customer Assurance Committee has been a great influence on our work and the Scrutiny Panel will take this a step further by conducting in-depth reviews which hold us to account on crucial aspects of our service.
“This is an integral part of our work to achieve our objective to improve our offer to our customers. I’m delighted to have everyone on board and I’m really looking to seeing their impact”
Our Scrutiny Panel members will now begin their induction to Citizen which includes training to understand our business and our processes. There will be joint training sessions with the Customer Assurance Committee to strengthen the relationship between the two functions and to further understand the role of the Committee and Panel to prevent any cross over of work and to increase assurance.
Our Scrutiny Panel are expected to complete at least three scrutiny reviews each financial year with our Fresh Start Standard being the first area they will review.
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Posted on February 10th, 2022 by Elaine Davies
Our 2021 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Annual Report tells the story of how we have driven this hugely important part of our work forward during one of the most challenging periods in our history for colleagues and customers.
This year our priority has been to understand the experiences of customers and staff so we can shape our work and our services to reflect this.
We carried out a customer perception survey with specific analysis around protected characteristics and an all-staff survey on equality, diversity and inclusion – to find out what colleagues thought about our culture, policies, and practices.
Our EDI Forum has played a pivotal role in shaping delivery against our objectives and 2021 saw the production of When You Look at Me – a powerful video setting out our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.
We are proud we have been able to make progress against all our objectives and we hope you enjoy reading the report and finding out more about our work.
Read our 2021 Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Annual Report here.
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Posted on February 9th, 2022 by Elaine Davies
We can now reveal the community projects who will benefit from our second round of funding through our Citizen Local Fund.
Six projects were successful in landing a share of the £30,000 pot, which adds to the eight projects who were awarded funding last year.
The Citizen Local Fund offers grants of up to £5,000 to fund groups, projects, and initiatives to support the wellbeing of people in our communities.
The fund is for projects and initiatives which promote and support wellbeing and our wider work. It is a central pillar of our Citizen to Citizen project, which is part of our strategic objective to improve our support services and tackle homelessness.
We had nearly 30 applications for the second round of funding and with the help of our Customer Assurance Committee we identified the successful bids.
The projects who have been awarded funding of £4,000 – £5,000 each are:
- KA Kits Academy – a community organisation that provides physical education services and enrichment opportunities to communities within towns and cities across the UK. The funding will be used to provide a new programme of activities in Coventry with a focus on mums and babies and over 60s.
- Shine A Light – a charity that supports families of children affected by cancer in the Coventry and Warwickshire area. The funding will be used to offer teenage respite and a peer support group for Coventry-based children, young people and families dealing with a cancer diagnosis.
- 24th Woodend Scouts – Coventry-based Scout group who will use the funding for their Food Poverty and Community Improvement Project which aims to reduce food poverty and isolation in the local community through the use of green spaces and allotments.
- Tudor Grange Academy, Kingshurst – Based in Birmingham, the Academy provides an outdoor education and adventure centre with a number of different zones to help with physical and mental wellbeing. The funding will be used to make the centre more accessible and engaging with guided and self guided tours.
- Coventry Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre – One of the largest Rape Crisis Centres in England and Wales which aims to improve the lives of people in Coventry who have been affected by rape and sexual abuse, enabling them to survive and thrive in life. The funding is being used to help the centre create a Survivor Voices Art Exhibition in Coventry which will highlight survivor recovery journeys through the use of art and creativity.
- Coventry Sports Foundation – The Foundation is a charitable Trust making a difference for individuals, neighbourhoods, and communities throughout Coventry. They offer a diverse range of sports and recreational facilities and have a thriving lifestyle health and fitness programme. The funding will be used to run a Go Communities Programme to provide accessible sports and activities for females and over 50s.
Find out more about our Citizen Local Fund here.
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Posted on February 4th, 2022 by Elaine Davies
We are looking for a new Director of Customer Services to lead our customer service and engagement function.
The post is part of our Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and will sit at the heart of our intent to continue to deliver great customer service.
Our new director will drive the use of customer insight to radically change our customer services, will be responsible for leading the development and delivery of our organisation-wide customer journey and customer experience culture in line with our business strategy.
Our current Director of Customer Services Lourdes Sharpe will be retiring at the end of March after seven years in her current role.
Chief Operating Officer Mads Nelson said: “This is a rare opportunity to join our Senior Leadership Team and play a central role in shaping the future of customer services, involving, listening to, and acting on customer insight and feedback.
“A key focus of this role will be to lead the co-design of our new offer to our customers – we’ve made some good progress, but we want to increase the pace of our change to make sure that we are meeting the diverse needs of our customers across the West Midlands.
“We are looking for someone who can bring energy and a step change in our relationship with our customers – leading customer strategies and transforming the customer experience. This is an exciting opportunity, and we are looking forward to seeing who applies.”
The deadline for applications is Wednesday 9 March and interviews take place on Wednesday 16 March.
Find out more information in our recruitment pack here and visit our jobs page on our website here.
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Posted on February 2nd, 2022 by Elaine Davies
Ted Malkin will join us as Director of Building Safety on 4 April.
The new post will sit on our Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and will play a crucial role in transforming our building safety function and making sure that we meet current and new legislation and regulatory requirements.
Ted joins us from Plus Dane Housing, a 13,000-home housing association with homes in Liverpool and Cheshire, where he is currently Head of Compliance and Health and Safety.
Ted started his career in social housing over 35 years ago as an apprentice plumbing and heating engineer for a local authority Direct Labour Organisation (DLO) in Staffordshire before moving into surveying and asset management for housing associations in Wolverhampton and the Black Country.
Ted has held senior roles for the past 15 years leading asset management services, in-house DLOs and compliance and health and safety services.
His interest in compliance and health and safety started whilst working as Group Head of Repairs for a large Northwest based housing provider where he was made responsible for recovering their compliance service following a governance down grade for building safety failures. He then spent a couple of years as a consultant advising housing associations on asset management, and in particular, building safety compliance, assisting them to develop and implement service improvement plans before joining Plus Dane.
Ted said: “I am thrilled to be joining a people focused organisation and becoming a Citizen.
“I have a successful track record in developing and empowering competent teams to create positive safety cultures where doing the right thing and continuous learning and improvement are core behaviours.
“I am really looking forward to working with the Senior Leadership Team, colleagues and the Board to make a positive impact on the safety of Citizen’s customers and staff. I look forward to meeting you all soon!”
Our Chief Operating Officer Mads Nelson said: “Building safety is a hugely important part of our work and the requirements of the Building Safety Bill will be significant and wide-ranging for us.
“I’m delighted that Ted will be joining our Senior Leadership Team soon. This is a really exciting role and I’m looking forward to Ted playing a central role, making a difference, and bringing a fresh perspective to our organisation.”
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