Our Neighbourhood Facilitator Aisha Peters @damalibeautifulvision attended @volunteerhackney ‘s Community Health Champions Physical Activity Forum last week, for an inspiring session bringing together residents and local organisations to connect around health and wellbeing 👌
Aisha said how fantastic it was to see so many taking part in the Reflect & Move Qi-Gong taster session. Residents shared really positive feedback, with many saying they had never experienced Qi-Gong before and found the session calming, grounding and supportive for their mental health.
Opportunities like this highlight the value of partnership working and creating welcoming community spaces where residents can connect, try new activities and support their wellbeing together 💛
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There are Neighbourhood Forums in eight areas across City and Hackney, delivered in partnership with @volunteerhackney . To find which Neighbourhood you’re in and how to sign up to hear about what’s happening in your local area, visit cityandhackneyneighbourhoods.org.uk 😊
#neighbourhoodforums #healthandwellbeing
#hackneyresident #healthequity #hackneycommunity
Weekly newsletter: Hackney Giving, funding, free training, news and jobs in Hackney .uk/weekly-newsletter-hackney-giving-funding-free-training-news-and-jobs-in-hackney
Our Well Street Common Neighbourhood Forum brought residents and healthcare professionals together at @gascoynecommunitycentre to talk openly about health screening: what it is, why it matters, and how we can make it more accessible for everyone.
Led by Polly the Neighbourhood facilitator from @wickaward , the forum heard honest reflections from residents about their experiences of finding out about and accessing screening locally, and what needs to change.
Key needs that came out of the conversations:
✨ Building trust and confidence in health screening through open conversations
✨ Reducing stigma and fear
✨ Making services more inclusive and accessible
✨ Improving understanding of the screening process to reduce anxiety
Especially inspiring was the story of Errol McKellar an East End mechanic who has become a prominent prostate cancer campaigner following his own diagnosis. After recovering from treatment, he used his garage to raise awareness and encourage customers to get tested, offering a 20% discount on MOTs to men who spoke to their doctor about their prostate 💫
What people said:
“I got good information from the breastcare nurse so I can feel ok about supporting my daughter-in-law…”
“We should all be talking about these things.”
A huge thank you to everyone who joined and contributed, these conversations are how change starts 💚💚💚
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There are Neighbourhood Forums in eight areas across City and Hackney, delivered in partnership with @volunteerhackney . To find out which Neighbourhood you’re in and how to sign up to hear about what’s happening in your local area, visit cityandhackneyneighbourhoods.org.uk 😊
#neighbourhoodforums #healthandwellbeing
#hackneyresident #healthequity #hackneycommunity
Weekly newsletter: Cultures of Hackney, funding, support, news, events and jobs in Hackney.
See our website for latest issue. .uk/weekly-newsletter-cultures-of-hackney-funding-support-news-events-and-jobs-in-hackney
Join us for an important conversation at @gascoynecommunitycentre in Well Street Common Neighbourhood about how we can improve access to life-saving health screening services.
Next Tuesday 21 April 3-5pm, we’ll be sharing information about the benefits of screening - and more importantly, hearing from you about what would help
residents feel more confident to take up these opportunities.
The session will be led by Polly the Neighbourhood Facilitator from @wickaward and will be a space to:
Learn about health screening
Share your experiences and ideas
Help shape more accessible services for your community
Everyone who lives or works in the neighbourhood is welcome, your voice matters
For more details and how to register check the events link in our bio.
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There are Neighbourhood Forums in eight areas across City and Hackney, delivered in partnership with @volunteerhackney . To find which Neighbourhood
you’re in and how to sign up to hear about what’s happening in your local area, visit cityandhackneyneighbourhoods.org.uk
#neighbourhoodforums #healthandwellbeing
#hackneyresident #healthequity #hackneycommunity
Meet our interim Development Coordinator!
Hackney CVS is delighted to welcome Deborah Robinson as she steps into the role of interim Development Coordinator.
Deborah has a wealth of experience supporting voluntary and community organisations.
Bejal Shah, CEO of Hackney CVS, said: “It’s brilliant to continue our organisational development offer with Deborah, who brings a huge amount of experience and expertise in supporting organisations of all types.”
Deborah has over 25 years of experience in the education, public, private and voluntary sectors, having managed multi-purpose projects.
Her experience includes tendering for contracts, bid writing, project management, delivering training, fundraising, capacity building and governance.
Deborah says: “I am looking forward to working with Hackney's voluntary and community groups!"
Visit our calendar to book an online appointment with Deborah.
- Click on News on our website to find out more.
Our latest newsletter is out now!
See our bio for link to our website to see latest issue.
In this week's newsletter, we highlight a blog by Jack Griffin, who joined the Hackney CVS board of trustees in 2018.
Below, Jack (pictured right) shares his thoughts on what it’s like to be a trustee.
Hackney CVS has been my first trustee role. Having a background in professional services, finance and leadership roles meant I already had a lot of exposure to non-executive boards but I had never sat on ‘the other side of the table’.
As Arun outlined in his blog the other week, the role is not as daunting as it sounds and is extremely rewarding. That does also mean you’ll need to roll up your sleeves when needed, which is all part of the responsibility that goes with it.
Hackney CVS was a logical choice for me to become a trustee at, I live locally and have family connections in the area going back many years. In addition, their work is broad but very much rooted in the local community which helps bring the role to life.
As I’d say to anyone keen on a trustee role, make sure you care about what the charity does and the community/people it serves. Practically, it also helps to have something local to you so you can attend any meetings or events easily. Hackney CVS regularly holds various types of community events, which are some of the most memorable experiences.
To reflect on my time with Hackney CVS since 2018, a lot has changed but also a lot hasn’t. We’ve had different chief executives, board members, funding challenges, dealing with crises such as Covid, but Hackney CVS’s core mission remains as important as ever for the community it serves.
The trustee board requires a range of skills and breadth of experience which no-one person holds. It is a real team effort. So, no matter what your background is, I’d really encourage you to apply.
Jack Griffin, trustee of Hackney CVS.
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Hackney CVS is recruiting trustees
Find out more about how you can join the Hackney CVS board of trustees.
Deadline for applications: 12 April.
Read more on our website - link in bio.
Our latest newsletter is out now!
See our bio for link to our website to see latest issue.
In this week's newsletter we highlight
#DiscoverYoungHackney funding.
The Discover Young Hackney grant programme is back for 2026!
Grant applications are now open for Hackney’s flagship youth arts and culture programme, Discover Young Hackney.
Hackney Council is inviting local organisations to apply for funding to deliver free or low-cost creative activities for young people aged 15-26 during the summer holidays.
Discover Young Hackney supports projects that help young people develop skills, confidence and experience, while exploring pathways into the creative industries.
View the projects funded last year on the Love Hackney website.
Deadline: 21 April.
More details on @love.hackney
In our newsletter this week, we feature the Hackney Food Network.
The Hackney Food Network is a partnership of over 40 Hackney voluntary and community organisations. The network provides food parcels, cooked food, food hubs, community supermarkets and co-ops for Hackney residents in need.
Network members work together to support each other with food supply, space, volunteers and deliveries. Many of the organisations in the network are led by residents with lived experience of food poverty.
The network meets once a month to share learning, advice and resources and to plan future development of the network.
Last month, over 40 participants attended an in-person Hackney Food Network meeting, pictured above. The meeting, held at the Halkevi Centre, was an opportunity to share updates, make connections and to take part in a borough‑wide mapping exercise.
Join the Hackney Food Network
If you’re a community group in Hackney and would like to join the network, please email Rachel King, Hackney Food Network Coordinator at Hackney CVS.
Arun joined Hackney CVS's board of trustees last year. Below, he shares his thoughts on the benefits of being a trustee.
I've held trustee roles before, so when I applied to be a trustee at Hackney CVS, I knew roughly what I was getting into. What I didn't expect was how much I would get out of it.
There's something different about being connected to the place you're actually in. Hackney CVS sits at the centre of the local voluntary and community sector - supporting the organisations that quietly do some of the most important work in the borough. Getting to play even a small part in that has been genuinely worthwhile.
The role itself isn't as daunting as it might sound. As a trustee, you're not managing the day-to-day, you're there to help the organisation make good decisions, keep things on track, and make sure leadership has the support it needs. In practice, that means four board meetings a year plus some lighter touch involvement in between. It fits around a busy life.
What we're looking for isn't a perfect CV. It's people who care - whether that's through professional skills or because Hackney is your community and you want to do something useful in it.
I'd genuinely encourage you to apply. It's one of those things that gives back more than you put in.
Arun Aggarwal, trustee at Hackney CVS.
Find out more about how you can join the Hackney CVS board of trustees. Read more on our website about how to apply.
Deadline for applications: 12 April.
Our Neighbourhood facilitator Polly from @wickaward co-hosted Hackney Council’s Children’s Integrated Commissioning Service inspiring walking tour of Hackney Wick, meeting the incredible community organisations supporting young people locally 😊
The idea came from the team’s programme manager, who wanted her colleagues to connect with the organisations working with young people on the ground. The walk was also inspired by our own ‘net walks’, which bring partners together to connect & get to know local areas ☺️
The group explored the neighbourhood, visiting some fantastic organisations including @theoutrunners , @thebaduway , @thewickerscharity , Wick Award and the Good Growth Hub, to hear about the challenges and opportunities for young people in the area 👌
The walk finished at Eastway Hub where short films were shown showcasing the inspiring work of @rise.365 and @hackney_quest with time for discussion 👌
One participant shared:
« The team absolutely loved it and felt really inspired by the work you do… the conversations were so rich and engaging – it was so important that we get out into the community. »
Huge thanks to the organisations who offered such a warm welcome and shared their work! 💓
#neighbourhoodforums #healthandwellbeing #HackneyResident #healthequity
