covid-19 blog

week 7- unlocking potential.

We're sticking with our Employability team this week and talking about the service delivered by Connor who is the project key worker for Unlocking Potential. An EET support project for young people aged 17-21 that have been out of education, employment, or training for six months or more. The project focuses on addressing the personal barriers that have caused the service users to become unable to make personal progress, developing their confidence and their skills, and giving them the information and support to take advantage of the opportunities available to them.  Here is what Connor had to say about how the project operates under 'normal' circumstances and how things are different at the moment;
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“The aim with Unlocking Potential is to take a holistic view of a client and their experiences in order to make the support unique to their barriers and needs. It is rare that someone would find themselves stuck for so long without facing some complex issues, so we are fortunate with Unlocking Potential that we are able to support clients long term to get back on their feet. At the core we aim to provide understanding and encouraging mentoring that helps the client to share their experiences and develop their confidence. By doing this while providing practical help around becoming more informed about their options, and developing the skills to apply for and access jobs and further education, we are able to support them to turn their ambitions into reality.”
“Despite the circumstances we are continuing to offer support to our service users remotely. We can maintain engagement with clients via telephone and online services which has ensured that we are engaging routinely. Whether it’s a phone call, text message, video chat, WhatsApp, or email we are continuing to support and encourage our clients through this difficult time. It has been valuable to keep service users engaged and motivated, and fortunately there are also a plethora of resources that have been developed online which has enabled us to provide service users with various self help tools and online learning to keep them building up their skills and confidence between appointments even during isolation.”

​Each Thursday on our social media we Thank someone else for the amazing work they do. This week we'd like to acknowledge the work of everyone involved in Banbury Community Fridge over the past few weeks, they really have gone above and beyond to support residents in the local community by delivering food parcels. The Community Fridge is now open again at certain times, check their facebook page for times and contact info.

Did you know this week is Mental Health Awareness week? The theme this year is Kindness. Check out the Mental Health Foundation website for more information, ideas and resources;
Have you done anything this week as an act of kindness for someone? How about being kind to yourself.

​​With the end of Ramadan getting nearer, many people in the local community will be celebrating Eid over the coming days. The end of fasting all depends on the new moon sighting. It will be a very different celebration this year as mosques won't be open for prayer and families will be celebrating in their own homes rather than with the wider community. To all those celebrating.... Eid Mubarak.

We hope you all have a lovely Bank Holiday, our phone lines won't be manned over the long weekend, but feel free to leave messages or email enquiries@byhp.org.uk and we will get back to you as soon as possible on Tuesday.
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THANK YOU EVERYONE, STAY SAFE :)