Tribute to our trustee, Barry Hughes

29/07/2022

So long, Barry

Everyone at the Resource Centre was shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Barry Hughes.

Barry was a long-standing member of our management committee, and a solid supporter of the Resource Centre’s work. He was a dedicated and energetic community activist, passionate about the provision of high quality, affordable social housing.

The Resource Centre knew Barry best for his work with his residents’ association at Sylvan Hall and  in city-wide resident involvement structures. He was the Chair of Central Residents for many years, working to get residents voices at the heart of council housing policies. He had an extensive network of contacts and was tenacious in pursuing his causes. He played a leading role in campaigns around homelessness and gave crucial help to individuals struggling to navigate bureaucratic systems. He put in the work and he got results.

Barry was always there to support the Resource Centre, and we’ll miss him –  his wry sense of humour, his gentle teasing, his ability to get things done.

July 2022

Access ramps now available for hire

20/01/2020

Thanks to a donation from the SCOPE Local People Programme, we now have two lightweight, folding, portable ramps available to hire.

These are great for events where there is a single step at the entrance or somewhere within the venue. Having a ramp instead of a step can be helpful for people with buggies, people who use walking frames and people with sight impairments, as well as wheelchair users.

Both our ramps can be transported easily in the boot of a car. One is 2ft long, and the other is 4ft long.

We will be working with SCOPE now to produce some guidance on how to make your activities and events more accessible in all sorts of ways. Watch this space…

 

New PA available for hire thanks to Pebble Trust

15/11/2019

Thanks to a generous donation from Pebble Trust, we are now able to offer groups a lovely new PA, complete with inbuilt LED lights – perfect for adding a bit of a disco vibe to your community event!

For added punch, book our second, matching PA (which comes as part of our Karaoke machine set).

Click here for more information & to book.

 

 

Inkjet printer out of service

17/05/2019

Sadly, as of May 2019, our inkjet printer is officially dead.

We are looking to replace this machine, as we still hear a need for the cheaper colour printing it offers, but it may take us a little while to find one. Please bear with us while we do!

We can still do full colour printing on our laser printer, splash colour on our copyprinters, and black and white printing at a range of prices.

If you have any queries, don’t hesitate to give us a call or come in and chat to us.

New smoothie bike for hire

19/02/2019

Pedal your way to tasty, healthy snacks with our new smoothie bike! Now available to hire, our “fender blender” is suitable for children aged 6 – 14. It will be great for fetes and fairs and allows children to create a delicious fruit smoothie using the power of their own pedalling.

Brighton & Hove Way

01/12/2017

Back in April 2017 a team of six staff, trustees and friends of the Resource Centre walked 18 miles in the countryside around Brighton & Hove, to raise money for the Resource Centre and to help launch the Brighton &  Hove Way. We raised nearly £4000 for the Centre, and enjoyed a fantastic long walk. We were able to take part because the Resource Centre was on of the Mayor’s charities last year, and the former Mayor Pete West supported the walk to help charities to raise money.

The Brighton & Hove Way is now being developed by the Brighton & Hove Way Association, chaired by Pete West.We’re thrilled to learn that the Brighton & Hove Way is developing further, and we look forward to enjoying it in future!

For more information see https://www.facebook.com/BrightonandHoveWay/

 

Our work with BME groups wins funding support

28/11/2017

We are very happy that Sussex Community Foundation has awarded us £5,000 towards the cost of our flexible, one-to-one support services for small community groups run by migrants and refugees.

The money will enable us to support migrant-led groups with fundraising and financial management, responding flexibly to problems as they arise, and supporting group members to develop new skills in the process. By helping groups to raise and manage the money they need, we make it easier for them to run the vital activities and services they provide – which in turn reduce loneliness and improve wellbeing among BME communities.

Tribute to our trustee, Ann Ewings

24/11/2017

We are all very saddened by the death of Ann Ewings, who was on the Resource Centre Management Committee and had been using the Centre for over 20 years.

Ann, from Mount Pleasant Residents' Association, smiling at the camera.

Ann at the Resource Centre AGM 2015

We will miss Ann’s regular visits to the Centre and her valuable input as a trustee. She worked incredibly hard for her community, and was extremely supportive of the Resource Centre.

Our thoughts are with Ann’s family and friends at this sad time. We will all miss her. As Kate Page, one of our longest standing team members, said, “It was a real shock to use all when she died because she was one of those people who you thought was going to go on forever. It has left a hole and she will be missed.”

For more information about Ann’s life and community activism, see Brighton & Hove News: http://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2017/11/23/tributes-to-brighton-tenant-advocate-and-conservative-campaigner-who-took-no-prisoners/

Members of our Management Committee, elected at our AGM October 2017. Left to right, Muriel Briault (North Portslade Resident’ Association), Ann Packham (Ingram Crescent Residents’ Association), Sohna Sossehn (Brighton and Hove First Ladies), Roy Crowhurst (Woods House Tenants’ Association), Jason Williams (Hereford Court Community Association), Ann Ewings (Mount Pleasant Residents’ Association), Rob Berry (Coldean Residents’ Association), Barry Hughes (Sylvan Hall Residents’ Association)

 

PA system available to give away

05/10/2017

THIS HAS NOW BEEN OFFERED TO BRIGHTON SOUP, WHO RUN FUNDRAISING EVENTS FOR LOCAL PROJECTS

We are giving away one of our old PA systems for free.

It is an 80W single unit system. The reason we are giving it away is that the volume control is broken, so it can no longer be hired out. However, it still works fine if you use it with an external device, such as a phone, laptop or MP3 player, because you can control the volume on the external device.

It would suit a group that needs a PA for use at community parties to simply play music through.

It will need to be collected from the Resource Centre. If you are interested please get in touch. Priority will be given to volunteer-run community groups.

Responsibilities of the Management Committee – updated information page

01/09/2017

We’ve revised and updated our information page on Responsibilities of the Management Committee.

Every community organisation has a group of people which manages its affairs – a governing body. This is often called a management committee, although your group may use a different name, such as executive committee, board of trustees or steering group. A very small group may not have a separate committee and, in this case, its entire membership is the governing body.

Our information page is a guide to the key responsibilities of an organisation’s management committee. It goes through these one by one, setting out the key responsibilities, further points to consider and links to more detailed information.

A useful reference for new organisations and old hands alike – like all our information pages, it is free to view and download on our website, or you can pick up a paper copy next time you visit the Centre.