Hangleton and Knoll Project wins Prime Minister's Big Society Award
Hangleton and Knoll Project, a Brighton and Hove charity working to support local people, is the latest winner of the Big Society Awards.
A Brighton and Hove charity, which has been working to support local people for almost 30 years, is the latest winner of the Prime Minister’s Big Society Awards.
The Hangleton and Knoll Project is run by residents who come together to help their neighbours take action on whatever matters to them. That can be getting new skills, improving their health, making friends, improving local Parks or working with local young people.
The charity supports over 300 volunteers who play a key role in over 30 local groups including:
- Friends of Hangleton Park
- The Multi Cultural Women’s Group
- Hangleton and Knoll Community Action
- Get Together Club
- Youth Forum
Every year, more than a thousand individual residents aged from 8 to 108 years old directly benefit from the work of the organisation.
Congratulating the Hangleton and Knoll Project on the award, the Prime Minister said:
This is a project that is working with the community, for the community and that is exactly what the Big Society is all about. The work of the Hangleton and Knoll Project is empowering local people to take action and make a real difference to their lives.
Whether it’s boosting IT skills, giving young people a voice or looking after vulnerable groups, the Hangleton and Knoll Project continues to play an important role in the community and I congratulate them on their success.
Accepting the award, Joanna Matindale, CEO of the Hangleton & Knoll Project, said:
This award is a fantastic recognition of the contributions of decades of volunteers and community activists in Hangleton and Knoll. We are very proud of our record in creating a better and more inclusive neighbourhood for all our residents to enjoy.
Karen Bridger a local resident said:
Hakit gave me the skills to use a computer when I didn’t have one and through the project I got online and then qualified. I now volunteer to help others in the weekly drop-in as many people need extra encouragement when they first start.
Roy Budgen a volunteer of Hangleton, whose very busy social group for older people has benefitted from the work of the charity said:
Our Community worker has helped us to plan our weekly entertainment and apply for funding to cover the rent of the centre and refreshments. I don’t think we would have carried on without her help and encouragement.
One of the biggest successes is the charity’s learning delivery arm - HaKIT - which provides IT training for those who are not online or with no access to the internet. Approximately 300 people a year are benefitting from the programme from younger people looking to develop their skills for the job market to older members of the community learning how to confidently use computers.
The strength of the organisation is in being led by the community both in the management but also the development of the work. This means that the organisation understands the key concerns of people in the community and how best to help.
Notes to Editors
For more info on the Hangleton and Knoll Project
For press enquiries contact: email Joanna Martindale or call 01273 881446
On the Big Society Awards:
The Big Society Awards were set up by the Prime Minister in November 2010. The aim is to acknowledge individuals and organisations across the UK that demonstrates the Big Society in their work or activities. In so doing, the aim is also to galvanise others to follow.
The award focuses upon three specific areas:
- Promoting social action - people being, and being encouraged to be, be more involved in their communities through giving time, money and other resources.
- Empowering communities - local people taking control of how things are done in their area and being helped to do this by local government and others.
- Opening up public services - public sector organisations and individuals demonstrating innovative ways of delivering public services and charities, social enterprises and private companies showing new ways of delivering public services.
Launching the awards, the Prime Minister said:
There are some amazing projects and remarkable voluntary work going on in towns and cities up and down the country, by all kinds of organisations from large enterprises to tiny grassroots schemes and inspirational individuals.
These awards are a chance to pay tribute to those making a valuable contribution to their community, the real champions of the Big Society, but perhaps more importantly, I hope they will motivate many others to take action, get involved and drive change in their area.
Nominations come in from the general public after which there follows a process of scoring and short-listing by officials and a further short-listing by a Panel of Ministers and independent external experts. This Panel makes recommendations to the Prime Minister who then presents the final award. Around twelve winners are decided each quarter meeting and then announced throughout the year.
For more information visit Big Society Awards
Forty-four winners have been announced to date including:
- Central Surrey Health, South East - a social enterprise providing community nursing and therapy services on behalf of NHS Surrey and other partners
- Disability Challengers, South East - a children’s charity offering exciting activities and play opportunities for disabled children and young people
- The Children’s Forum, South East - offering children the chance to play an active role in developing and improving local services for young people
A full list of winners can be found on the Big Society Awards website