Penkside Project

Penkside is one of three areas chosen from the whole of Staffordshire to benefit from funding that has been made available from Learning To Deliver to help improve the area and address any inequalities. There is a dedicated group of Penkside Community Champions as well as four Task and Finish Groups including Employment Opportunities, Health and Wellbeing, Environmental Issues, and Crime and Perception.

SARH are a key partner in the Penkside Project, which covers the areas of Silkmore and Rickerscote in Stafford. Chris Plant, Stafford and Rural Homes’ Community Involvement Manager, leads on the Employment Opportunities Task and Finish Group which has organised a number of job clubs and free courses to be set up in the area. The courses, including Effective Job Hunting, Accredited First Aid, Level 2 Award in Food Safety, and Getting to Grips with English, have been well received and attended. One customer told us the Food Safety Course will help her in the future to do cook and eat sessions at the local youth club, and another said it was essential for the catering job they wanted.

The Community Involvement Team design and co-ordinate the monthly Penkside Newsletter and work with local partners and Penkside Community Champions to produce and deliver it. It keeps the community updated on what’s going on locally and advises about essential services that are available to them.

Each edition of the newsletter consists of forthcoming events, current happenings and recent success stories from the Penkside Champions, SARH, and the task and finish groups. Information is given on how the community can find out more or get involved.

The newsletter has encouraged residents in the area to get involved in a number of ways, for example, by attending courses on our Community Learning Programme and joining a community choir.

Partners of the Penkside Project include Stafford and Rural Homes, Stafford Borough Council, Staffordshire County Council, Stafford District Voluntary Services, and JobCentre Plus

For more information about the Penkside Project or how to get involved contact the Community Involvement Team 0800 111 4554.