The Company Continues to provide creative art and textile activities in Sunderland and South Tyneside, with a focus developing positive relationships to general reading experiences, improving health and wellbeing reducing social isolation, confidence and employability or life skills, This is Contiguous with supporting creative achievement and challenging long help beliefs to turn negative past experiences into positive, Positive practices and achievements in regular supported group with creative activities can often impact more widely across a participants future life. We Support our communities by providing resources for use during and after projects. We keep in touch with participants in person, by telephone or using moderated social media groups. There groups facilitate sharing and mutual support, and we also support activities of other community businesses with who we interact while delivering our courses. We also promulgate volunteering as we know firsthand the benefits it delivers. During this financial year we have successfully broadened our activities and project reach.We completed delivery of the funded LA6 Project with Gateshead council (Grant income) which commenced in 2020-21 with some additional sessions during the summer to cement skills developed by learners during the main project phases.We have extended our contact with Sunderland family adult and community learning (other Revenue Stream) to include beginners and progression textile courses. We have been successful in recruiting and retaining those who might not previously have engaged with education, and we expect to continue our delivery through to completion of the contact. As part of this we were awarded Matrix Accreditation for Iag in May with high praise for the work we do with those most in need of support and encouragement.Funded with a grant from UKCRF we were able to develop our business increasing sustainability, we were able to invest in training and business support and mentoring and broaden our skills with specialise textile activity training. We were also able to increase out administration staff capacity.Bishop Wearmouth Townscape Heritage project commissioned us to create a large banner for a display in Sunderland minster, with a group of volunteers during the spring/Summer. The completed banner was dedicated and opened to public view in august form the Mayor of Sunderland. Following this we also contributed to and donated to the Christmas tree event in the Mister church at the end of the year.Cultural Spring continues to commission us to deliver arts activities in both Sunderland and South Tyneside, Contributing to our workshop sales. A local CIO St Anne’s Ward are keen to have us on site with cultural Spring and liaising with is to provide sessions Upskilling their Audience and Volunteers with other funding streams.Additional we have improved our connections in the local voluntary network, Particularly the Coalfields are and Apextra CIC Washington, where we have also donated refurbished sewing machines to the community. Our Review from Participants speak for themselves and clearly demonstrate a major impact in their mental health and wellbeing engaged in our projects, learnt new skills, meet new friends, Gained confidence and improved self-esteem.

The Company’s stakeholders are northeast residents, this year Sunderland and south Tyneside, who wish to explore their creativity and improve skills and mental health in a positive group environment. It also includes The Cultural Spring, Venues, local Suppliers, Volunteers, Project participants and the community that has engaged with us via social media and digital channels.We Constantly gather feedback from our participants and as the directors also tutor sessions, we can consult directly with participants and venue staff and respond to their project idea, request, and community needs, we consult, observe, and gather information by direct communication with learners and know when we identify needs for additional support, we can direct them appropriately. For example, we deliver sewing machine familiarisation sessions outside of class time, to learners in south Tyneside who needed additional support and confidence before joining a dewing group. This proved very successfully for those involved.We enjoy helping people and look at their longer-term needs, encouraging then to identify underlying motivations to progress. We can remain in contact, as we know each learner will progress in their own time, at their own pace. We like to give as much reasonable support and donate and repurpose recourses where this will benefit the community. We may differentiate outreaching content to develop different skills in different venues, use donated resources, and Encourage repurposing to make projects cost effective.We conduct verbal research among our project participants to Identify future types of projects they would be keen for us to provide. The feedback has led us to increase our focus on encouraging sustainable practices with upcycling, recycling, repurposing, saving waste textiles from landfill, seeking out slow fashion and promulgating longevity of use of resources.

Directors' salaries £31,605

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration