This year we successfully delivered against our contract with Sunderland Council’s Family Adult and Community Learning Team, delivering both Beginner and Progression environmental textile courses across the city. We pride ourselves on the positive progressions made by learners which we attribute to working hard to make the sessions challenging and rewarding, while encouraging the learners to develop their own ideas and experiment with different ways of working while being supported in the classroom. We found new venues to work from in Silksworth and Washington Central.We worked with a venue in Washington Central to deliver ‘Warm Spaces’ activities over an extended period in Spring 2023. The purpose of these sessions was to inform, upskill and have fun, while encouraging the use of community resources. These sessions were funded by Sunderland Council as part Government funding to combat the cost of living crisis.We have developed our relationship with Bishopwearmouth Townscape Heritage Project. In summer 2023 we successfully provided a season of workshops to engage residents from the broader geographical areas of Sunderland, with the heritage of the central Bishopwearmouth area. We delivered 5 print sessions which culminated in an exhibition in Sunderland Minster in Autumn. Additionally, we were pleased to be commissioned for a Heritage themed event in December, in the beautiful surroundings of the Minster at Christmas. We expect this relationship to continue into 2024.The Cultural Spring has funded sessions across Sunderland and South Tyneside, enabling us to build skills in the communities with longer courses, and have fun with one off sessions, covering most of our specialist skills area. It has been thoroughly rewarding, and highly commended by Cultural Spring Evaluators. We will be developing a close relationship with one of these venues, funded by Cultural Spring throughout 2024. It is great that this venue wants to “have us back” and continue to promote our skills amongst its community.Following work with Cultural Spring, we have established a separate relationship with a central Jarrow venue and will endeavour to maintain this next year.We continue to deliver sessions at a community venue in Sunderland Sandhill Ward, basic sewing, practical textiles skills, and support their activities with donated time and resources. We have been involved in the construction of a new banner, showcasing the values of the centre to its local stakeholders. These were funded by both The Cultural Spring and the National Lottery. This brought new people into group. Some of the groups will sustain in 2024.We also networked with new potential clients to build links for further projects and sessions to be commissioned from us in the future. As an ecologically focussed community interest company, we continue to use donated resources where possible, to encourage minimisation of waste by looking at resources as finite and to be used sparingly. We encourage participants and other stakeholders to use resources in a considered way to maximise their lifespan. We have also made serviced sewing machines available for learners to use on a loan basis, where they don’t have their own resources.We are very proud that we created volunteering opportunities across our activities, and we promote the opportunities to learners when they are interested in progressing to such a role themselves. This is in addition to confidence building and skills development for participants.

Our stakeholders include Directors, staff and volunteers, also Sunderland and South Tyneside adult residents keen to develop new craft skills, improve mental health and join activities in community venues. We also consider other freelancers working in the local arts sector and the venues we have used to be stakeholders.Sunderland City Council Family Adult and Community Learning Team (FACL), direct their provision to a particular demographic of eligible, economically inactive residents of Sunderland. We conduct research with our groups throughout the courses to identify how they would like to progress, and we can endeavour to springboard them to our progression course, or signpost elsewhere to other providers, if appropriate. The FACL team also conduct their own research, and feedback to us so we can respond to anything raised by learners and stakeholders.We consult with other providers on the family learning contract, with reference to future opportunities and onward referrals, have close communication with a provider on the Mulitply contract too.Also important to us is The Cultural Spring, and venues they work with across Sunderland and South Tyneside. We have worked alongside the Cultural Spring staff to jointly consult with both organisers at venues and participants to identify how they would like sessions to be delivered, when, where and the topics and skills to be covered. These venues have been in wards including Sandhill, St Peters, Hetton Town Council and parish, and Sunderland Hendon, additionally Central Jarrow. Each of these wards exhibit their own location specific characteristics and we adapt our delivery accordingly. The more knowledge we have of the groups, the easier it is to deliver fantastic sessions which suit their needs.We have also attended group events such as those set up by the Business and Innovation Centre, Sunderland Culture, the Coalfield VCS Network meetings, South Tyneside Cultural Partnership and VCAS events. Additionally, one the Directors is an Ageing Well Ambassador with Sunderland City Council. The strength in networking, and feedback on the learning and funding landscape of the area, inform our activities going forward.

Directors' salaries £25,395

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration