Ashfield Voluntary Action provides new winter warming hub in Kirkby

We are here to serve the people of Ashfield and improve life for all the community. We understand the full implications of the cost-of-living crisis and we want to help the community.

Everyone is welcome at the free winter warm hub.

We will be providing free tea and coffee and soup and a range of activities for people learn new skills, make new friends and help with the cost-of-living crisis. Computer access will be provided also, advice on a wide range of initiative including volunteering, what groups we offer, training, disability payments and PIP applications and much more.

Please pop along on Wednesdays, from 10am-2pm.

What else does AVA do?

Recent funding has enabled us to begin planning a partnership project with the Boxing Club and police and crime reduction unit.

LBGTQ groups

We run the Ashfield LGBTQ group based both in our centre in Kirkby and in another community location. This group has gone from strength to strength growing in numbers and we are now planning a Pride event. This will be Ashfields first Pride event and an exciting step forward in the equality and diversity of the area. AVA has also recently appointed its first Equality and Diversity Officer.

GroupsWe have a range of groups based in our Kirkby Centre which is in the health centre on Portland Street.

This includes our men's group which is growing and we welcome more men to the group. Offering support in a group setting.

Other groups and services include a some very popular craft groups, photography, digital support around computer use, gardening and more. We also offer help with benefit advice and filling in PIP applications. Our premises are disability accessible and we welcome all. We are committed to equality and diversity and we have a newly appointed diversity officer. We are currently developing services around a wide range of issues which we have identified within the community.

We have been taking part in research with Nottingham Trent University which has highlighted many issues including mental health and the cost-of-living crisis as two areas which need to be developed and we are looking at this to provide community based projects to tackle mental health and the cost-of-living crisis.

AVA also has developed a trading arm called ACE, Ashfield Community Enterprise, which provides snack-bar type meals and refreshments in the foyer of the Portland Health Centre. In addition, we have a unit providing woodwork training at Stanton Hill and a crafts stall which has attended numerous events.

AVA has 12 staff and six trustees. The success of AVA is the close working relationship between the staff and the trustees. Bringing change and growth is never easy, but in this case it has worked to develop an excellent organisation working tirelessly in an area of high deprivation.

Volunteering is at the heart of everything we do.

We have a large bank of volunteers and without them we just could not operate. We build the confidences of volunteers and empower them every day to work closely with us. We support them along the way on this journey to success. Very often they are eventually employed by the organisation.