Change at the top -- but Ashfield voluntary charity just keeps on giving

A quote that could easily be adopted as the motto for the Kirkby-based charity Ashfield Voluntary Action (AVA) as it closes one successful chapter and embarks on a new era under fresh leadership.

Giving to improve local people’s lives through volunteering has been AVA’s modus operandi under inspirational chief executive and manager Teresa Jackson, who has retired at the age of 67.

And it is one that her replacement, Deborah Hill, is hoping to maintain, with exciting ideas for the future, to ensure that people within Ashfield who are too often marginalised, or even forgotten about, get the help and support they need.

The young, the elderly, the unemployed, the lonely, the isolated, the depressed, they’ve all been given a boost by AVA.

Groups representing women, the LGBTQ+ community, people living with dementia or living alone, they’ve all been welcomed into the open arms of AVA.

Thanks to its amazing army of volunteers, its network of partnerships with other voluntary groups and its sprawling range of projects and programmes, the charity has restored hundreds of Ashfield folk to the right path.

"We have had people who were a nervous wreck or weren’t engaging with society or were depressed and anxious,” says Teresa.

"But when they’ve come to us, they have re-engaged, learned new skills and, in some cases, have even become volunteers themselves.

"Seeing them blossom into self-confident people in control of their own lives again has been a real highlight of my time with AVA.”

That time began six years ago. Teresa had spent several years as a teacher at schools in the Mansfield and Ashfield area and also co-ran Untapped Resource, a Mansfield-based group supporting the unemployed.

In 2017, she transferred her skills to AVA and impressed so much that she took on the top job only two years later.

“Lots of things needed attention,” Teresa says. “But over the past four years, we have built it up and turned it into the strong organisation it is now.

"It’s all been about encouraging local people to do things for their community. Doing something for somebody else that makes a big difference.”

Teresa’s spell as boss has not been without its challenges. On a personal level, her husband of 38 years, David, died. And then along came the Covid-19 pandemic.

If anything positive emerged from the pandemic, it was AVA. For its services, linked to health and wellbeing, social engagement and digital inclusion, were ready-made to tackle such a crisis.

"The lockdowns were very challenging,” remembers Teresa, a mum to two grown-up sons. “We had to work from home, but we supported the Ashfield community with humanitarian aid.

"We had a good network of partner organisations, and we helped to get food and medication to everyone. It was difficult, but we managed.”

Sadly, the effects of Covid are still being felt in Ashfield today, presenting AVA with new issues to overcome.

"A lot of people are still lonely and isolated,” explained Teresa. “Covid has made it difficult for them to go back out. They are wondering if they will be OK and if they might catch something.

"Some might have lost loved ones. They don’t know how to re-engage because they have been shut away for so long. And it’s not just the elderly. It’s all ages.”

In response, AVA has proved its worth by organising a host of ‘engagement activities’, ranging from gardening to knitting.

AVA’s policy is that if it can’t help you through its own projects, it will connect you with a partner organisation that can. For the last 15 years, and initially known as Ashfield Links Forum, it has been the umbrella organisation for the district’s voluntary sector.

It is happy to share knowledge and resources with those partners, and provide tools, information and expertise for them.

It will also stand up for voluntary groups when it comes to fighting for funds from government, councils and other bodies.

Funding is always a prickly subject within the corridors of AVA’s headquarters, the Health and Wellbeing Centre in Kirkby, especially as it employs ten members of staff, most of them part-time.

But Teresa says she is proud of how the organisation is now financially sustainable, helped by the launch of its own fundraising company, Ashfield Community Enterprise (ACE).

This covers three projects – a snacks kiosk at the centre, crafts and creations sessions and a wood workshop, where pallets are turned into bespoke products. All three have been embraced by a host of volunteers learning new skills.

Incoming boss Deborah, 57 has an in-tray filled with ideas for even more potential projects.

She has already applied for Lottery funding for an Ashfield Repair Cafe, based on the hit TV show, ‘The Repair Shop’, where residents can take items, such as electrical goods, gardening equipment and furniture, to be restored.

Plans are also in the pipeline for an allotment for volunteers to grow their own fruit and veg, and for the first Ashfield Pride event this summer to celebrate LGBTQ+ diversity in the district.

Deborah, a trained therapist, has spent most of her career “working in disadvantaged communities” for councils, the NHS and voluntary groups.

She says she is passionate about helping to regenerate Ashfield, helping it to realise its potential.

"I am excited and really looking forward to the role,” she says. “I have been shadowing Teresa for several months and have built a good relationship with the trustees, who own the organisation, the staff and our partners. I feel we can move forward.”

As for Teresa, she insists she is “retiring but not disappearing” and is to become one of those trustees, while continuing to lead ACE.

“I am confident we will continue to go from strength to strength,” she says. “Deborah is very good. AVA is in safe hands.”