Community Links today launches a new and bold strategy and identity. As the organisation celebrates its 40th year of innovation, today’s launch of ‘Ready for Everything Communities’ takes the charity back to its roots of local delivery with a national impact.
‘Ready for Everything Communities’ takes a place and asset based approach to delivering hard social outcomes. The new strategy places the charity within the community itself, with an aspiration to be a place where groups of people support each other to overcome problems, prevent them from occurring again, and help one another to thrive.
Arvinda Gohil, Chief Executive of Community Links, commented:
“We want our community to be defined by what it dreams of, not what holds it back. A community with ambition, strength and influence. A community that cares for itself, is keen to collaborate and share, and is proud of the diverse groups that make it up. A community that is supported by an effective network of voluntary, private and public sector partners that recognise they are a fundamental part of the picture. Based in Canning Town, we are hoping this ‘Ready for Everything’ approach can be replicated and expanded elsewhere.”
To kick this off, Community Links’ historic home at 105 Barking Road, Newham is being refurbished into a space that can bring everyone in the diverse and fast changing community together. The space and services available will be designed and used together with local residents.
The new strategy has a continued focus on social research and policy. Community Links has long been recognised as a pioneer of Early Action, making the link between effective local practice and national social policy. ‘Ready for Everything Communities’ builds on the policy work of its Early Action Task Force, using evidence based research into local issues with national reflections, such as mental health, housing and welfare.
To celebrate its story so far, Community Links has today published a book ‘Generating Change,’ a review of some of its most influential work. Sponsored by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the book covers milestones such as the launch of the Prime Minister’s Council on Social Action, the influential Tower Blocks campaign, Community Links role in catalysing corporate social responsibility and the launch of the ‘We Are What We Do’ campaign which went on to sell millions of ‘Change the World for a Fiver’ books and launched social design consultancy Shift.
Arvinda Gohil, Chief Executive of Community Links, continued:
“This is an exciting time for Community Links, and we hope for east London. The new strategy puts the community, its needs and its potential, at its heart. It acknowledges that Community Links is an important part of the community, working with and for it.
“Our mission is to support people in coming together, overcoming barriers, building purpose and making the most of the place they live in. From our base in east London we apply the learning from our local work to influence and achieve positive national change.
“We thank our community, our funders and our friends for the past 40 years, and look forward to creating even more impact and generating more change together for the next 40.”
Earlier this year, Community Links became part of the Catch22 group, giving the charity added stability, and enabling it to build on its strong history of pioneering new approaches for the east London community.