Aspire Spring Newsletter 2022: Going Forward Together

Welcome to Aspire’s spring newsletter! 

Firstly, we’d like to say: THANK YOU! With your help, last year saw us raise £750,000 through No Going Back. This enabled us to support over 400 individuals and families concerned about their housing situation. We were able to prevent a return to pre-pandemic levels of homelessness and disadvantage, and contributed to the design of a new partnership approach to tackling homelessness in Oxfordshire.

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Going Forward Together

The effects of today’s financial climate are hitting many people hard, but for those facing disadvantage in our communities, these effects are disproportionate and unforgiving.

We're bracing ourselves to step up once again to be there for those with nowhere else to turn as the cost of living surges, with record rises in the cost of fuel and rent. This has been compounded by the removal of the pandemic eviction ban, and the loss of the weekly boost to Universal Credit.

So, what is Aspire going to do?

Funding for the above activities through grants and commissioning is essential, and we are working to secure £810,000 to make them possible. As part of our overall £1,060,000 goal, we need your help to raise the remaining £250,000.

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How YOU could support us to Go Forward Together

Let's Go Forward Together

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Hire2Inspire widens its reach

We’ve been commissioned by Oxfordshire County Council to expand our inclusive recruitment service, Hire2Inspire, providing further recruitment support to the county’s Adult Social Care Providers. As part of this expansion, we will be developing and delivering a bespoke Refugee and Migrant pathway, a Young People pathway and a pathway for the Over Fifties/early retirees’ cohort.

We’re also being commissioned by the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire (BOB) Integrated Care System (ICS) team to support their recruitment efforts in Bucks and Berks. Watch this space!

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Continuing to connect the disconnected

We’re now hosting the Getting Oxfordshire Online project, which exists to ensure that people in our local communities have the equipment, skills and confidence they need to stay digitally connected.

Over 130 donated devices have now been redistributed to school children, older people and others facing digital exclusion since the project began in late 2021. We’re thrilled that the project has recently received financial backing from Nominet, which will support the project to scale up its device pipeline across Oxfordshire, with the aim of providing upwards of 2,880 devices per year to support digitally excluded individuals of all ages.

If your organisation supports people at risk - or you have digital equipment you no longer need - please get in touch to request or donate devices!

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We’ve been encouraging and supporting local people facing barriers to launching their own start-up businesses through our Enterprise Hub in Templars Square, Cowley, since it opened late last year in partnership with The Midcounties Co-operative.

We’re now inviting schools and businesses to have a go! The Fourfold Challenge is to turn £50 into £200+ for Aspire within three months - a fantastic opportunity for team-building, networking and business development!

If you’d like to find out how your business or school could get involved in The Fourfold Challenge this year, visit our challenge website.