PRESS RELEASE Issued: 7 March 2014 All aboard the Caerphilly social enterprise bus! A trio of Caerphilly’s most successful social enterprises will be throwing open their doors next month to host a whistle stop tour by other local businesses, support agencies and politicians. The Furniture Revival in Rhymney, The Centre, Senghenydd and town centre-based Samye Foundation Wales will be welcoming members of the EU-backed SEWCED programme to the Enterprising People in Caerphilly Forum event on March 20. The Furniture Revival, which was established in Pontlottyn in 1999, collects and sells used furniture and electrical goods to help people on tight budgets furnish their homes at affordable prices. Operating out of a 15,000sq ft building and with a staff of 10, the business has seen a dramatic increase in sales and profile since a £90,000 award from SEWCED for capital and revenue funding to help the organisation purchase vehicles and employ a new Business Development and Marketing Manager. The Centre, Senghenydd was originally Senghenydd Workmens Hall, which opened in 1900. As well as being a community centre, today the building houses the Aber Valley Heritage Centre and Museum, which commemorates two mining disasters in the community in 1901 and 1913. The centre has been refurbished and is reopening on March 22 with a new wedding hall and two large party/conference rooms available for hire, office facilities and a new Heritage Café. SEWCED funding of £47,000 helped in the refurbishment works and created two new job roles. The Mindfulness Wales project was set up by Caerphilly social enterprise Samye Foundation Wales to offer mindfulness workshops, which have been clinically proven to reduce levels of employee stress and absenteeism. A registered charity, the Samye Foundation works in partnership with community organisations including DrugAid and Action Bronson for Children’s Family Intervention Team to support people with addictions and young families. It has also delivered mindfulness workshops to corporate clients such as Caerphilly County Borough Council, Taff Housing and Tai Esgyn Bron Afon Community Housing. The initiative was awarded SEWCED funding of £85,578 for equipment and to support the salaries of three part-time members of staff to deliver courses and workshops to organisations across the county borough. The tour of the facilities will take place aboard a ‘Social Enterprise Bus’ laid on by the Enterprising People in Caerphilly Forum - a networking forum for local social enterprises to share best practice and promote the good work of the sector. Setting out from The Rock Bedwas Christian Resource Centre Café at 9.30am, the bus will travel to The Furniture Revival, before moving on to The Centre, Senghenydd and Samye Foundation and ending up back at The Rock for lunch and networking. “Social enterprises are businesses that trade to tackle social problems, improve communities, people’s life chances and the environment,” said Caerphilly County Borough Council Social Economy Development Officer Sharon Peters. “They make their money from selling goods and services in the open market, but they reinvest their profits back into the business or the local community. “The social enterprise sector is now an established and recognised entity with an increasing confidence and presence. This tour will give people a chance to see evidence of that through these three flourishing local businesses. “It will also allow enterprises to meet and chat with partner agencies able to offer support, advice and guidance, such as SEWCED, Wales Co-operative Centre, Business Wales, Wales Council for Voluntary Action, Coalfields Regeneration Trust and employment, insurance and marketing specialists.”
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 12:12:09 +0000
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