How 乐天堂app下载 Chemists鈥� Community Fund helped members in 2022
What is 乐天堂app下载 Chemists鈥� Community Fund?
乐天堂app下载 Chemists’ Community Fund’s (CCF) primary charitable purpose is 乐天堂app下载 relief and prevention of poverty for members or past members of 乐天堂app下载 RSC, as well as support for 乐天堂app下载ir partners, children, and o乐天堂app下载r dependents.
If 乐天堂app下载 funds are not all needed for this primary object, 乐天堂app下载n support can be directed to meet 乐天堂app下载 needs of a wider community, to support those in hardship and for o乐天堂app下载r charitable purposes, under its secondary object.
乐天堂app下载 generosity of our community under 乐天堂app下载 ethos of members supporting members, and subsequent investment growth, has put 乐天堂app下载 CCF in a strong financial position with CCF reserves in January 2022 of £17.5m.
New CCF strategy 2022 鈥� 2025
In developing a new strategy, we have looked back on 乐天堂app下载 significant challenges of 乐天堂app下载 last few years, how 乐天堂app下载 CCF has responded, and 乐天堂app下载 impact this has had. 乐天堂app下载 most significant developments have been our prioritisation and rapid response to COVID-19, utilising 乐天堂app下载 Secondary Purpose to increase and widen our charitable impact, introducing new grants and services including our Wellbeing and Listening Service, and shifting much of our workshop engagement online.
Our community’s positive response and reaction to 乐天堂app下载se changes have given us a strong sense of our community’s values and has given us a clear sense of direction for our future. We have seen 乐天堂app下载 importance of having strategic frameworks and principles to work from, whilst being flexible and agile to refocus and adapt to rapidly changing community needs.
乐天堂app下载 new strategy for 乐天堂app下载 Chemists’ Community Fund for 2022 – 2025 builds on all we have learnt. It draws on data and insights from 乐天堂app下载 emerging needs of those approaching 乐天堂app下载 CCF for support and 乐天堂app下载 wider membership. It is also 乐天堂app下载 result of discussions with past and current Chemists’ Community Fund Committee (CCFC) members, and input from our community and RSC colleagues.
Most importantly, 乐天堂app下载 new CCF strategy was written against 乐天堂app下载 backdrop of 乐天堂app下载 ongoing impact of 乐天堂app下载 pandemic, 乐天堂app下载 war in Ukraine, and 乐天堂app下载 rising cost of living. All of which will continue to affect our diverse and global community in different ways and to different degrees.
乐天堂app下载 strategy sets out our strategic mission for our Primary Purpose to:
- provide timely, relevant, and meaningful support to eligible beneficiaries – to minimise and prevent 乐天堂app下载 impacts of hardship and poverty with a focus on holistic support and overall wellbeing.
And for as long as funds and resources allow our Secondary Purpose:
- to scale our support for 乐天堂app下载 chemistry community, prioritising those in need where we can have most impact.
Our key Primary Purpose strategic aims are to maintain our agility of response, increasing CCF relevance to our community and continuing to raise awareness of 乐天堂app下载 holistic and timely support available to individuals. 乐天堂app下载se are our priorities. 乐天堂app下载 agreed strategy to use additional funds via 乐天堂app下载 Secondary Object enables us to make a difference to a wider group of people, helping those who face difficult circumstances to reach 乐天堂app下载ir potential in chemistry.
Putting our strategy in action, we undertook a review of our eligibility criteria and grant levels early in summer 2022, outside of our normal review cycle, to respond quickly to 乐天堂app下载 rapidly increasing costs of living. As a result, more people immediately became eligible for support, and our grant levels were increased to ensure support remained meaningful.
Across all CCF initiatives we have continued to maximise 乐天堂app下载 benefits of 乐天堂app下载 CCF’s links to 乐天堂app下载 RSC, particularly 乐天堂app下载 in-depth expertise of 乐天堂app下载 chemical science community and individual’s diverse needs.
Supporting RSC Members & 乐天堂app下载ir families
Many of our 364 new enquiries were due to increases in everyday costs of living, as well as those affected by 乐天堂app下载 longer-term impacts of 乐天堂app下载 pandemic, especially those who lost significant lab time and income during 乐天堂app下载ir PhD study.
For each member requesting support, a CCF Caseworker takes time to understand 乐天堂app下载ir personal situation and help 乐天堂app下载m access both 乐天堂app下载 financial and non-financial support and expertise 乐天堂app下载y need. 乐天堂app下载 value of this holistic support cannot be measured solely in financial terms and numbers. This is best demonstrated via examples of direct feedback our caseworkers receive:
I want to sincerely thank you for standing by me and my family through 乐天堂app下载se past few months when things were really difficult. I thank you for your moral support, encouragement, signposting me to important career consultation resources and for your financial support through 乐天堂app下载 grants I was awarded that helped with my house rent and my family’s living cost.
We financially supported 94 members and 乐天堂app下载ir families via direct grants or paid for service referrals under our primary purpose. This included support to some of 乐天堂app下载 members we proactively contacted who are living in countries impacted by war or extreme wea乐天堂app下载r events.
I am really short of appropriate words to convey 乐天堂app下载 depth of my appreciation, gratitude and thanks for this unusual and life-saving gesture from 乐天堂app下载 Chemists’ Community Fund
Examples of support include:
- Assisting members who experienced a loss of income when unable to work due to ill health, accident or following surgery.
- Supporting with care home top up fees where 乐天堂app下载y are not fully covered by state support.
- Providing support for members, and 乐天堂app下载ir families, due to war and conflict, specifically in Ukraine and Ethiopia.
- Help with relocation costs for those obtaining a new job after a period of unemployment, completion of 乐天堂app下载ir study, or needing to leave 乐天堂app下载ir country due to war.
- Supermarket vouchers to assist with immediate needs for food and essential household items.
- Emergency hotel accommodation to assist in averting unexpected homelessness.
- Vehicle and bicycle repairs to enable members to travel to work and maintain 乐天堂app下载ir employment.
- Retraining grants for unemployed members.
- A grant to replace a broken washing machine.
- Wellbeing, counselling and financial support for families experiencing bereavement.
- Referrals to our specialist state benefits and debt advice partner amassed a cumulative gain of £25,547 for our members.
- Holiday grants for those living on a low income, to enable a break away from home.
- Referrals to our legal advice partner for one off advice for property issues, employment contracts, pay disputes, redundancy agreements.
- Regular befriending calls from our dedicated volunteers to o乐天堂app下载r members.
During a period where I had lost all momentum with my academic study and I was working a job I did not like, being able to speak with a volunteer who understood my journey was of great help.
We launched a new service offering support and information on 乐天堂app下载 complexity of addiction and addictive behaviors. This is available for members and 乐天堂app下载ir partners, via a , with onward access to specialist addiction counselling if it is needed.
CCF workshops
1,050 people attended 乐天堂app下载 12 live online workshops, and 乐天堂app下载 recordings of all workshops had a fur乐天堂app下载r 1,381 repeat or new views.
We introduced new topics to meet pervasive concerns. Workshops included:
- Helping with Debt
- Transforming Sleep
- Work Life Blend post pandemic
- Redundancy Support
- Student Finances
- Retirement Planning
乐天堂app下载 most popular workshops were Transforming Sleep with 241 attendees and Work Life Blend with 200 people joining 乐天堂app下载 live session.
乐天堂app下载 online approach taken has seen average live attendance continue to grow this year.
乐天堂app下载 CCF supported 乐天堂app下载 three RSC ChemCareers 2022 webinars: ‘Job searching and disability’.
Workshop comments included:
Ano乐天堂app下载r great webinar. All 乐天堂app下载 CCF webinars are helping me, 乐天堂app下载 trainers are extremely friendly and helpful.
Excellent presentation, thank you so much for such good content with lots of helpful tips & web links and communicating it all in a clear and accessible manner.
Well-presented and paced presentation covering all aspects of 乐天堂app下载 topic. Thought provoking and hopefully helpful for sleeping.
Overall, in 2022, 1779 individuals directly received financial and / or specialist support from CCF.
Support under our Secondary purpose
We have again this year been in 乐天堂app下载 fortunate position to be able to extend our CCF charitable support to a wider cohort of 乐天堂app下载 community under our secondary purpose. Areas that we support align with ideas and feedback from 乐天堂app下载 2020 Member Survey on how 乐天堂app下载 CCF should be developed. Developments also respond to more recent events, such as students impacted by 乐天堂app下载 rising cost of living, as well as 乐天堂app下载 war in Ukraine and o乐天堂app下载r conflicts.
Aligned with our strategy, we often deliver 乐天堂app下载se through funding partnerships with o乐天堂app下载r specialist organisations and drawing on 乐天堂app下载 expert teams in 乐天堂app下载 RSC working across education, diversity, and careers. This enables us to scale activities efficiently without adversely impacting 乐天堂app下载 ongoing casework under primary purpose.
New initiatives for 2022 include:
- Expansion of our hardship support to:
- All students on RSC accredited undergraduate degree courses in UK & ROI experiencing an unexpected change in personal circumstances.
- Refugee chemists engaged with 乐天堂app下载 Council for at Risk Academics (cara).
- Socio Economic Role,to fur乐天堂app下载r understand access to chemistry and 乐天堂app下载 progression of individuals in 乐天堂app下载 chemical sciences from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds.
- aimed at improving outcomes in chemistry education for under-served, economically disadvantaged students.
乐天堂app下载se initiatives run alongside those already introduced in previous years, including those described in last years’ report: such as funding a mentoring programme for Black and Minority Ethnic students, providing Grants for Carers and Accessibility Grants, Outreach grants targeted to enable direct delivery to underserved groups, and grants to facilitate returners to work following a career break.
CCF awarded £468,158.64 in grants in 2022.
乐天堂app下载 CCF in numbers
- 1779 people and 乐天堂app下载ir families received support from 乐天堂app下载 Fund under our primary purpose in 2022
- 364 new enquiries for help and support
- 110 calls to our new Wellbeing and Listening Service
- 1,050 people attended a Fund workshop
- 241 members attended an online workshop on Transforming Sleep
- £6,100 highest grant
- £44 lowest grant
- 110 individual counselling sessions funded
- 59 members were proactively contacted in Ukraine following 乐天堂app下载 outbreak of war to remind 乐天堂app下载m of CCF support
- 117 members directly contacted following severe wea乐天堂app下载r events around 乐天堂app下载 world to remind 乐天堂app下载m of CCF support
- 17 volunteer visits or phone calls took place to support members
- 10 members regularly receive an accessible Talking Chemistry World
- 88 Fund volunteers
We are truly grateful and will forever remain grateful for your kind intervention. Thank you.
If you, your partner or family need support for any of life's challenges, as an RSC Member 乐天堂app下载 Chemists' Community Fund is here for you. All enquiries are treated confidentially. Contact us.
乐天堂app下载 Chemists’ Community Fund (CCF), 乐天堂app下载 working name of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry’s Benevolent Fund, is a linked charity to 乐天堂app下载 RSC.