Awards Archives - Richmond Fellowship | Mental Health Charity Making Recovery Reality

A hat trick of awards for The Old Moat Garden Centre and Cafe

February 21, 2022/in Awards, Social enterprise /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship’s Old Moat Garden Centre and Cafe in Epsom, Surrey has pulled off the extraordinary feat of winning The Good Retail Awards Community Award for the third year in a row.

The Community Award recognises retailers who have made an effort to give back to their community, honouring companies who have gone above and beyond to transform and enhance the lives of others.

The Old Moat was judged in competition with retailers of all kinds from across the UK.

The Awards are organised by Modern Retail, with the results announced at the massive trade show Spring Fair at the NEC.

Matt Ellis, Garden Centre Manager said:

“To win this award once in 2020 was a huge achievement – to be now picking it up for the third time in 2022 is little short of miraculous! It is a massive tribute to everyone involved in making The Old Moat what it is – the people we support who also contribute so much as they work alongside our team, our invaluable volunteers without whom we couldn’t survive, our hardworking and hugely committed staff and our incredibly loyal and generous customers and supporters, and we thank every single one of them for making it possible”.

The judges all had very high praise for The Old Moat, their comments included:

“The Old Moat continue to show that they put their community first. They have adapted and made sure that despite significant challenges (not just the pandemic, but also a fire on their premises) they continue to offer outstanding support for those in need”.

“It’s always so uplifting to read about the Old Moat – the work they do is so important to so many. I think what impresses me the most is the resilience they have displayed, and how their connection with the community has really allowed them to bounce back as best they can”.

“The Old Moat Garden Centre and Cafe has not only provided an incredible service to so many in the local community, but their team has turned challenges into opportunities, focusing continuously on transforming the lives and futures of those with mental ill health”.

The Old Moat is a social enterprise which helps local people living with mental ill health to gain confidence, skills and qualifications working alongside staff and volunteers in a safe, supportive environment that encourages them to overcome challenges and obstacles and move on to the next step in their recovery.

To find out more about The Good Retail Awards, click here.

Recovery Focus group named in the Top 10 Most Inclusive Workplaces 2021

May 28, 2021/in Awards /by rfadmin

The Recovery Focus group, which Richmond Fellowship is part of, has come 10th out of 100 in the National Centre for Diversity’s FREDIE Awards’ Most Inclusive Workplaces Index 2021.

The National Centre for Diversity is responsible for the industry standard Investors in Diversity accreditation. Their FREDIE Awards recognise excellence from private, public and third sector organisations around Fairness, Respect, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Engagement (FREDIE).

Helen Edwards CBE, Chair of the Recovery Focus group said:

“This award recognises the hard work we’ve undertaken to embrace diversity, equality and inclusion across our group of charities. It also highlights the hard work of all our staff and volunteers across the Recovery Focus Group of charities – especially in what’s been a challenging year.

There is always more to do, and as a group we’re committed to continuing the work, listening to our staff and ensuring a fair and respectful workplace culture”.

Solat Chaudhry, Chief Executive at the National Centre for Diversity said:

“I send my warmest congratulations to Recovery Focus Group on successfully reaching number 10 in the Top 100 Most Inclusive Workplaces Index 2021. It’s been a challenging year and yet, it has not dented the excellent work that organisations and individuals do in promoting FREDIE best practice.

We had to have these awards this year. We could not ignore the fantastic efforts that everyone has continued doing. I congratulate everyone who works so hard day-in day-out to maintain these high standards.

Through the work of the FREDIEs we are able to build a better society, and our winners come from a wonderful cross section of private, public, education and charity sectors representing the very best.”

To find out more about working at Recovery Focus and the charities in the group, click here.

Bath, Swindon & Wiltshire IPS Employment service achieves Centre of Excellence status

March 31, 2021/in Awards, employment /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship’s Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire IPS Employment service has been recognised as a high fidelity service and has once again become a recognised Centre of Excellence in IPS Employment Practice across the local Clinical Commissioning group by the Centre for Mental Health.

Following expansion with Wave 2 and 3 IPS funding, the Wiltshire service has grown from 7 staff to 19 across the Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire areas.

The team has been working to achieve a Centre of Excellence status for the 2 new services, building on the Wiltshire service’s original award 3 years ago.

Speaking to the Service Manager Mariana Law; Jan Hutchinson, lead auditor from the Centre for Mental Health said:

“Your team are a really vibrant and energetic group who are providing great examples of their work. Also your NHS colleagues are speaking very highly of them. I am impressed.

I am left with the lasting impression that Richmond Fellowship has been fabulously successful in recruiting a special group of people who have the right skills, but also the right attitude and are willing to go ‘the extra mile’ for their clients on a regular basis”.

The service has supported a total of 132 clients into paid employment from April 2020 up to February 2021 and a further 19 clients to retain their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic.

There are currently 23 Centres of Excellence in England and Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire will now be one of these.

Old Moat Garden Centre scoops Good Retail Award

February 18, 2020/in Awards /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship’s Old Moat Garden Centre in Surrey has won another prestigious award, this time competing against a range of retail organisations from all over the UK.

The Good Retail Awards are presented every year at the retail trade show Spring Fair at Birmingham NEC and celebrate retailers making a positive impact in the industry.

The Old Moat won the Community Award for companies who have gone above and beyond to transform and enhance the lives of others.

Judges commended the garden centre for its “lasting impact in the local community”.

The Old Moat is a hugely successful garden centre that provides a work-based program for local people living with mental health challenges, giving them the confidence and skills to get back into employment.

Each year the centre’s work impacts directly on about 150 people living with mental ill health, but the ripple effect touches hundreds more as their families and friends gain peace of mind, waiting lists in doctors’ surgeries and hospitals are reduced, employers gain qualified confident staff, and the community is enriched by their increased participation in it.

A person we supported said on his last day:

“It’s like a community here, everyone knows each other, I’ve had a lot of fun, and it’s really helped me out”.

To find out more about The Old Moat Garden Centre, visit www.theoldmoatgardencentre.org.uk.

Old Moat Garden Centre scoops Garden Centre Outlet of the Year

July 10, 2019/in Awards /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship’s Old Moat Garden Centre and Cafe in Surrey has won the Garden Centre Outlet of the Year Award at the Horticulture Week Business Awards, beating off competition from garden centres right across the UK.

And if that wasn’t enough of an achievement, they also won second prize, highly commended, in the category of Best New Build, Refurbishment, Refit or Extension.

A small team from The Old Moat attended the awards event on Thursday 27 June at a top London hotel to hear the results announced. They were “over the moon” with the awards, which they hadn’t dared hope they would win!

Garden Centre Manager Jack Shilley said:

“We’re absolutely thrilled. This is a massive achievement for all our incredibly hard working, talented staff, our wonderful volunteers, and of course we wouldn’t be here without the people we support – a massive thank you to everyone involved. We are also so grateful to our loyal customers and those who support us at our events – without them we couldn’t keep going.”

The Horticulture Week Business Awards are the most prestigious and respected in the UK horticulture industry. They are not just an accolade in themselves but come with a year-round package of media opportunities that will enable the garden centre to further raise its profile, so helping secure the service’s future.

The Old Moat supports individuals to gain confidence and skills by working alongside staff and volunteers in the garden centre, shop and café in a safe, supportive environment.

Staff, volunteers and people we support recognised at ENRICH Awards 2019

March 26, 2019/in Awards /by rfadmin

Winning Kensington and Chelsea team

Staff, volunteers and people we support at Richmond Fellowship came together to celebrate the outstanding work happening across the organisation at the ENRICH Awards.

The awards, which took place on Thursday 21 March at London Metropolitan University, are based on Richmond Fellowship’s six organisational values (Enabling, Networking, Respect, Inclusion, Community and Hope).

Over 124 nominations were received across 10 categories – with over 50 nominations alone for the Inspiring Individual Staff Award category.

The winners:

Excellence in Innovation
Winner: Lowther Street Crisis House
Highly Commended: Macclesfield Homeless and Complex Needs Service and Trevayler Care Home

The nominees enjoying some Bhangra Drumming

Excellence in Partnership Working
Winner: East Surrey Work Programme
Highly Commended: My Time Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programme and Tyne, Wear and Northumberland Liaison and Diversion Service

Excellence in Engagement
Winner: RF Connect (Internal case management system)
Highly Commended: Pele Tower and Wiltshire Recovery and Social Inclusion Service

Excellence in Inclusion
Winner: Kensington and Chelsea Supported Housing Service
Highly Commended: Suffolk Recovery and The Old Moat

Hope Award: Nominated by the People We Support
Winner: Leicestershire Life Links
Highly Commended: Mid and West Surrey Employment Service and North West Surrey Employment Service

Ayesha receiving her Chief Executive’s Award from Derek Caren

Central Services Team Recognition Award
Winner: Communications and Marketing
Highly Commended: Learning and Development and Business Development

Inspiring Individual Staff Award
Winners: Christine (Locality Manager, Midlands), Simon (Employment Advisor, Mid and West Surrey Employment Service)
Highly Commended: Damian (Recovery Worker, Kensington and Chelsea Supported Housing Service), Emily (Group Internal Communications Officer), Hannah (Employment Advisor, Kirklees Employment Service), Rachael (Community Link Worker, Tyne, Wear and Northumberland Liaison and Diversion Service) and Stephen (Recovery Worker, Tower House)

Inspiring Individual People We Support Award
Winner: Angela (Suffolk Recovery)
Highly Commended: Berenice (Cambridge Employment Service) and Ethan (Redcar and Cleveland Supported Housing Service)

Volunteer Recognition Award
Winners: Ste (Working Together Committee) and Miriam (Funding and Development Volunteer, DVIP)
Highly Commended: Elizabeth (Recovery Workshops Assistant, Wiltshire Recovery and Social Inclusion Service)

Chief Executive’s Award
Winner: Ayesha (Recovery Worker, Moorview Supported Housing Service)

Derek Caren, Chief Executive of Richmond Fellowship said:

‘The ENRICH Awards celebrate the outstanding work and achievements that take place across Richmond Fellowship. This year was made extra special as we are celebrating 60 years of Richmond Fellowship. As a member of the judging panel, I was blown away by all of the nominations we received and I would like to congratulate each and every individual and team who were nominated. I would also like to personally thank our sponsors: Bob Rehill, CDP Soft, Energycentic, Castleton, uMarketeers, Yuuzuu, MEA, Kainos and Lloyds Bank for helping to make the awards so special’.

Richmond Fellowship recognised for promoting equality and diversity

February 27, 2019/in Awards /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship has once again been placed in the top 100 organisations for promoting diversity, equality and inclusion by the National Centre for Diversity (NCFD).

Richmond Fellowship was ranked number 92 in the country, in recognition of its work to promote diversity, inclusiveness and equality across the organisation.

Tracey Bell, Director of Performance, Quality and Innovation at Richmond Fellowship said:

“It’s great news that in 2019 we are again ranked in the top 100. We’re incredibly proud of our diverse workforce and the range of experience our staff bring to supporting people using our services. This achievement is down to the hard work and commitment of everyone in Richmond Fellowship to promoting diversity and inclusion and to working together with the people we support to shape our services.

I am particularly proud that Richmond Fellowship’s mean gender pay gap, at 5.93%, is significantly lower that the not for profit sector average of 19.4%. Also that, while we recognise there is always more for us to do, 82% of staff in Richmond Fellowship feel that their colleagues work in accordance with the principles of Fairness, Respect, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.”

Richmond Fellowship also holds Investors in Diversity status in recognition of its work to provide opportunities for people living with mental ill health and to ensure diversity right across the organisation.

Lancashire Care partnership shortlisted for HSJ Partnership Awards

January 22, 2019/in Awards /by rfadmin

An innovative partnership between a local health and wellbeing provider and mental health recovery charity, which involves working together to support people in mental health crisis, has been shortlisted for the HSJ Partnership Awards 2019.

The number of people requiring mental health treatment in the UK is rising and at the same time, the number of mental health hospital beds has dramatically decreased. With this in mind, Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust and Richmond Fellowship have been working together, to develop alternative ways of providing support for those in mental health crisis and have been successfully shortlisted for the HSJ Partnership Awards 2019.

The partnership has been shortlisted for the ‘Best Not for Profit Working in Partnership with the NHS’ category for their efforts in collectively working together to improve mental health crisis care.

The organisations have been working together since 2016 and have opened two crisis houses in Lancashire, which provide a small number of beds and a safe, home-like environment. The partners have also developed an innovative model of supporting people who attend A&E in crisis, Mental Health Decision Units, and runs Sparky’s Café at The Harbour Hospital in Blackpool, providing apprenticeship opportunities for people recovering from mental ill health to help them get back into employment.

Sue Moore, Director of Strategic Developments at Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust said:

“We are delighted that our partnership with Richmond Fellowship has been shortlisted for the HSJ Partnership Awards 2019. We have been experiencing high demand for mental health services in Lancashire for some time and we are absolutely committed to ensuring that people are able to access the right care when they most need it. This has involved some innovative thinking with our partners about how we redesign or provide different support to the people that we serve.

“Working together with Richmond Fellowship has allowed us to really enhance the services that we provide and be able to deliver high quality care to the people that matter. It is a privilege to be part of so many fantastic projects and we are really proud that our work has been recognised nationally!”

Joe Redmond, Managing Director – Richmond Fellowship (North) said:

“Richmond Fellowship has a strong track record of providing a wide range of mental health services, including support for people experiencing a crisis. We work with a large number of NHS Trusts and we have a particularly strong partnership with Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust. Together we have developed a range of innovative approaches which are helping to tackle the rising demand for mental health services.

“For example, not everyone with mental ill health needs or wants to go into hospital or to be there any longer than necessary. This is where our crisis houses come in – they provide a safe, supportive environment in the local community where local people can develop coping skills to help with their recovery. After quite short stays, people are telling us they feel more able to return back home and take control of their lives.”

The winners will be announced at the prestigious ceremony on 20 March 2019 at Park Plaza in Westminster.

For more information or to view the full shortlist please visit https://partnership.hsj.co.uk/

Old Moat Garden Centre scoops local business award

November 19, 2018/in Awards /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship’s Old Moat Garden Centre has scooped an accolade at the annual Epsom and Ewell Business Excellence Awards in Surrey.

The social enterprise won the Commitment in the Community category at the awards which celebrate excellence in the local community.

An engraved glass trophy was presented to The Old Moat team by the local MP and Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling at a special ceremony on Thursday 15 November.

Jack Shilley, Garden Centre Manager said:

“I am absolutely delighted that The Old Moat has received this award. It filled me with immense pride to collect the award on behalf of the business with some of the team. It is a real testament to all of our staff and volunteers’ hard work and dedication, and of course a huge thanks to the people we support – the reason why we all do what we do.”

Find out more about The Old Moat at www.theoldmoatgardencentre.org.uk.

Richmond Fellowship reaccredited as Investors in Diversity

August 29, 2018/in Awards /by rfadmin

Richmond Fellowship has been reaccredited as an Investor in Diversity.

The accreditation, which the national mental health charity has held since 2016, recognises Richmond Fellowship’s structured and planned approach to embedding Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at the heart of the organisation.

To retain the accreditation, the National Centre for Diversity carried out an assessment to check the organisation remains focussed on continually building on this area.

The 2018 assessment began in April and included a staff survey asking for views on how well the organisation upholds and promotes the EDI principles, including tackling bullying, harassment and discrimination.

This year Richmond Fellowship also asked a selection of suppliers and other organisations it works with for their views. The assessor also met with a selection of staff from across Richmond Fellowship and with people who use services.

Tracey Bell, Group Director of Performance, Quality and Innovation at Richmond Fellowship said:

“This is a great achievement, recognising how well embedded EDI best practices are in Richmond Fellowship. Thank you to everyone who took part in the comprehensive assessment.”