History of Wirral Change

In the year 2000, research found that people on Wirral from a racial minority background were not accessing local Job Centres, and sought to find out why. As a result of this, Wirral Change was founded in June 2005 as an Employment Outreach Project, delivered by Merseyside Network for Change (MNfC). Clint Agard, who runs his own social enterprise, Communities First UK, was commissioned by MNfC to deliver the Outreach Project on Wirral, and in turn employed Sabra Ahmed on MNfC’s behalf. Both were popular members of local Black and Racial Minority (BRM) communities.

It was discovered that many members of the BRM communities resident long-term on Wirral were within the benefits system and finding it difficult to emerge into employment. In addition, however, the majority who came to Wirral Change were not long-term settlers but newcomers to Wirral from overseas (and in fact 80% of Wirral Change’s current client base still are).

Clint and Sabra began work from Wirral Multicultural Centre. This soon became inadequate and in June 2006 they moved to a small room in the Lauries Centre, Birkenhead. They began to deal with a whole range of issues, all employment-related – e.g. the gaining of National Insurance numbers, the setting up of bank accounts for clients, numerous physical and mental health issues, numerous housing issues, and many other social problems. To help address these issues they built up a network of partner organisations. One of the first of these (on Wirral) was Birkenhead Community Regeneration Partnership (BCRP), now Birkenhead First, which was then working with Wirral Change on a voluntary basis – its Chair, Collette McDonagh, suggested that they part-fund a post. Wirral Change was then also in the process of becoming a charity. Once it had charitable status (December 2006), it was then able to work with BCRP to co-fund a new Outreach worker, Shirley Mello, now, with Clint and Sabra, a member of Wirral Change’s Management Team.

The Local Authority has always worked closely with, and been extremely supportive of Wirral Change. It responded favourably to requests for further funding, and the Deprived Area Fund (DAF) team approached the BRM Partnership (of which Wirral Change is a member) with £52,000 for a Racial Minority group to be nominated to deliver the Project. Wirral Change was the nominated group. This funding helped cement the foundations already being established by Wirral Change’s Trustees and Management Team. It also enabled Wirral Change to create two new Outreach posts.

Through its Employment Outreach Projects, Wirral Change has always experienced serious health problems among its clients. It drew this to the attention of the local Primary Care Trust, which sanctioned funding for a health project, in turn creating a new post. This has shown how two of the main statutory bodies on Wirral are keen to resolve social issues among the BRM communities by working in partnership with Wirral Change.

In late 2009, Wirral Change successfully tendered to NHS Wirral for a new Health and Wellbeing project, helping BRM communities in the fields of awareness of smoking, drug and alcohol misuse. Four Health and Wellbeing Workers have now joined the established team and are already making an impact.

To date, Wirral Change has fifteen paid staff and continues to engage with the BRM communities of Wirral.