Family fun day for Church End and Roundwood residents to take place on Saturday

Fair Share Trust Brent funded Gibbons Wreckers Girls Only Week (Image: Archant)

Residents in Church End and Roundwood are being invited to a special event to celebrate the achievements of a funding project 10 years on.

Fair Share Trust Brent (FSTB) has boosted the community by injecting much-needed cash into a range of programmes and initiatives to help the community.

On Saturday a family fun day will take place at the Unity Centre in Church Road, Willesden, which will include a bouncy castle, Quasar, face painting, football coaching and information about the funded projects.

The event will also see the launch of a Unity Centre Diner.

Recipients of FSTB funding include Gibbons Wreckers Football Club, which was founded by Arsenal and England player Rachel Yankey MBE, which were given funding to help girls enter the sport.

The club ran a girls-only week event which was deemed a success.

A summer scheme involving workshops teaching arrange of subjects including yoga was also funded by FSTB, as were Father Figure, an organisation which encourages dads to develop closer relationships with their children.

David Mullings, director of Father Figure, said: “Getting funding from Fair Share Trust Brent has given fathers and male carers in Church End and Roundwood the opportunity to be a real presence in their children’s lives.

“What made this funding opportunity special was that the participants were able to work in a safe space with other fathers.

“The biggest winners are the children who took part in the various activities, such as cooking and sports, with their fathers, often for the first time. Father Figure is proud to have made a positive difference.”

According to an evaluation by Envoy Partnership of FSTB has funded between 30 to 35 projects a year, improved the sense of local pride by 30 per cent and seen the annual participation of 600 children in community sports, creative and social enterprise activities.

Neil Jackson, FSTB’s community development manager, said: “Our two main priorities were to create opportunities for residents and to work with children and families. With high unemployment in the area, making people employment-ready was essential.

“As we didn’t want to duplicate existing services we focused on confidence building and volunteering.

“Working with organisations such as Brent Citizens Advice Bureau, Brent Community Law Centre and Bang Edutainment, we helped local people progress into training and jobs.”

The fun day will run from noon to 5pm at the Unity Centre and is open to all. For more information call the Unity Centre on 020 8955 1780.