Bloomfield Community Association Trustees Report – 1[st] April 2023 – 31[st] March 2024
Charity No: 102448
Group Public Benefits
At Bloomfield Community Association, our mission brings direct benefits to the community by
enhancing living standards, health, and overall well-being in the following ways:
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Information Access: We keep residents informed about our activities which are designed to improve connection, mental, physical, and social well-being.
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Community Engagement: We foster connections among residents through events and activities, creating a stronger, happier community.
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Feedback & Success: We listen to residents through community surveys and feedback forms, helping us meet their needs and improve life in the area.
The beneficiaries are primarily Bloomfield Estate residents and its surrounding areas. Another key benefit comes from the Community House, offering a safe space for social and recreational activities. This leads to social, physical, and economic improvements.
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121 Support & Signposting: We assist residents in accessing vital information and support on housing, benefits and safety.
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Multi-agency Forums: We represent residents and participate in strategic forums, to try to improve services and support for housing, welfare reform and disability.
Our efforts are focused on the community with no harm from our purposes. Trustees may partake in activities if needed, but this is the only private benefit.
Trustee board during this reporting period:
Isobelle Hamilton Robert Turner Darren Adams William McCrea
Financial Year 1[st] April 2023 – 31[st] March 2024
Please see the financial report and independent examination of accounts for full details. Our assets equate to approximately £1,000 to include laptops, furniture and office equipment.
Activities this year:
This year was a very difficult one for our small group of volunteers, who experienced unexpected bereavement and their own health issues, so we could not deliver as many activities as we usually would. However, we continued to do what we could, in difficult circumstances, to try to improve the lives of those living in Bloomfield estate and its surrounding areas.
Unfortunately, we could no longer run a regular weekly seniors’ group due to our members’ deteriorating health, including sadly some passing away, but we did ensure that we checked in on our remaining members and provided essential support to isolated and vulnerable seniors in the community, signposting them for emergency and specialist support, especially during the winter months.
Thanks to support from North Down Community Network, we were able to deliver a new programme of activities for adults with learning disabilities who attend the Ravara Day Centre and
Balloo Day Centre. Through this programme, we created a safe, non- judgemental space for those often isolated and vulnerable members of society to build social connections, take part in fun activities and integrate with their local community, and activities including singing, chair yoga, ukelele and arts and crafts. From our experience, adults with learning disabilities continue to be neglected; especially with their extra vulnerabilities, and this is set to continue with under resourcing in the Day Centres and wider sector. We will therefore continue to use our position to advocate for better.
This year, we continued to advocate for better for the community, especially for improved access to housing, benefits, and education, and represented residents on Forums such as the Housing Community Network, campaigning for better services within the area. We also continued to refer residents on low income to one-to-one support to ensure they had the knowledge and tools needed to live a better quality of life.
With so many challenges this year, it has been more vital for our small charity to work collaboratively, and we are thankful to all of the organisations who supported us to continue our work.
Approved by the Trustees on 6th June 2025 and signed on their behalf by:
Robert Turner
Treasurer, Bloomfield Community Association