Hello! It’s been eight weeks of heads down to turn our work around, and I am excited to update you all on how far we have come in a considerably small amount of time.

When Lockdown measures were put in place on 23^rd March, the team were in the middle of two YOU Programmes at opposite ends of the county and with unusually large groups, averaging 14 per programme.

Our single priority was to ensure we could complete the programmes for every learner who could meet with us online in the coming weeks. The result? Success!

The team have been relentless in its drive to convert our programme content, resources and delivery methods to meet the new and exciting challenges of teaching online. Moreover, our focus has also been spent on ensuring our learners are able to easily access the new learning platform and to effortlessly save, print, view or read the materials linked to their programmes while following our facilitators via an interactive live video platform.

Has it been easy? It’s been as easy as learning Mandarin! Such is the complicated language of digital I.T. However, we have had the unlimited support, skill and expertise of Rubber Duck Digital, who has gone above and beyond to ready Impact. The Rubber Duck Digital team has quite simply been a game changer for our team to be able to adapt quickly and continue to meet the requirements and support of all those who need our help.

So, what’s next? Having successfully wrapped up two YOU Programmes, the team is now mid way through our Strengths Based Recovery programme; YOUR Recovery Pathways.

This longer and more intense programme which started on April 29^th began with ‘Impact Goodies’ for all of the learners! The ‘goodies’ involved the Pathways to Recovery Manual, an assortment of writing implements, post it notes, highlighters and other stationary items, which we know are much used and appreciated on our face to face programmes.

We wanted to give our current learners, who signed up to the online YOUR Recovery Pathways, every opportunity to enjoy, engage, learn and have fun just as they would in their communities with the Impact team. To ensure that happened, we are delivered Impact Goody Bags before the programme started!

In October of this year, Impact had planned to celebrate a total of 10 years’ operating and delivering support services and wellbeing courses in Central Bedfordshire and Bedford as a Charity from 2010 for five years and as a Community Interest Company since 2015.

Regrettably, our celebration will now be postponed but with good reason! We want to ensure that when we throw a party to mark the survival of Impact through a recession, funding cuts and a global pandemic that we can open up the doors of the Grove Theatre and welcome all of you!

That said, we will most certainly be in touch this year with a revised date once we are sure that the Impact celebration can and will go ahead in true Impact style.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR CURRENT AND FUTURE LEARNERS

THE SAFETY AND WELLBEING OF OUR STAFF, VOLUNTEERS, LEARNERS AND VISITORS IS OUR PRIORITY.

Following the Prime Minister’s advice on Monday 16 March, Impact will cease to deliver its programmes in the community from Monday 23rd March until further notice.

This difficult decision has been made in line with the Prime Minister’s recommendation to the public to adhere to social distancing measures to help prevent the spread of the virus.

However, we now have plans in place to continue to deliver courses online

Alternative Programme delivery

Impact are working hard to ensure that all those who have enrolled onto to our existing and future programmes, and who can join us online, receive the remainder of their learning.

Future online programmes & online wellbeing information

We will be delivering online courses and wellbeing support throughout the coming weeks and months to existing learners and all those in need of mental wellbeing information.

All existing and current learners will be contacted over the next few days by email, text or phone with details of how and where to access the online courses.

Impact are supporting our friends at the Grove Theatre to celebrate Macmillan Coffee Morning on Friday 27th September, 10.30 to 12.30.

How could you say no to helping a cracking cause and cake all in one morning while raising vital funds for Macmillan Cancer Support.

In addition, watch a special showing of Calendar Girls

Part of the Macmillan World’s Biggest Coffee Morning event – enjoy a free tea/coffee and a cake before the film and help us raise money for cancer support.

After the death of her best friend’s husband from cancer, spirited Yorkshire housewife Chris Harper hatches a scheme to raise money for a memorial to him. Utilising a tradition from the hidebound Woman’s Institute association, Chris encourages her friends to create a calendar — with the novel detail of using the middle-aged women of their village as nude models.

Bookable online or by calling the Box Office on 01582 60 20 80