Case studies

Abingdon DAMASCUS Youth Project

Abingdon DAMASCUS Youth Project empowers and gives opportunities to young people to be the drivers behind positive change.

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AESOP

Aesop’s ‘Dance to Health’ initiative is a fall-prevention programme for older people, and a fun and social way for older people to participate in exercise, building up strength and mobility while also supporting mental health and wellbeing.

Aldates Community Transformation (ACT)

ACT is a small charity in Oxford providing housing and support for people at the margins of society: homeless people, ex-offenders, and people struggling with mental health. Their outreach work centres on food, in particular weekly communal meals.

Archway Foundation

The Archway Foundation helps people in Oxford and Abingdon who feel unwanted, excluded and forgotten, matching them with volunteer befrienders and social networks that give them back a sense of belonging.

Ark T Centre

The Ark T Centre is an arts project in East Oxford, and is situated in a high-risk area for Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE). Ark T is an open and inclusive community, where people, art, and powerful ideas come together, using the transformative powers of creativity to change lives.

Aspire Oxfordshire

Aspire Oxfordshire is an employment charity and social enterprise, supporting vulnerable and marginalised people to address their unique housing and employment needs. They provide specialist long-term and person-centred support, guiding their beneficiaries to build upon their skills and self-confidence.

Be Free Young Carers

Be Free Young Carers supports the lives and wellbeing of young carers. They are the only specialist charity supporting young carers in Oxfordshire.

Bicester Good Neighbour Scheme (BGNS)

Bicester Good Neighbour Scheme befriends old and very vulnerable people in Bicester and the surrounding area. With 80 clients and 65 volunteers, the group understands the importance of social contact and practical support for people who feel particularly isolated by frailty or disability.

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Bridewell Organic Gardens

Bridewell is a mental health recovery service providing social and therapeutic horticulture in a working garden to adults living in Oxfordshire. Their goal is to help people into jobs or voluntary roles out in the wider community.

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Children Heard and Seen

Children Heard and Seen works to mitigate the effects of parental imprisonment on children, and consequently to reduce the likelihood of generational offending, mental health issues and family breakdown.

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Creative Dementia Arts Network (CDAN)

The Creative Dementia Arts Network (CDAN) helps artists, arts organisations and arts venues to adapt their work for people with dementia and their carers.

Didcot TRAIN Youth Project

Didcot TRAIN works with young people who are at risk of educational failure, crime, child sexual exploitation, alcohol and substance abuse, and other risky behaviours. OCF funded their Young Leaders Programme, which turned the lives of a small cohort of young people around.

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Donnington Doorstep

Donnington Doorstep is an independent, community-based family centre delivering a range of universal and specialist services. Via their weekly drop-in ‘stay and play’ sessions, parenting courses and dedicated case workers, the centre engages informally with hard-to-reach families in a deprived area of Oxford.

Full Circle

Full Circle works with schools to set up intergenerational groups that bring together children and older volunteers. They bring older and younger people together on a weekly basis, with the aim of nurturing friendship and understanding between the generations.

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Good Food Oxford (GFO)

Good Food Oxford supports the existing work of many organisations in and around the city working to make our food system more nourishing, less wasteful and more sustainable.