BRIGHTON AND HOVE MUTUAL AID OPEN MEETINGS 1 & 2
MUTUAL AID GROUP CONTACTS
Brighton and Hove Mutual aid (city-level) https://brightonmutualaid.co.uk Tel: 07872 023446
MA Skills database: Do you have a specific skill that you want to volunteer (like being a dentist, or driving a van)? Request access here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BxxEbQe5sFjkmuoyMlyNrWbm78TMTE38u1OqTmB4Rfc/edit
MA Non-Fixed Abode support group: Setting up NFA / homeless support points in the city www.facebook.com/nfamutualaid https://chat.whatsapp.com/HBCC5XkAPeXL6HwXzDluGk
MA Reflyering group: Aiming to extend our reach across the city and access more people wishing to provide and request support, especially in more vulnerable areas: https://chat.whatsapp.com/EKao1n2zl5GHOIUAw81W7C
MA food sub-hub: Brings together various food initiatives across the city to link people to food banks, provide food etc https://chat.whatsapp.com/DQ3AD1MIa2xIHXkK3hILrN
Brighton Cooking Club: Volunteers provide cooked meals for those who need them - please do join! www.brightoncookingclub.com
MA newsletter group: Do you want to help create the Mutual Aid newspaper? https://chat.whatsapp.com/JlVf1gzaLvMFS13eug5ENI
MA Dog-Walkers: Volunteer to walk the dog of someone who is shielding: https://chat.whatsapp.com/LXoWd090xISIAKprpV1gq9
MA Donations: For donations of household items, furniture, digital devices: Please check www.brightonmutulaid.co.uk/donations for a list of things
MA Drivers group: Can you run errands for people in more marginalised areas? (By bike or car) https://chat.whatsapp.com/D9xu21bv6PZLXomIzm3HP8
MA Home-based group: Are you self-isolating but want to help others access services or register online? https://chat.whatsapp.com/B6ZQDlilBW05HwMp9XxLwi
Please see map on website homepage for links to all of the area WhatsApp groups
The website has forms to request support for you or someone else and to volunteer your help
WHERE HAVE WE COME FROM AND WHERE ARE WE NOW?
Setting up Brighton and Hove MA network (Daniel and Sam)
Started with a couple of people who set up a central website, email and helpline phone number and distributed flyers in some parts of the city to raise awareness. Took off really quickly and expanded.
High call volume at the start in terms of requests for support – people were supported through both a central volunteer list and the growing local area and street groups. Lower volume of calls now, mainly due to active neighbourhood groups.
Has linked up different area and MA groups across the city – see website and map for a summary and links to different groups.
Has also connected people to other services available e.g. food banks, mental health support lines etc
Seems to have stepped into a gap and fulfilled needs for support as well as galvanized those wanting to support. Still a strong need for community support.
(Sam) Website: https://brightonmutualaid.co.uk. We’ve now got 2 new sections: a step by step form for requesting support for yourself or someone else. And another form to offer volunteering, and specifying skills and availability.
Local neighbourhood and street-level groups (Lyndsay)
In parallel to the citywide initiative, many people started to organise at a local level. In many parts of the city, people flyered (notes through doors) their streets or a sub-area and offered support – they provided a personal name and numbers and set up WhatsApp groups. They also took phone calls from those with landlines and regular mobile phone lines. Some groups were at street level, some were on sub area level.
For example, in central Hove/Hove station we have 45 street groups set up, all with one or two street organisers who facilitate these plus a central WhatsApp group to share information. When people arrive on the main group wanting to provide or request support or simply join their neighbourhood group, they are directed to the relevant street group.
Many street organisers have matched up volunteers with people who have been shielding or self-isolating to give support e.g. food shopping, collection prescriptions, dog walking, friendly phone calls. In other cases, people have offered/given support directly via the whatsapp groups.
We have set up various guidelines on safeguarding, safety, monitoring group activities, checking in on helpers and those receiving support.
In some areas there have been more volunteers than people needing support, so we started matching people across with other groups.
Some areas and streets have had a lot of activity, others less so. It varies and reflects the diverse needs and interests of the city.
Some WhatsApp group have grown into broader neighbourhood support groups including and beyond Covid-19 e.g. neighbourly advice, information, support, exchanging good and services etc
Some local groups have started neighbourhood projects le.g. support for no fixed abode persons.
There have been occasional clashes in the Whatsapp groups or situations where people have fallen out around politics etc, but generally the response has been positive.
City-wide groups (Kim, Sapphire, Lisa, Paulina)
We have a number of citywide groups. There are areas of high deprivation in the city. Many people have complex needs for support – many are relying on food parcels. But there are fewer volunteers looking to support in some of these areas.
As a result, we have set up a variety of citywide groups which people can join to request and provide support.
These are groups that are preparing to go forward, so these will remain and develop. So it feels a good idea to look at volunteer availability skills and time so we know how we take this forward.
Drivers group that is very active. So we can dispatch support for people across the city.
Home-based group: People who wanted to help but were self-isolating. They provide people with telephone support to access the help and services they need, such as applying for food parcels or help ordering food, or other signposting. Telephone and digital support group.
Re-flyering group to cover under-served areas to reach more people. Mix of further door-to-door flyering and creation of laminated posters to put up on lamp-posts etc with contact numbers and information about Mutual Aid.
Dog-walking group.
Gardening group.
Newsletter (Paulina): We saw the council newsletter and wanted to create something similar but alternative, to let people know about MA, and about our sub groups as well. It’s also a space for people to learn about these things that may not have internet access but can still be informed. Originally the idea was to do this citywide about resources, but we have since thought about themed issues, about resources, but also about the people involved. Questions around the volume of printing and distributing it. We may need to look at funding, fundraising. Money will likely need to be involved in this.
Food Sub Hub: (Sapphire and Lisa): 400 people receiving food parcels pre-covid citywide, and now 3,300 receiving.
Brighton Covid Cooking Club statistics on people receiving food support: 35% have physical disability, 65% have long term illness, 27% no fixed abode, 13% limited or no cooking facilities.
Going forward: the rates of physical disability, illness, number of people with no recourse to public funds is not set to change, so these support systems may need to continue
BCC (Brighton Cooking Club) working on a peer to peer basis. It’s about connecting a person cooking for another person, regular arrangements. There’s been a dip in volunteers recently, so we are looking at other ways to keep the project going.
WHERE ARE WE GOING?
It is hard to predict what will happen but there are lots of questions e.g.
How long will people continue shielding?
Is the R number in B&H increasing?
Might there be a local lockdown again?
What happens when furlough schemes end?
Unemployment likely to go up and vulnerability of many families may increase?
Will the volunteer numbers taper off?
Is therefore useful to think through our long-term vision and how we get there?
How do we harness the solidarity and common purpose shown in our communities?
What is the way forward for us in terms of structure and decision-making?
What about funding?
What about partnerships and relationships with other organisations?
We wanted to start with an exercise in breakout groups to look at the strengths and opportunities we have in the network as well as the weaknesses and challenges we have. So in our breakout groups, we will do a SWOT analysis.
BREAK OUT SESSIONS AND FEEDBACK FROM MEETING 1 (Five small groups discussed their perspectives on the opportunities/ issues faced by MA in the short/long term doing a participatory SWOT exercise. They then gave feedback to the plenary groups. A summary of the key points here)
Internal to organisation
STRENGTHS
Many volunteers with diverse skills and capacities
Builds on existing face-to-face / local relationships and creates new ones
Quick, flexible and responsive to immediate needs – non-bureaucratic
Independent from formal organisations such as the Council and charities
Has harnessed people’s energy and built on their inner willingness to help others – which existed pre-covid
Collaborative, participatory, open-minded and shared values of inclusivity, works on trust
Already has some level of accountability as bottom-up – especially in street level groups
Allows contact with a real person, not a recorded message
Determination, energy and passion from many members
Examples of mutuality – people receive and give help
Freedom in how we organise, learn from each other, but can innovate and are not obliged to do things the same way.
Needs little funding
WEAKNESSES
Lack of clear / agreed vision on what is mutual aid.
Lack of funding / financial means
Currently lacks mechanisms to handle diverse views and visions, complex issues and ensure fairness
Lack of clear structure, accountability, agreed decision-making processes,
Signposting and linking to other services – is everyone clear on where to send people?
Not yet harnessing contributions of all volunteers, worried people will drop off – clarity on help needed, where to sign up…
Some replication of other services?
Concerns that everyone has not been reached – no leaflet, mistrust the leaflet; some streets with no support
High dependence on digital access (e.g. website, whatsapp groups) and people’s free time – results in an affluence bias
Safeguarding of volunteers. Physical safety when doing to someone’s house
Safeguarding of those needing help
Reliant on unpaid labour - Danger of people ‘burning out’ and gaps emerging
Lack of security of Whatsapp groups / GDPR compliance of contact details
External to organisation
OPPORTUNITIES
Covid pandemic has created renewed energy around volunteering and community involvement locally, nationally.
Also a new network and set of connections between people has been built.
Already well organised – could draft a joint strategy going forwards
Opportunity to reshape city service provision – more flexible approach and culture of support from bottom up
Could create partnerships with / seek to complement / signpost people to different services and voluntary sector organisations that already have trudt of communities... ?
Could recruit student interns?
Could apply for HEIF funding to do some research (Univ of Sussex £25k) e.g. Look at the reasons why people need this help and seek longer term solutions
Could organise street parties / events with fundraising
THREATS
Part of creating the “Big society” – volunteers substituting for the state
How to sustain momentum
Decline in volunteer numbers and time - as people go back to work and Covid crisis reduces?
Lack of financial means – how to produce stuff without funding, but worry that managing money adds bureaucracy and moves from Mutual aid potentially
How to document our learnings during a time of crisis and trauma - we must capture our narrative!!
WhatsApp can be misused by people
Are we in breach of laws e.g. safeguarding, GDPR, data management?
Taken over by an ‘establishment’; loses grassroots movement
Potential lack of trust in volunteers / risk of few spoilers spoiling things
Worry about losing ‘mutualness’ – some using language of referral, volunteer, helper
NEXT STEPS FROM MEETING 1
Area reps to complete the mapping of how we are organized – see spreadsheet that Kim has created here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1626hwBrOSigDhWud9wwcma0iSqjAhtKHK3cj5dTQwqM/edit#gid=422449322
Web-team (Sam) to put up links to citywide groups on the website
A sub-team to be created to start a participatory process to draft a vision and strategy for us – this should include looking at the following questions which could then be discussed in subsequent meetings:
(i) What different models are there for us to adopt as a community group and what are the pros/cons?
(ii) How do we deal with safeguarding issues?
(iii) What about options for sustainable or project funding?
(iv) How do we build trust and credibility without becoming a formal group?
Following notes from presentations given in second meeting with more detail provided:
NFA stop - Currently set up on Lewes Road. Provides water, good and essential toiletries. Replenished by the community. Going well with several visitors. Nothing stolen.
Redistribution Group - Recycles unwanted furniture to families / individuals in need. Will pick up items from specified list on the mutual aid website.
Brighton Cooking Club - A cooking club that focuses on distributing surplus cooked food to families in need. At the moment caters to 80 households across Brighton and encompasses volunteers who cook and others who deliver.
City Food Hub - At some point lockdown will be lifted, but food insecurity will continue. We need these projects for building resilience. Co-operative model. Food growing will be important.
Vogue-Level-Circus Food Committee - a district level food committee broadly covering the area between Vogue Gyratory, the Level and Preston Circus. The committee is in direct contact with most food banks and other food projects across the city, we do weekly collections of donations for specific ones of these which have a particular need, and are working on setting up a local food collection hub.
LGBTQIA Mutual Action - A mutual aid group across Brighton and Hove that provides support and community for queer people in need. There is an option for anonymous requests for those with sensitive needs.
Donations for refugees - in contact with Voices and Exile; IFCG - Interfaith Contact Group
Drivers group - a WhatsApp group for drivers and cyclists who are keen to help with deliveries across Brighton and Hove
Reflyering group - is reflyering some areas of the city where there is high need and few volunteers. Is also designing laminated posters to put up on posts in streets and in surgeries etc about mutual aid and how to volunteer or get support
Dog-walking group - a WhatsApp group that connects people with dog-walking needs
BREAKOUT SESSIONS AND FEEDBACK FROM MEETING 2
Breakout room 1
Two participants self-isolating, talking about meeting people’s needs as best you can remotely, keep people entertained.
Facebook pages, making sure you keep yourself safe and keep things
How you reach people who have been desperately isolated
Thinking of older people, which rely on public transport
Putting on events in the future
Really, focus on solving community problems
Breakout room 2
Two members fairly new to this
Attended New Econ Foundation webinar, rooted in social justice, communities coming together
We have power, how we connect, support each other. We can support one another and fight for each other's issues
People come into these groups, lack of red tape, getting stuck in.
In some areas, it's been really quiet - how to keep people active and interested.
There's quite a difference, there's a real value to come together.
Connecting with people by being able to help.For people experiencing loneliness, connecting with other people by helping brings something important.
Even if self-isolating and living far away can still help out.
Some challenges supporting someone with difficult mental health issues, learning as we go and asking others for advice.
Breakout room 3
Reflection on people’s innate goodness and willingness to help each other. Goes both ways.
Example: somebody really wanted to get out of the house, but has a disability, so she did their gardening. What they like to do, what they want to do.
Most people don't know each other, doesn't matter what or who we are, everyone has come together to help everybody.
Even though we're isolating, we're actually getting much closer, which has been amazing.
Red tape, we just do it at the best way we can do it, we are the ones who find the holes and the gaps and we can help in the best way we can (without all the politics)
Really hope most of it can continue. Once things are in place, there's no reason it can't carry on. Staying together like this, not just go back to way things were
Breakout room 4
Mutual aid as a way for individuals to get involved in a community level without red tape and things going on.
There's a difference between street level groups and what's the purpose, is it talking about the weather or help.
Community-level, target audience, how do you engage with them in the right way.
Talking about the food aspect, trying to solve problems that have been existing for a long time, share knowledge, how do you do that.
Need not just for B&H, but entire area.
MA is doing direct action, how to do that beginning at street level, how to get people involved, re-engage with them.
Breakout room 5
In our group we were all listeners.
Idea raised was to have fewer and bigger breakout chats next time
LARGE GROUP DISCUSSION - Meeting 2
What would you like to be involved with? What would you like to see people doing? What ideas have you got?
(27/05 & 10/06)
1) One of my friends is training to be a doctor. Really distressed with people struggling with MH, really would like to do stuff going around that. A big issue, quite an invisible one?
2) Setting up other committees. Conflict resolution, one idea. If people have other ideas, if there's something you would like to see happening.
3) To support young people
4) How do we support young people if schools reopening?
5) Grassroots engagement around food. We are seeing beginning of something that's a big societal shift. What we're missing is community access to community resources and community assets. Centres, if you need to quickly mobilisé food support. Accessing community resources and how we turn this point. These spaces will be reclaimed, would like to see interest in underused community centres, closed up businesses. People working fewer hours, need food support. We need to hold onto the resources we've started tapping into. We haven't physically convened in our neighbourhood spaces. In a year’s time, would like to see people still supporting one another, supporting neighbours.
6) We're the ones who find the holes and the gaps
7) - People self isolating can still contribute and small acts even can make a big difference, like book swaps 💖
8) Grassroots organisation rather than hierarchical top down really working
9) Brilliant work. We need to keep these groups for the future. I don't know maybe not charity but we can create like a society or community work group.