During this financial year, Women 4 Change CIC delivered a wide range of community projects designed to support children, young people, adults and older residents, particularly those living in deprived neighbourhoods. Our Digital Poverty Programme provided both young people and adults with essential IT skills and access to computers and laptops. This was especially impactful for community members facing high unemployment and for whom English is a second language, enabling them to improve their digital confidence, employment readiness and general independence. Through funding received from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC), we delivered youth activities including inclusive sports sessions for boys and girls. More than 345 young people benefited from these activities during the year, improving their physical health, social skills and overall wellbeing. With additional NHS funding, we provided mental health support sessions and delivered targeted cancer awareness programmes. These encouraged local residents to attend bowel and breast cancer screening, resulting in an increase in screening uptake among groups who are often underrepresented in preventative healthcare services. We successfully delivered our first Disability Children’s Eid Fun Day, fully funded by generous fundraising from Cadent Gas staff. This event offered children with disabilities and their families a joyful day filled with activities, food and social interaction. This year, we also supported the development of young volunteers aged 16–24, providing them with safeguarding, GDPR and first aid training. Many of these young people were taking part in their first community projects and, for most, this was the first time they had been paid for their work. This has helped build their work experience, skills and confidence. Our Men’s Over-50s Football Sessions supported older men who are often isolated. These sessions, followed by free coffee meet-ups, offered both physical activity and important social connection. We continued to support older residents through our Elders Programme, where food hampers were distributed via Leicester City in the Community and our wider networks. Our intergenerational project further strengthened community cohesion by bringing older and younger people together. For families with young children, we provided Stay and Play sessions for mothers and their under-5s, offering a safe, accessible and supportive environment for early years development and parental wellbeing. We also received funding from research universities to help improve research participation within our community, ensuring that seldom-heard voices are better represented in academic and health-related studies.

Our stakeholders include: Children and young people, Parents and families, Older residents, People with disabilities, Volunteers aged 16 to 24, Local community groups and networks, Funders and partners e.g. OPCC, NHS, Leicester City in the Community, research universities How stakeholders were consulted: Verbal feedback gathered during and after sessions Surveys completed by participants and parents Ongoing discussions with volunteers and young people during training Engagement with partner organisations to review project delivery and community needs Feedback received informally during community events, stay and play sessions, elders' activities and sports sessions Actions taken in response to feedback: Expanded digital support sessions after participants requested additional IT help Introduced more inclusive sports activities in response to youth feedback Added follow-up mental health support sessions after community members asked for continued access Strengthened volunteer training to include additional safeguarding and wellbeing topics Increased intergenerational activities based on positive feedback from both older people and young participants Adjusted the Stay and Play timetable to better meet parents’ needs

No remuneration was received

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration