Future Faces gains insight into the work of their chosen charity

Members of the Future Faces executive committee have taken a tour of the HQ and social enterprise facilities of The JERICHO Foundation to become better acquainted with the life-changing work of the organisation chosen as this year 's charity, writes Claudia Congrave.

JERICHO was established in 1993 to provide people in need with work and training opportunities via social projects. In some cases, the people supported by the charity have experienced homelessness, addiction, mental ill health, modern slavery, or the criminal justice system and are offered a gateway to employment via the charity 's enterprise opportunities.

The JERICHO HQ in Balsall Heath is also home to a range of tenants and organisations whose work aligns with the foundation 's values, including mental health, FGM and victim support charities.

Led by deputy CEO Katie Webb and senior social enterprise manager Nigel Lawrence, members of the committee were given an insight into the positive change being made across the community thanks to JERICHO 's various projects, including that of the catering enterprise ChangeKitchen, Jericho 's commercial and domestic cleaning services and The ReUsers second-hand store.

Nigel said: “Most businesses are already seeking the services we cater for, so it 's worth posing the question about whether they 've considered sourcing them from a social enterprise. Using a social enterprise gets people into employment and allows them to gain valuable experience in the industry. I 'm biased, but I think it 's much better to benefit the local community when it comes to those needs. ”

Travelling to Sutton Coldfield, the team were joined by manager Richard Craythorn as they explored the vast 15,198 square foot ReUsers site.

In addition to providing work opportunities to a team of young apprentices and volunteers, the mission of the ReUsers site is to reduce the city 's waste output.

Through the re-sale of donated items and hidden treasures, the ReUsers site prevents around 250 tonnes of waste entering landfill every year as well as generating revenue for the benefit of the charity 's causes.

Jaccy Datta, president of Future Faces, said: “It was really enlightening to visit the JERICHO social enterprise site and be able to see what 's going on on the ground of such a fabulous organisation. We are very proud to have JERICHO as our chosen charity and are looking forward to supporting them further in their work across our community. ”

For more information visit www.jericho.org.uk

Pictured (left to right): Kasim Choudhry, Jaccy Datta, Richard Craythorn, Katie Webb, Sabah Hussain and Vanessa Lewis at the Re-Users site.