A VENNTURE TO SUPPORT SOCIAL NEEDS
5 September 2017
Herefordshire Vennture (‘Vennture’), known at the time as Hereford City Mission, was originally founded in 1856, by local philanthropist John Venn to support families in their homes. In 2013, encouraged by Jesse Norman MP, Hereford City Mission was born again as Vennture to deliver substantive volunteer led initiatives to address local social needs.
Vennture provides an important service to the local community and statutory services, eliminating unnecessary calls on emergency services and the local A&E in the busy night time economy. Vennture provides this support through the following initiatives:
Street Pastors - An intervention aimed at improving the safety of people in Hereford’s night time economy.
Lean-on-Me - Provides a safe space for people who are drunk or unwell at night to support the night time economy in Hereford.
Family Pastors - The programme sees Vennture work with the local council, doctors and schools to work with troubled families that are referred to them by Hereford Social Services
The Street Pastors programme was set up as a result of an increase in anti-social behaviour among 18-24 year olds out in the night time economy, which led to strains on local resources. Vennture’s strong link with the community and faith groups saw it become an ideal partner for this project.
Vennture approached Venturesome to secure a £50,000 standby loan facility to support the working capital of the organisation. Our loan has provided the organisation with the financial stability to plan and deliver contracts, as it looks to grow its activities in the area.
"Inner city and urban needs often hit the headlines yet the needs in rural areas can be just as great. Vennture is focussed on equipping and enabling local people to take responsibility and address these challenges from reducing demand on emergency services to turning around troubled families. Like our founder, John Venn, and working with CAF Venturesome, we are rebuilding a safety net for the most vulnerable."
Robert Thomas, Lead Executive at Herefordshire Vennture