Changing demographics require new solutions
VAT MANCHESTER Jewry’s major welfare charity, The Fed, CEO Mark Cunningham is enthused by the response to FedEx, its new London social group for young expats.
The previous night, its inaugural event in Camden had attracted a turnout of 160 and raised both awareness and £5,000. Recognising that “traditional boundaries are changing”, Mr Cunningham is keen to win the support of capital-based “kids who grew up in Manchester but still have family here” — particularly at a time of everdwindling statutory funding.
And over in the café at The Fed’s impressive care complex, Heathlands, the president of the city’s Jewish representative council, Russell Conn, muses on the difficulties of engaging with the Charedi families who are replacing the young leavers from the mainstream community.
Projections suggest that by 2030, the strictly Orthodox will account for half the Manchester Jewish population (they currently make up around a third of an estimated 30,000 total).
“It creates a tremendous challenge,” reflects Mr Conn, a lifelong Mancunian who took office in May. “As a community, they only want to engage when it suits them. They’ll come out for shechita, and Ofsted [issues with Charedi schools] but not otherwise.”
If the changing demographics of the UK’s second largest Jewish community are a concern in terms of future provision, Mr Cunningham has enough on his plate dealing with current problems. “We have a 10-year vision,” he explains. “A detailed plan is not worth the paper it is written on because of changes in social care.”
A passionate Northerner — “the world doesn’t end at the M25” — he is proud that The Fed touches the lives of around 1,000 people every week, around 170 of them in residential and sheltered accommodation. “We are supporting people in every one of the ten local authority areas.”
The strictly Orthodox are among those benefiting from The Fed’s range of services. “You can see the need from the Charedi community is growing but the same is true in the mainstream community.”
Expanding its fundraising reach through initiatives such as FedEx is essential given that the charity has to raise £1.2 million from the community towards a budget of £8.5 million. “We cover costs but only just.”
It has had to think creatively to unlock new revenue sources and Mr Cunningham highlights Discharge to Assess, a partnership with Bury Council and the NHS. The scheme allows patients awaiting an assessment before discharge from hospital to be housed in vacant premises on the Heathlands site, thus preventing bed-blocking.
As well as benefiting the wider community — having provided more than 6,000 bed nights and saving the NHS a substantial sum — the partnership has also boosted The Fed’s coffers.
“It’s a virtuous circle,” says Mr Cunningham, who declines to divulge the payment to the charity, citing commercial sensitivity. “The money helps us to provide care for people in financial need. We’re seeing mainstream families on the periphery of the community struggling financially in a way reminiscent of the situation decades ago.”
Another additional earner has been hosting an administrative base for Bury’s integrated care team, with the revenue in this case supporting The Fed’s volunteering service, “our jewel in the crown”.
The Fed has 490 volunteers, assisting almost as many families. “The value to the community is enormous,” Mr Cunningham declares. Volunteers undertake tasks such as home visiting and befriending, also keeping people connected with their GPs and dentists, a vital tool in detecting signs of deterioration.
“Many of the statutory services available years ago are no longer there. The effect is to push these services down to the voluntary sector.” And with cashstrapped councils less willing to fund residential care places, more people are forced to remain at home, increasing the strain on both families and charity resources.
The Fed has also secured £500,000 from external funds for its latest dementia care facility, Willow Tree House, which will open in spring. A small household of 11 beds, it will be “bright, modern and homely with a lot of design features which make caring for someone with dementia easier. We have to be prudent but we also have to keep pace with changing demands.”
To the outsider, Heathlands is an oasis of calm, with pleasant and airy rooms and inviting outdoor spaces. Mr Cunningham’s own “go to area when I’m having a bad day” is The Pier, adjoining The Beach, another of the dementia units.
However, not all is relaxed at executive level. For while the demand for nursing care is increasing, the workforce to deliver that specialist care is
Young expats raising money for The Fed at FedEx’s first London social