Dan Northover co-founded Handcrafted Projects 12 years ago; it delivers training, support, housing, and opportunities.
“For me, it’s very personal. We’re a faith based charity, so it is rooted in believing in people who have been written off by everyone else – people right on the edges of society; a belief that everyone has value, regardless.”
Its model revolves around four community hubs, each linked to around 20 houses with a team of support workers, that provide homes for those at risk.
“Each hub will have various creative activities that people can get involved with, things like cooking, carpentry, crafts –
opportunities to do some sort of social enterprise.”
Around 60 people a day are engaged across the hubs: “It’s not just one thing they need help with, it’s a holistic approach to individuals.”
Financially, it brings in revenue from various sources: housing benefits, rental income, adult learning contracts, grant income and trading; last year its turnover was £1.5m, and it has a 30-strong staff team.
“We are in the process of launching our fifth hub in Sunderland. We’re on 70 houses at the moment, and hoping to this year work up towards having 100 houses across five hubs.”
Their focus includes those affected by domestic abuse, prison leavers, young asylum seekers, and care leavers, which resonates with Dan.
Dan says: “I’m also a foster and adoptive parent, and have children with disabilities. From my experience of being a foster carer, they’re supported for complex needs up until their 18th birthday. When they turn 18, there’s a stark cliff edge, because the statutory obligation changes.”
Complex issues, he says, are often undiagnosed mental health issues, resulting in self-destructive and suicidal behaviours.
“What we see again and again is young people turning 18 and ending up in very negative situations – homeless, or in abusive relationships, or gang violence.
They can be very vulnerable to being criminally and sexually exploited, or using illegal substances to selfmedicate.
That’s why this is something we’re particularly focussing on.”
It’s about catching people at key ‘transition points’ in life.
Handcrafted work alongside rehabs, recovery projects, probation, and social services.
“When you go out to the towns and villages, there’s often very little opportunity to break that cycle and find positive activities. So, when we base ourselves in areas and open a community cafe or a workshop, there’s such an appetite and need.”
Dan adds: “People should never be written off, we just have to keep trying different things, which is why I’m always open to new ideas, and always want to keep innovating.”
Key Fund invested £115,000 loan and £34,500 grant to help Handcrafted Project purchase two new buildings.
“Key Fund came and met with us, talked with us, and got to understand the organisation and our needs. They took the time to understand our model and our approach and were able to work with us where banks normally wouldn’t. We don’t have a for-profit business model that a bank could easily understand, but a social investor like Key Fund can get behind it. This is a substantial resilient organisation, but it works on a charitable model, which needs to be understood differently and funded differently.”
Dan Northover
