Jersey Community Relations Trust (JCRT)

🙏🏻💜Thank you to the wonderful team at Freeda Jersey who will be working 24/7 in our safe home to support the women and children spending Christmas with us this year, and others who may find themselves needing a safe space to stay over the festive period. We are here if you need us. Always. The team will also be keeping the helpline open as usual for anyone in the community who may find themselves in a difficult or worrying environment with an abusive partner or family member, and need some advice and support. The house looks beautiful at Christmas, sparkly and full of festive warmth! And the kitchen is well stocked, with lots of Christmas goodies, many of which have been donated by kind islanders and local organisations! Thank you! 🎄💫

From all of us at the JCRT, we wish everyone a peaceful and joyous Christmas. 2024 has been eye opening and challenging, but also a year of hope and opportunity. We have throughly enjoyed working with all our partners, supporters, volunteers, and collaborators - we are grateful to all of you for your time and expertise, as well as trusting and championing our vision for a fairer and happier Island community. Best wishes for 2025.

Did you catch today’s JEP? Far from being a slow news day, today’s paper was jam packed with the contributions of many talented women - all who themselves contribute to society, from supporting new parents or educating businesses about closing the gender pay gap. Kate Wright, our Chair was also featured. She shared her thoughts on the importance and power of community. Community can mean different things to different people. Some communities thrive and prosper, some are forgotten and sidelined - Kate has reminded us to stand up for and support these communities. It’s not always easy. But in the fight for equality and kindness, it’s important we do. Well done to everyone involved in making today’s paper a joy. 👏🏼👏🏼

Calling all charities and community projects! Are you looking for funding to bring your ideas to life in 2025? Check out the closing dates for our grants in 2025 and start planning your application 👇 https://lnkd.in/e_bRDyXs Don’t miss your opportunity to make a positive impact in our island community. #JerseyCI #CommunityFoundation

We are pleased and encouraged to see another recommendation actioned from the Violence Against Women and Girls report. The Government of Jersey has launched It’s Not Okay! campaign raising awareness on street harassment, unwanted behaviour and how to stop it. The VAWG taskforce was led by our Chair Kate Wright. The report, published last year, aimed to get a better understanding of the problem on the Island. We hope the campaign is a chance to educate and help women and girls feel safer on our streets, especially as the nights are darker and longer and over the festive period. Since the launch, we have also seen recommendations actioned by the States of Jersey Police. Clare’s Law was recently published to raise awareness about the right to ask about a partner’s history. Watch the campaign video here: https://lnkd.in/gtT5MGki Learn more: It’s Not Okay! campaign: https://lnkd.in/e5CxUJBh Government of Jersey States of Jersey Police

In our Poverty in Jersey report, we identified that households in the bottom quintile of earnings in Jersey, nearly 15% of household income went towards food, nearly a 1/3 towards housing and energy and more than 5% towards health related goods and services. Together, these three categories of spending account for over half of their average weekly expenditure. As costs continue to spiral and with winter firmly here, we are increasingly aware of the pressure on more households to be able to provide the basics for their families. Please consider supporting charities and organisations that will be working tirelessly over the Christmas period to support the elderly, those who will be on their own or families who will be struggling at this time. Read our full report on our website: https://lnkd.in/euftvHUU

In recognition of World Aids Day, Liberate Jersey are presenting “HIV: The Facts” as a free training session on Monday 2nd December between 12.00 – 1.00pm at the Salvation Army Community Hall. Lead by a trained counsellor, this session includes: - What it means to be HIV positive (and what it does not mean) - How HIV is transmitted and how to prevent transmission - What the statistics are for HIV in Jersey and the UK - How HIV is treated today and how it can become untransmissable - The stigma and subsequent discrimination for people who are HIV positive - Where to go for support Head to our Facebook event page for more details and to RSVP

With thanks to our trustees, volunteers and supporters, we are making progress with Project Luso. Read the latest updates on our website. This year, the JCRT has been carrying out research to better understand the challenges the Portuguese community may face, living and working in Jersey. We are still looking for Islanders with a Portuguese background to contribute to our work. This will help shape our future conversations, events and celebrations, as well as directly inform our research. Please do share our research and survey with your employees and colleagues. Read about Project Luso here: https://lnkd.in/eWDi8F4s

The superstar VAWG campaigner and survivor that is Suzie Mahe was out and about yesterday in the most atrocious weather, drumming up support and awareness for the Soroptimist International Jersey’s UN Women’s March tomorrow in St Helier! So please don’t let a little rain put you off! We need feet on the streets, making some noise to eliminate violence against women and girls in Jersey! Please join us at 11.30am at West Centre - Saturday 23rd November- for the UN’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls! 🧡 Freeda Jersey Jersey Community Relations Trust (JCRT) The Diversity Network States Assembly – Jersey's elected parliament Jersey Evening Post ITV Channel Television Chris Craddock Megan D. Andy Sibcy Jess Dunsdon Alexandra Spiceley Megan Murphy

Research is key to understanding the issues facing marginalised or under-represented communities.   Meaningful research can help to shape more accurate perceptions of our communities and go on to informing and developing policies.   Did you know? The JCRT has conducted research into the following areas:   > Poverty in Jersey > Cost of childcare > Social mobility > Women and leadership > Equality in education   Click the link to read our reports: https://lnkd.in/euftvHUU