Gen Dearman, Challengers CEO
One Year In: Laying the Foundations
We launched our new five-year strategy last September and it couldn’t have come at a more pivotal moment – because while celebrating our heritage is important, the need for our work has never been greater.
Social isolation is widespread: about 70% of disabled young people experience chronic loneliness. This doesn’t just affect wellbeing – it has knock-on effects on physical health, mental health, self-esteem, and family life.
Many families are being excluded from settings and services simply because of the complexity of their child’s needs. More than half of families who use our services tell us this is their reality.
A large proportion, approximately 79%, of families feel they are not getting the right level of support. The formal systems (school, health, social care) are often overstretched, underfunded or ill-adapted for some of the needs our children have.
There has also been a significant increase in EHCPs (Education, Health and Care Plans) in recent years, more exclusions and suspensions of disabled pupils compared to peers. These pressures mean our respite, play, inclusion services are more needed than ever.
In response, our strategy sets ambitious yet essential goals to grow our reach and the support we provide by 25% – to support 1,000 families and deliver 100,000 hours of support over five years. Our guiding principles underpin the work that we do to ensure that no child will be excluded based on the complexity of their needs or their family’s financial circumstances; our priority to deepen the impact for families we already support; and to explore ways to serve those on our waiting lists.
Progress Against Our Strategic Aims
This first year has been about putting the right foundations in place so future years can build on steady, sustainable progress. The external environment – funding shifts, policy changes, community needs – will always influence how we deliver our work, but our aims remain unchanged.
We are proud to say that already one year in we are making progress:
- Play and Youth sessions have grown, with the additional re-opening of a second site at Bellfields, giving young people a safe and welcoming base.
- Through our Hub, we have connected with over 270 families still waiting for services, making sure they were not left out of our community, offering sessions such as Healthy Parent Carer Workshops.
- Piloted stay and play sessions at our centres providing some after school fun for the whole family.
- Launched 555 Guildford, a new provision for children as young as five without a school place – successfully amplifying the voices of families in crisis with BBC coverage.
- Held our second family festival, Orange Aid, attended by over 400 people for a day of music, fun and connection. Through partnership, bringing our neighbours in Guildford on board and sponsorship, we were able to double our capacity and increase our offer for 2025.
Our People
At the heart of our strategy is our approach to our people – how we listen, look after, motivate and develop our employees and volunteers. Through The Challengers Approach we continue to foster an inclusive culture and set of values crucial to guiding our decision-making and to achieving the ambitions of our strategy.
What’s next
We’re proud of these steps forward, but there’s more to do. We’ll continue listening, adapting and working together to make Challengers a great place to work and to deliver the best for the children, young people and families we support.