Our Impact Stories - Conversation with Charity Partners
Flourish Mentors, a Brighton-based LGBTQ+ friendly charity dedicated to supporting , befriending and mentoring young women aged 16-25 was our pilot Charity Partner.
Over the course of the year we worked together to ensure as many of their ‘tent pegs’ were in the ground as firmly as possible. This included providing support with fundraising, strategy, governance, comms, systems and equipment.
At our end of the partnership, we sat down with the Directors to reflect on the impact of the support, evaluate its effectiveness, and discuss areas for improvement.
How would you describe the Pearce Foundation?
Frédérique Lambrakis-Haddad (Co-director, Flourish Mentors): Wonderful, and really supportive. Just quite fundamental actually, to our progress this past year. If I'm honest, I don't think we'd look anything like we do now, and that's thanks to you.
Cathy Chesson (Co-director, Flourish Mentors): You've been our rock! And you've guided us and navigated us through our first year…you've been there on the ride with us. I think right from our initial meeting, you listened to our needs, and more importantly, you recognised those skill sets we did have while acknowledging those we didn't.
What would you describe is the most valuable contribution we've been able to offer you?
Frédérique: I'm going to try to think of a couple of words that go together; supportive & infrastructure. Supportive is speaking to you and your team. Zoya and Rich and Jane in particular, have been just incredibly supportive. You bring a real human touch to everything you do. You're intuitive and flexible and have helped us to discover things about ourselves that we may not have known. You have provided us with the hard skills, particularly comms, strategy, and fundraising. Also just thinking about the bits that we're doing well and equally, the things that we need to strengthen and grow so that we can build a really strong foundation.
Cathy: Initially, I was skeptical about the DISC profile that the Pearce Foundation offers, but it turned out to be a valuable exercise. It helped me to understand my soft skills better, which I hadn't realised before. It has really aided me and Flourish Mentors. For example, I used to think admin tasks weren't my thing, but I discovered I enjoy organising and putting processes in place. It made me realise that despite seeing myself as solely creative, I am also quite methodical!
Jane with Frederique, co-director of Flourish Mentors, discussing how our support model helped Flourish Mentors.
Jane with Cathy, co-director of Flourish Mentors, discussing how the coaching approach has benefited them as charity leaders.
We support our charity partners by offering up to £2000. Could you describe our support process and the difference it would have made if we'd have just given you the £2000 without the wrap-around support?
I would consider this to be the most well spent £2000 ever! It doesn't feel like that much; it's more akin to investing £10,000, to be honest. The reason behind this sentiment is because you've not only strengthened us but also equipped us with the skills needed for replication in the future. So essentially, it's an investment in us, ensuring we can move forward independently. If you had given us money instead, we might have opted to hire someone else to do the work for us or enroll in courses. However, this personalized approach is far superior. Your careful consideration of our needs, and the selection of individuals like Zoya and Rich, along with yourself, who embody humility, kindness, and empowerment, further emphasises the value of this investment.
What insights or knowledge surprised you?
Frédérique The large learning curve in our case has surprised me yet approaching it with self-compassion and with an acknowledgment that we’re growing. We all make mistakes but we pick ourselves up. This is part of the process as well. In terms of strategy, we've grown immensely. We strive to balance it with organic growth while responding to the needs in the community as much as possible. Thus, finding the right balance with adequate structure and support is an important learning for us.
“It’s easy to just keep on going with your day-to-day schedule, but it’s really good to reflect and acknowledge how far you’ve come. Through several meetings with the Pearce Foundation, we had the chance for this reflection and I think that’s invaluable.”