Glastonbury, Somerset
Our Impact
The Red Brick Building’s community impact centres around the creation of community spaces for work, wellbeing and enrichment, and providing opportunities for community members to engage in activities related to the arts, education and enterprise.
By providing these avenues for participation, and working in collaboration with likeminded organisations, we facilitate outcomes such as: increased confidence, improved wellbeing, a sense of belonging, enhanced skills and education, and cultural experiences.
In turn, these positive outcomes contribute to longer-term outcomes, such as building meaningful relationships, reducing isolation, increasing employability, raising aspirations, enhancing the local economy, improving mental health, and creating a stronger, more resilient community.
The Red Brick Building is run by a small, dedicated team of staff and volunteers, and our work is not possible without the support from funders and donations. If you would like to support is in continuing to further our impact, you can donate here, or contact us if you are interested in funding us.
Please find below some examples of how we have recently impacted our community through some of our activities:
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YOUTH
The Red Brick Building has a long-standing collaboration with the YMCA, and we run a regular Youth Club on Friday evenings. The group fosters a supportive environment for growth and development, and provides a safe and engaging space for participation in a structured programme of activities and workshops. This empowers young people to explore interests, develop skills and build positive relationships with peers.
Our Youth Club serves as a vital resource for addressing the modern challenges faced by young people in our community. From tackling issues such as youth unemployment, to promoting mental health and wellbeing.
By collaborating with the YMCA, we benefit from their expertise and resources to maximise the impact of our programme, providing comprehensive support to youth in need.
The Red Brick Building also has good relationships with local schools and colleges. We support students by providing work experience placements, which can be hard to find in such a rural area.
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ENTERPRISE
Co-working spaces like ours provide a multitude of benefits and foster a vibrant ecosystem for entrepreneurs and professionals alike. By offering a friendly, relaxed, sociable and supportive environment, we create an atmosphere conducive to productivity and collaboration. Our affordable pricing structure ensures accessibility for all, enabling even the smallest of new enterprises to thrive.
We have a diverse community of over 40 tenants spanning our offices, artisan studio, media hub and hot desks. And the impact extends beyond the individual tenants; many people who use our workspaces also employ members of the local community, further enhancing the local economy and impacting the broader community.
The collaborative nature of co-working cultivates a supportive network where tenants can share ideas, resources, and expertise, leading to mutual growth and success. In essence, co-working spaces like ours serve as catalysts for entrepreneurship, economic development, and community engagement. A good example of this is long term tenant Andrew Gowland:
Andrew started his business as an Architectural Technician and Web Designer, and joined the Red Brick Building by renting a desk in the co-working hub. The opportunity to have a more public space for his business enabled him to increase his turnover by 30%.
In his second year, an office became available within the Red Brick Building. Andrew moved into the office with an Architect, who was also working from a hot desk in our co-working hub. This enabled more effective networking between the two businesses. Working within the Red Brick Building has also enabled Andrew to diversify into digital media through developing links with other tenants.
In addition to providing affordable workspaces for the community, we also support our local community radio station, GWS Radio, through offering a bespoke studio space and discounted rent. In turn, GWS Radio brings further community benefit by way of community engagement, volunteering, and enterprise opportunities.
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ARTS & CULTURE
The Red Brick Building prides itself on its diverse array of cultural events, catering to a wide range of interests and demographics within the community. The building serves as a hub for creative expression and community connection, and we regularly host an eclectic mix of activities and events, including: exercise and wellbeing classes, meditation events, family discos, art exhibitions, artisan markets, conferences, and workshops. We are also a well-respected local venue for live music, and we are proud to offer a high quality grassroots performance space for local and international musicians alike.
Our venue is accessible to all and we typically welcome over 10,000 visitors per year to our events. Some visitors have travelled as far afield as from Leeds and Pembrokeshire:
“After our visit to your venue yesterday, my sons and I thought we should let you know our thoughts on the place. What a lovely venue you have created!
The staff all treated us with care and respect, which is sadly not always the case with music venues.
As a disabled person, it can also be intimidating and overwhelming to be in such a crowded place, but the staff made it very easy for me to get to the bar and the toilets when I needed to, and all 3 of us had an excellent night”. – Visitor from Pembrokeshire
The impact of these events extends beyond mere entertainment. They foster family and community connection through inclusive and enjoyable experiences, and inspire local people to get involved with community events.
Moreover, by providing a platform for local artists, musicians, and performers, the Red Brick Building supports and nurtures artistic talent within the community, offering opportunities for exposure, growth and collaboration.
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COMMUNITY GARDEN
The impact of our small Community Garden extends far beyond its size! It embodies a shared commitment to organic cultivation and sustainable practices, and focuses on learning about food, growing and improving mental and physical health.
Currently supported by funding from Open Mental Health and the Postcode Trust, we are able to outreach to individuals, families and vulnerable groups to support positive mental wellbeing through garden activities.
In 2023, thanks to a grant from Open Mental Health, we directly supported 90 individuals with mild, moderate and severe mental ill health, signposting a further 40 and working collaboratively with organisations to deliver further support to groups and individuals through garden activities.
Additionally, our garden hosts educational courses in nutrition, sustainable living, and food preparation, catering to a diverse audience ranging from elders to homeschoolers. Through these initiatives, our community garden serves as a vibrant centre for learning, connection, and empowerment, enriching the lives of all who engage with it.
Our new emerging project, Bridie’s Farm – the home of the Glastonbury Food and Regenerative Farming Centre, will be working closely with our community garden to further our impact.
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MENTAL HEALTH & WELLBEING
In response to the 2022 cost-of-living crisis, we collaborated with Glastonbury Mental Health Network to establish a regular community warm space, offering support with trained listeners, creative activities, and free hot refreshments. ‘The Snug Lounge’ was created – based on Glastonbury Mental Health Network’s pre-established monthly ‘Snug’ event – and it received an overwhelming response, with 50 to 80 visitors per session.
The community using the space told us how important The Snug Lounge had become, and the need was greater than ever. So, with additional support from funders, these weekly sessions have continued all year, benefiting an ever-growing number of community members.
Here are just two examples of how The Snug Lounge has directly impacted members of the community:
M was experiencing severe anxiety and recognised that too much time spent alone was contributing to this, so they came along to The Snug Lounge on a weekly basis. Feeling better and recognising the impact it has, M now volunteers as a ‘welcomer’ every week, and is also participating in free courses in mental health first aid and counselling studies in order to help others.
F comes to The Snug Lounge and has severe, enduring mental health needs. Since being signposted, they are now under the care of the Community Mental Health Team and taking the right medication. They continue to engage with the project lead and others in the space, but sometimes prefers to sit quietly and have some soup/refreshments.
The Red Brick Building prioritises positive mental wellbeing across all our activities, fostering a supportive and inclusive environment for our community members.
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HERITAGE
The Red Brick Building was originally a sheepskin factory, and our recent heritage project funded by Historic England uncovered the stories of those connected to the original Morlands & Baily’s factories, culminating in a 3 day exhibition called ‘Here Forever’.
The project celebrated local heritage and contributed to building an historical archive. The exhibition was carefully shaped by the memories and experiences of the local community, and stories were shared as part of an engaging and thought-provoking public exhibition. The project also provided meaningful volunteer opportunities, and well as fostering intergenerational connections and broadened participants’ understanding of historical and social dynamics. Such opportunities are purposeful in themselves, but also met a need for meaningful and sustained social contact.
Running alongside this, we produced a Heritage Trail leaflet, which provides a walking trail of Glastonbury’s industrial heritage sites. This encouraged the community to get out and about, and learn about our town’s industrial heritage roots. The leaflet is now available for free in Glastonbury’s Tourist Information Centre, for visitors and residents alike.
Here are a few comments from visitors to the Here Forever exhibition:
“Fascinating and moving – so much I didn’t know. A great sense of community.”
“Fantastic and much needed – may it flourish in the future”
“What an enlightening experience – great to hear about the heritage of this area. Thank you!”
“I feel I have finally understood the history and community that lived and worked in the Tannery building, and what it meant to them as a community and how the closure devastated a whole town.” – Indra Donfrancesco, Glastonbury Town Mayor
“Loved the space – very powerful to hold a local heritage exhibition within the original spaces.”
The Here Forever exhibition is now available as a digital exhibition through our website:
www.redbrickbuilding.co.uk/heritage
We are currently working on a project to encourage young people to get involved with our heritage, and have applied for further funding to develop the project.
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VOLUNTEERING
Volunteering offers a myriad of benefits, both to individuals and communities. It can provide a sense of purpose and personal growth, as well as build confidence, provide work experience, increase employability, reduce isolation, and increase social connection. Volunteering has a profound impact on communities by addressing needs and fostering social cohesion.
We have around 50 volunteers at the Red Brick Building, spanning across all our projects. They provide a wide range of support, including: welcoming visitors to the building, helping to care for our Community Garden and prepare for our upcoming Bridie’s Farm, and supporting the running of our events. We even have a volunteer architect who is providing assistance with the renovation of Building C. Each volunteer plays a vital role in supporting the project, and their contributions are invaluable.
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TRAINING AND EDUCATION
The Red Brick Building’s newest phase involves renovating the final part of the building (Building C), as part of the Glastonbury Town Deal. To maximise benefits for the local community, Beckery Construction Company was formed under the Red Brick Building Centre Ltd, and has enabled the recruitment of workers from the local area, fostering employment opportunities and economic growth.
In partnership with Train4All, construction skills training and apprenticeships have been be offered, providing valuable learning and development opportunities for individuals within the community. These apprenticeships not only enhance employability, but also contribute to the upskilling of the local workforce, ensuring a sustainable and more prosperous future for Glastonbury and its residents.
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OUR FUNDERS
Thank you to our 300+ community shareholders and the Red Brick Investors Club, with whom we have built a successful community hub.
Thank you also to our generous funders for supporting our work. Most recently, these include: Somerset Community Foundation, Historic England, Open Mental Health, Landsec Trust, Power to Change, and Glastonbury Town Deal.
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FUTURE PLANS TO INCREASE OUR IMPACT
With the current renovation of Building C, the final part of the Red Brick Building, we aim to increase our impact by providing an affordable community canteen, a recording studio for local musicians, updated specialist facilities for GWS Radio, a fully-equipped artisan and creative makers spaces known as ‘The Life Factory’, and a dedicated youth area. In particular, Building C aims to address youth issues experienced by the town, including improving educational and skills attainment to reduce youth unemployment.
Also in development under the Red Brick Building is the Glastonbury Food and Regenerative Farming Centre project, another of the 11 Town Deal funded projects. It will be delivered on 20 acres of organic land at Bridie’s Farm. The project is focusing on food security, nature connectedness, and natural agricultural and land management practices of agroecology and Permaculture, with connections to other educational centres and universities.