This page is the first of what will become weekly updates for our leaders. We’ll send you a Whatsapp each time an update has been posted, with a link to a Notion page to read it from (like this one).
We’ll be using these updates to share what we’ve focused on this week, things we’re changing, things we want to change, and what we’re focusing on next week.
As it’s our first update, we decided to share a more general update regarding where we’re at, before diving in and setting the structure more next week.
Our team’s hours have been been reduced significantly compared where they were last year, and we’ve been working as hard as we can to keep meals running, and groups launching, all whilst keeping our fingers crossed for better days.
We’re not sure what’s been in the water for the past couple of weeks…but whatever it is, it sure loves Local Welcome! After some positive funding news last week, this week has brought us some exciting news regarding our team’s capacity.
A service designer is an individual who specialises in designing service a from start to finish.
For example, the journey you follow to visit a supermarket’s website, book a grocery delivery, and then receive updates and notifications until your order arrives at your front door.
A service designer will have been amongst the team that helped build this whole experience, and thought of every detail to make it as easy as possible. Or, failing that - a service designer will also have designed the complaints service you use if you aren’t happy with something!
Our service designer is called Niki, and we’re really excited for her to join us! She’ll spend her time examining some of the processes we run at Local Welcome in order to operate the meals, and will then lead on improving them. For example, all the behind the scenes stuff that our teams work on to make meals happen, the experience our members, leaders and guests have when they sign up, and even some of the on-the-day things that you take care of at meals as leaders.
You can read some more about the service design discipline here if you’re interested!
We’ve been working on a form for members, leaders and guests to sign up for Local Welcome meals, all in one place. We’re aiming to have it set up and ready to test out in time for Sunday 6 August. We’ll keep you updated 😊
As well as aiming to finish off the sign up form, next week we’ll be focusing on running summer holiday meals in schools in Tottenham and Newham where we’ve been running weekly meals over the last couple of months. We’re also moving forward on some work funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
This project involves work with an Oral Historian, who attended our Local Welcome group in Tottenham today, so he can get a feel for what we do, and help us put a plan together for the coming months. Here’s a picture of him getting some practise, rolling out flatbreads!
The headline for this project is that we’re going to be (sensitively) collecting and recording some of the incredible stories shared at Local Welcome meals, in order to celebrate and share heritage.