Parents Rock

Aim: Parents Rock: a programme from SSE Cornwall to help parents across Cornwall start social enterprises that benefit their local communities.

The Project

Parents Rock is a new programme from SSE Cornwall, supporting parents of school aged children to start a social or environmentally focused business that will make a real difference to their local communities.

Our aim is to support parents across Cornwall to find local solutions to local problems and become effective social entrepreneurs.

Clare Finnegan-Vyese: Get Together Cornwall

The Programme

Parents Rock will support parents to develop local solutions to local challenges, equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need to become effective social entrepreneurs through a series of specialist workshops.

These workshops will build confidence, develop self-esteem and enhance each individual's impact as a social entrepreneur, helping them tap into their own expertise and experience to identify exactly what their community needs and turn their ideas into sustainable social enterprises.

Our ambition is to develop a programme of workshops that we can deliver right now, over the next 12 months, and then continue to deliver into the future. To do this we need to raise £15,000 and we need your help.

SSE Cornwall workshop environment

The Challenge

We live in a changing society, where continued cuts to local services severely impact families and communities across the county.

We can often see what needs to change, and have brilliant ideas for improving things, but few of us have the support needed to develop these ideas, let alone make that change happen.

Evony Lynch: Mama Cafe

Our Solution

Cornwall has always had a fantastic entrepreneurial spirit; we’re good at finding solutions to problems and making things better from within our county.

At SSE Cornwall, we see this all the time and we know that individuals really can make a difference.

From a seed of an idea, our students are given the support needed to develop their ideas into projects and community businesses; we support them to develop as individuals whilst simultaneously developing their ideas which will have a real impact on their local communities.

Angie Emrys-Jones: Cornwall Accessible Activities Programme (CAAP)

Why Parents?

Well…by definition they are already well connected with their local communities, through their children’s schools, local clubs and activities.

Plus, parents often share many attributes of a social entrepreneur; they’re driven, committed, active, persistent, engaged with their community, practical, resourceful, resilient, creative and perpetual plate spinners!

By supporting parents to develop their ideas to resolve local challenges, together we can really help Parents Rock!

The Cost

Raising the £15,000 we need will allow us to:

• Deliver three ‘Parents Rock’ programmes (each 12 weeks long) across Cornwall in 2016/17
• Offer over 30 parents of school aged children, including parents of children with additional needs, a FREE place on our programmes
• Attract match funding to make your money go further
• Work with our ‘talent pool’ of social enterprise experts to support parents on their journey.

Katie Evans: Tots About

The Results

Raising £15,000 means that our Parents Rock programme will deliver:

• A number of new, innovative and exciting social and environmental projects and services, aimed at benefitting communities across Cornwall
• Parents feeling re-energised and fulfilled, becoming excellent role models for their children and their communities
• A group of confident and focused social entrepreneurs, making a difference and joining a larger collaborative and supportive network.

With your help, we can really start making a difference and help Cornwall’s ‘Parents Rock’.

 Jamie Thomson: Supastrikers

If you or someone you know would like to be part of our Parents Rock programme, please email us at [email protected] 

A huge thank you to all the fantastic businesses and individuals that have supported our campaign so far!

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This project closed unsuccessfully on 23rd May 2016