The Somerset Fund Impact Report 22.23

South Somerset
The Somerset Fund stories - Somerset African Caribbean Network
"We’re 17 members and growing. We’re looking to increase that number by reaching out
as effectively as we can. We set up before the death of George Floyd in America and the
BLM protests that created a focus on race equality. After a period of absence,
institutions and the general public became interested. With Covid restrictions behind
us we can work towards increasing in-person events and encourage more engagement.
We’ve worked hard to initiate and facilitate our projects to address the lack of resources,
knowledge and improve staff confidence i.e: working closely with Somerset libraries to
help raise awareness around race in the wider community.
We would like to include more people in what we do and for that to happen we need to
improve how we reach out to people. It’s a rural community and Somerset is a very
white dominated county. We want to make sure we’re reaching both people who’ve
recently moved here and also long-standing residents. Support needs are multiple and
we’re about sharing information relating to our community.
And 2023 sees the 75th anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush arriving in Britain on
22 June 1948, so we need to make sure this is acknowledged to honour the elder
members of the Windrush community.
The history of people with African Caribbean heritage goes unrecognised due to small
numbers, and the messaging was of no need to bring African Caribbean people to the
table or add to the conversation – so I set out to address that. It’s about educating people
as to why we’re here and the part we have played historically i.e. the NHS, and the war.
There’s a lot of work to be done. Our aim is to promote inclusivity and representation.
And thanks to our grant from Somerset Community Foundation, more people will learn
about our culture and gain a better understanding of the legacy and contribution we’ve
made.”