July Our Story 2021 A Warm Welcome We’re On The Map! The lifting of many of the remaining coronavirus restrictions on 19 July means we can welcome all of our students back to The Fifth Trust for the first time in 16 months! Many of our students returned in small bubbles after Easter, but people who attend a number of day centres and placements have only been able to go to one Nikki’s of them to reduce the risk of the Column virus spreading. Our TV debut on BBC South East Today’s On the Map Following advice from County Council and Public last month introduced The Fifth Trust to a wide new Health , these students are now able to return to audience. us as well, so long as their families or carers are satisfied with the risk assessments carried out at all locations. Eager to see for themselves what we have on offer, plenty of viewers jumped in their cars the following day to visit Although we have been keeping in close contact with the Vineyard – a trend that has continued ever since. everyone who has not been able to attend, nothing beats We’ve also had people interested in volunteering and being together in person, and we cannot wait to see them potential students contact us. back at the Vineyard and Barham skills centres from 2 August. We aim to reintroduce our full rota in September Extra customers means extra revenue to expand and – hopefully the final step back to normality. improve the services we offer to our 150 students with learning disabilities, so we’re delighted to welcome so many new visitors. We have also been able to restart taster days for people interested in our services. We know from speaking to *See our film on the news section of our website. the families of potential students that missing out on the kind of opportunities we offer has been really tough so it is a massive relief to be able to invite them to visit. We will continue regular Covid testing for staff. Because of the vulnerability of many of our students, who work in the garden centre and café every weekday, we would be grateful if our customers would continue to wear masks after the legal requirement to do so is lifted. With best wishes , Nikki Marley Chief Executive Officer

OPEN OPEN Unique Mon - Sat 9am - 4pm Mon - Sat 9am - 4pm wooden furniture Sun 10am - 4pm Sun 10am - 4pm 01227 831052 Meet The Students: Andrew H Andrew has been attending The Fifth Trust since 2009. He loves being out and about and cannot wait for everything to get back to normal so he can return to tending customers’ gardens and delivering logs. “I’m a hard worker!” he says proudly. For now though Andrew is keeping busy at the Vineyard and our Barham skills centre, mowing the grass and growing vegetables. He enjoys building log stores, making good use of all the tools in the Wood Shack. He is also a keen nature photographer. “I always take my camera out with me. I take photos of flowers and birds and I really want to get one of a barn owl.” Andrew, 58, lives with his mum and in the evenings and at the weekend can often be found in the company of our Care Manager Mike, taking part in a match at Bowls Club or out for a walk. Asked who’s the best bowls player of the two, Andrew doesn’t hesitate: “Me!” he declares. First New Building Starts To Take Shape Our amazing new skills centre at Barham is rising out of the ground at a rapid rate. The erection this month of the structural insulated panels (SIPs) allows staff and students to get a real idea of the size and shape of the three buildings where they will attend creative and educational sessions. Made of sustainably sourced timber, SIPs are highly thermally efficient and airtight, keeping heat locked in – good for our energy bills and the environment! The panels are strong but slim, which means we get the maximum floorspace possible. But for those of us excitedly charting the build’s progress, the most striking feature is how quickly the panels go up! While work continues apace on-site, we’re still busily fundraising too, keen to raise the £25,000 shortfall on the art studio and £20,000 needed to furnish the centre. If you would like to support the skills centre appeal, please visit www. fifthtrust.co.uk and click on Make a Donation. Thank you!

All The Fun Of The Fete It’s lovely to see the local villages being able to organise their summer fetes again this year. We’ll be coming along to the following events, selling our students’ arts and crafts, homemade chutneys, plants from the garden centre and our Vineyard wine and promoting our work supporting adults with learning disabilities.We are hugely grateful to the Mermaid Inn for choosing us as one of the beneficiaries of their event. *Mermaid Inn summer fete, Neames Meadow, – Saturday 24th July, 12 noon – 4pm *Elham summer food and wine festival, village square and church – Sunday 8th August, 11am – 2pm *St Giles fete, the Barn and village recreation ground, Kingston – Saturday 4th September, 11am – 4pm We hope to see you there! www.fifthtrust.co.uk Elham Valley Vineyard Find us on Facebook Breach, Barham Find us on Instagram , Kent Telephone 01227 832022 Registered Charity no. 1136718 CT4 6LN Email [email protected]