1. REACH
What is REACH?
REACH provides activities to unlock the potential within people
who feel socially excluded or who have committed offences.
Our Aim:
To provide activities that discourage anti-social behaviour and atti-
tudes , reduce re-offending, improve health, address social exclusion
and promote education, training and employment.
R Rehabilitation and re-modelling
E Education: providing training, employment and mentoring.
A Access: providing access to services that improve lives.
C Co-ordination: bringing together organisations and services.
H Health: providing health education.
REACH supports targets within the Gloucestershire Local Area
Agreement (www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/laa)
Background:
REACH is a Community Interest Company, limited by guarantee,
with locked assets. It is led by a ‘Board of Members’ who represent the
social sector, media industry and business and managed by a director.
REACH also has several 'champions' who meet once a year to provide
ongoing support in promoting and upholding its activities.
Service users [students] are generally, but not limited to, people
who feel socially excluded; these include community payback workers,
people with learning difficulties, children at risk
of being excluded from mainstream education,
the long term unemployed, ex-offenders and the
homeless.
“Social exclusion is about the inability of our
society to keep all groups and individuals within
reach of what we expect as a society...[or] to realise
their full potential." William Julius Wilson

2. Who we are and how we operate
REACH has two sites: The Monastery Garden at Prinknash Abbey and The
Nursery at Bisley; however students are transported to other sites, known as 'bene-
factors', when required. Our staff team is made up of:
• Rangers: work with teams of five students. They are trained in pro-social
modelling, health and safety and first aid and are either volunteers or full
time paid staff. See What we do for our students.
• Superintendent: floats between groups and offers additional support. Our
superintendant is employed and highly trained in areas such as aggression
management and restraining techniques.
• Teachers: responsible for overseeing the educational aspects of REACH. We offer NVQ, NOCN and LANTRA
qualifications.
• Director: oversees the day to day running of the business.
Prinknash: REACH’s base for landscaping, vegetable growing, environmental
awareness and construction.The site at Prinknash includes a garden under
construction that requires regular tending; open spaces for exhibitions; opportu-
nities to practise construction techniques; vegetable
plot and woodland and green wood skills.
Bisley: REACH’s horticulture base
The Site at Bisley offers: large polytunnels; a
shade house; a greenhouse with heated beds;
a large greenhouse suitable for a classroom;
workshop suitable for carpentry and an animal
husbandry area
What we do for society
We have several 'types' of students who all come to us for different reasons and have different needs.
Some of our students have special learning needs or physical disabilities. We can offer these students and their
carers the use of our facilities, which are often more extensive than those available in
mainstream or special schools.
Many of our students are ‘socially excluded’; this means they are not reaching their
full potential, are certainly not 'giving' to society and are likely to be taking from it.
We aim to help Students move from the red zone into the green!!
An individual has a negative impact on the community every time he or she 'takes'
from society. A group of rowdy teenagers shouting as they walk down the street causes
residents to tug their curtains ever more tightly closed. The fear of crime is often more
real than crime itself.

3. What we do for students
We offer support and advice to students who feel 'socially excluded'. Social exclusion can arise from circumstances
such as difficult family situations, health issues, risk of homelessness and dependence on benefits. These issues often
lead to behavioural problems which, if left ‘unchecked’, inevitably lead to people 'offending' society by committing
criminal offences.
We often meet members of the public who believe that people who feel socially excluded should be given a good
shake and told to pull their socks up. Sadly life isn’t that simple and we believe we have found a different approach.
Potentially there are seven areas in students' lives that require attention:
1 Attitudes, thinking and behaviourAccommodation
2 Education, training and employment
3 Health
4 Drugs and alcohol
5 Finance, benefit and debt
6 Children and families
We cannot deal with all of these, which is why the A and C within
REACH stand for Access and Co-ordination: we provide access to and
co-ordination with organisations that can help people who feel socially
excluded.
Attitudes, thinking and behaviour.
Our rangers act as motivating role models in order to bring out the
best in students. They seek to develop honest and empathetic relationships that demonstrate a genuine concern
for students combined with a persistent optimism about their capacity to change. They encourage positive social
behaviour while being clear about underlying values and expectations.
Rangers challenge and confront negative values. They work in partnership with students by motivating them,
coaching them in new skills, setting clear objectives and monitoring progress.
REACH aims to provide NOCN and LANTRA qualifications for long/medium-term students.
Activities students may undertake include:
• Brick wall construction
• Pole lathing
• Willow weaving and hurdle making
• Hedge laying
• Dry stone wallingLetter carving and sculpting
• Green wood furniture construction
• Carpentry
• Rammed earth wall construction
• Vegetable growing
• Horticulture skills
Students travel directly to REACH sites or are collected by minibus.
We ensure that all students receive health and safety training to a high standard and are able to carry out ‘on the
job’ risk assessments.

4. What we do for benefactors
Our students need to start giving to society. This gives them a sense of achievement, pride, responsibility and self
esteem. While giving they are also learning 'real' skills. Financial contributions from our benefactors go a long way
in supporting the work of REACH.
We train students so that they can undertake specific tasks required by outside organisations that invite us onto
their sites.
We are happy to work for any organisation, as long as the activities we undertake will have a positive impact on
the community. Examples might include managing vegetatation along footpaths, growing vegetables for ‘lunch
clubs’, building retaining walls and restoring dry-stone walls.
How we support ourselves
Remember, our assets are locked which means we CANNOT MAKE A PROFIT.
All money earned by REACH is reinvested into facilities for students or used to reduce fees for benefactors and
students.
REACH generates income through selling products such as benches, bird
boxes and meals produced during cooking and catering courses.
It charges small fees to benefactors for work carried out and for students
attending.
REACH benefits from sponsorship arrangements and donations from
individuals.
REACH receives grants from independent trusts, local authorities, the
European Union and LAA indicator lead agencies, such as reward grants given
when REACH is able to demonstrate its contributions to achieving NI and
agency targets.
Examples are
NHS: improving public health; stopping smoking; improving sexual health; reducing the use of alcohol,
improving access and use of health services by marginalized communities.
Learning Skills Council: meeting targets for ETE, including NEET
Gloucestershire County Council: educational awards; independence for vulnerable groups and use of volunteers.
Some of our partners
Our contact details
For any further information about REACH contact:
Reach Gloucestershrie C.I.C., Box 223, Eastcombe, Glos GL6 7WX
Telephone: 07826 857702