We are a community of people who have been captivated by Jesus. This affects our everyday lives and everything that we do, not just our meetings. Here are some of the groups that operate throughout the year at various times.
Core Values
We are a place to belong
We are not a consumer service but a place where people belong. We reduce isolation and loneliness by gathering and connecting people together in meaningful ways. We recognise and celebrate diversity and create a sense of inclusion. Our aim is not to separate people into groups but to let people co-exist, integrate and build genuine relationships, through listening, supporting and learning from one another.
We are a faithful presence
Trust comes by being a place full of sustained, authentic relationships where we show everyone worth, honour and respect. We are a place where people feel welcomed and valued with no strings attached. We aim to show unconditional love. We provide a quality facility that is safe and secure both physically and emotionally.
We enable transformation
Everyone has potential to change and develop. We facilitate the transformation of people into their possible best. We invest in people to explore and release potential skill through training, support and challenges. We encourage personal responsibility so people are a part of their own, and others’, solutions. Responsibility increases engagement, confidence and mutual ownership.
We care for the whole person
We nurture the whole person, enabling the flourishing of mind, body, soul and spirit. We believe it is important to educate and teach life skills, pursue mental wellbeing, build emotional strength and confidence, encourage a healthy lifestyle, meet physical needs and provide inspiration for individuals to explore their own spiritual journey.
We encourage creativity and responsiveness
We are organic and responsive to the needs of the community and to individuals, changing and developing by listening to feedback and responding to others’ initiatives. We encourage participation in group care, organisation and decision making. We provide spaces and places for people to express themselves creatively with imagination, freedom and music. We encourage confidence in individual and group voices. Creating opportunities for laughter and good memories.
We strengthen the whole community
We value all genuine and active local support. We enjoy working with, and alongside, other agencies, school hubs and charities and we value for strong, personal relationships. We aim to signpost our members well to empower people to seek further/additional advice and support. We encourage community resilience by creating networks of love and compassion. We want to help make Huddersfield a better place to live in, encouraging connection and care in our neighbourhoods.
What does this look like in practice?
We want to take the I out of individualism and inviting people to be part of a collaborative group of people. We discourage the consumer mentality of attending meetings, of detached use of services and of entitlement. Instead, we encourage belonging, participation and responsibility. The magic starts when an atmosphere of true community is created and love and care are genuinely released. People are met at their point of need and their potential is fostered and released. Our work is all about people and, wherever people mix and are unconditionally loved, deep needs of many are disclosed and addressed with kindness. The following examples are from stories of actual experiences of people who have benefited from The Branch.
The asylum seeker not only learned English but was also integrated into somewhere they felt they belonged
The person who escaped slave trafficking learnt to play, have fun and make friends
The person with mental health challenges was listened to and a network of peer supporters grew around them
The volunteer with learning difficulties found purpose and fulfilment and was transformed with self–confidence and courage
The person looking for work was taught skills, given experience, but also found their creative dreams again
The addict was given a chance to make friends, feel valued and not judged
The abused person was given opportunities to help and be loved, having a chance to feel worth again
The family in need were given food and clothes and were released from the isolation of poverty with new long term friendships
The young parent of an autistic child was taught not only with new parenting ideas but was mentored by grandparents with experience
The elderly man attended a mixed aged class where he learned not only new ideas, but also helped him feel young again
The isolated parent with twins found people just like them, who understand and related to them
Meet the Team
Alison Lloyd and Charlene Novak lead a team of volunteers to deliver a range of activities and opportunities to connect with others.
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team member 1
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The Story of The Branch
The Branch has grown from the community work formerly carried out by Jubilee Melody Makers. Melody Makers began in 1996 as a parents and toddlers group centred around music. The growth of the community activity that Jubilee Melody Makers initiated grew so that it actually spanned a wide variety of groups, events and initiatives. Because of the wide reach of our activities, an overarching, umbrella name was needed to bring identity to the community ethos and culture that we had created. We wanted to communicate clearly who we were, what our dreams were and to set our activities in a clear context when applying for grants, and communicating with others.
Why The Branch?
Our community activities are organic, growing and reaching out to others. The groups bring shade for those who struggle with the heat of life. People gather together under a branch of belonging to eat, play or just talk together. The Branch itself is indiscriminate as to who may gather underneath its care. Young ones are supported and kept safe. People blossom on the branch and can reach their full potential. Ultimately people can bear fruit in their lives and become seeds for others, seeds for new groups in the community so that we reproduce. The branch of a tree does not survive by itself but is joined to other branches, just as we are one community expression of love and care, and we signpost people to groups that are skilled in reaching specific needs in our community.
Our Ethos
Our culture is special because it isn’t about consuming a service, which we use to improve ourselves. Instead, it is about connection and belonging, a place and space where people engage and become integrated and are encouraged to be the best version of themselves. Our skill is in creating an atmosphere of love and care, connecting people from all different backgrounds, attending to their different needs and enabling them to succeed in life.
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