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Multi-sport facility to transform social sports provision with basketball, netball, futsal, volleyball, pickleball, badminton and more to boost community health and wellbeing Leyton's Score Centre was officially opened on Thursday 28 November in a ribbon cutting ceremony celebrated with the local community. On a tour of the facilities, Waltham Forest CEO Linzi Roberts Egan, Council Leader Grace Williams, Cllr Ahsan Khan Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Regeneration, Cllr Kizzy Gardiner Cabinet Member for Children and Young People and GLL CEO Peter Bundey were joined by James Lidgate, Managing Director for Taylor Wimpey London and VIP athlete Ex-Saracens Rugy Player Sonia 'Sonic' Green at the borough's most significant leisure opening in years.  The Score Centre's large capacity means it will have a 'transformative effect' on social sports in the borough - allowing many more clubs and teams to have fun, socialise, get active or compete in tournaments. Located next to Leyton Orient Football Club at 2, Coronation Square E10 5UN,  Waltham Forest Council's investment in the Score Centre provides a brand new sports facility, with courts that the local community can book up to 7 days in advance. Containing five basketball / netball / volleyball / handball  / futsal courts (which can be reconfigured as 20 badminton courts or in multiple permutations to provide for exhibition and tournament events for different sports), The Score Centre is one of the largest new sports halls in the country and will operate at a player capacity of 100, a spectator capacity of 500 and will create additional local employment and sporting opportunity. There are also two studios for Pilates, Yoga, Zumba and more - plus two community rooms available for hire, alongside associated offices.  Better - the trading name of not-for-profit charitable social enterprise GLL - is managing the facility - alongside 7 other borough centres, in partnership with Waltham Forest Council.  Speaking at Thursday's event, GLL's CEO Peter Bundey said:  "As a charitable social enterprise and staff-owned co-op, our mission is to enhance community health and wellbeing through making facilities and programmes accessible for all.  "This aligns strongly with Waltham Forest Council's public health agenda and its wish to see residents improve their health and reduce health inequalities across generations and cultures. "Waltham Forest has a deserved reputation for producing household name athletes who have honed their winning talents in the borough's great public leisure facilities. "So we are delighted to have added the fantastic new Score Centre to our portfolio of centres we manage and operate across London and can't wait to see which future sports stars call it 'home'." Cllr Ahsan Khan, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Regeneration said: "It’s been an absolute pleasure to be here today and celebrate the opening of The New Score Centre with our partners and the local community. ‘’It’s a facility that defines a clear example of what top quality sports centres look like, one that allows us to serve our residents by giving them the opportunity to access good fitness facilities, breaking down health inequalities in the borough. ‘’The energy and excitement here today reminds us just how important spaces like this are, not just for physical fitness but also for fostering connections, building confidence and strengthening our community. ‘’I have no doubt that it will inspire many of us to lead healthier, and more active lives.’’ Sports governing bodies that are partnering in the initiative include England Handball, London Pulse (Netball), London Galaxy (Futsal) Essex Netball, Leyton Orient Trust, Metro Blind (Disability Football). The Score Centre is part of Taylor Wimpey's Coronation Square Development - a vibrant public space and new destination for Leyton Town Centre and a hub for creativity, leisure, sports and culture. Laurent Plopeanu, Project Director for Taylor Wimpey London, said: "We are delighted that the new Score Centre is open to the public and being used by a wide range of local residents. "We have worked collaboratively with the London Borough of Waltham Forest to deliver this state-of-the-art new facility for Leyton. Featuring fitness studios, community rooms, offices, and an incredible five basketball courts that can also accommodate 20 badminton courts, this space is truly versatile."Our aim is for the new Score Centre to act as a hub for the community that allows people to meet, get active and take part in a wide range of sports that they may otherwise not have been able to." Dignitaries also visited the 120 capacity Nappy Gang nursery co-located at the site and toured the facilities to speak to staff and meet the little ones - who helped cut the ribbon on their new facility. The Score Centre boasts an Active Reality zone.  A gym and cafe concession will be added to the facility from early 2025 - completing the destination offer.  https://www.better.org.uk/leisure-centre/london/waltham-forest/score-leisure-centre

An update on our collective policy campaigning from Cwmpas, Social Enterprise Northern Ireland, Social Enterprise Scotland and Social Enterprise UK  Although the new UK Government’s first Budget marked positive shifts like investment in public services, many social enterprises have concerns about how it could affect their business, which we’re currently working to urgently address.  Social enterprises are committed to paying a living wage and providing good jobs, often for those furthest from the labour market and in the most deprived areas – but many will struggle with additional costs from increased wages and employer National Insurance Contributions, particularly those reliant on public sector contracts. It’s not yet clear if some providers will be exempt from additional costs, or reimbursed in some way, or neither.   Different departments have given contradictory messages, so we’re seeking clarity on details of the plans and their potential impact; Scotland’s First Minister has also committed to pressing the UK Government on this. To deliver manifesto commitments around community services and prevention, government must recognise the essential role of social enterprises in their delivery across the country. We’re liaising urgently with politicians and policymakers in all four nations to ensure they understand these issues and work towards a fair resolution.   We’re also engaging partners and wider stakeholders impacted by the changes to maximise our collective impact, as this could have serious consequences for social enterprises who provide vital services every day. There are calls to protect GPs and social care providers, but we know this issue goes further – from healthcare to hospices, school meals to children’s homes, leisure facilities to community transport, all over the country.   To help shield the many vital social enterprises reliant on public sector contracts from these potentially crippling costs, please add your voice to our petition.  We hope the Chancellor will use her additional spending power to create the conditions where mission-led businesses like social enterprises can thrive, which will ultimately build a stronger and fairer economy – but we won’t just wait and see. We exist to be a strong voice for social enterprise, so we’ll make sure that central and devolved governments understand our needs on this budgetary issue and beyond. 

Community Dental Services CIC (CDS) has staged three days of action to address the crisis in children’s dental care – specifically to address the “Covid Generation” of children who have never seen a dentist, or whose continuity of dental care has been severely impacted by Covid.  Working with commissioners, CDS identified where care would have most impact e.g. looked after children; and saw over 200 children across specific CDS clinics in Bedfordshire, Norfolk and the Colchester area of Essex.  The CDS team made up of hygienists; therapists; as well as senior clinical staff in management roles who donned their uniforms to provide care; and students with CDS on training placements, worked additional hours to provide the “screen and intervene” initiative.  Children received a check-up, on the spot presentative treatments and, if required, were then referred for treatment in general dental practice with any children CDS recognised as needing their specialist care being triaged into their own services.  The day, supported with materials/consumables and toothbrushing packs by the Henry Schein Dental Group’s “Give Kids A Smile” programme also saw the CDS oral health teams in attendance to share valuable prevention advice to raise families’ awareness of how to care for their children’s oral health longer term.  Glen Taylor, CDS Chief Operating Officer said: “We are very aware that there is a whole “Covid Generation” of children who have never had the opportunity to see a dentist. This means children are not being routinely seen to address dental problems at an early stage and they are not being acclimatised to the dental environment from a young age, leading to greater levels of anxiety. Many of these children are being referred for treatment in our community dental services with high dental need and severe anxiety often requiring treatment under sedation or in hospital with general anaesthetic. Families are also often not getting preventative oral health information. This initiative has enabled us to see a large number of children in a short space of time and we are pleased to have partnered with the Henry Schein Cares Foundation and our colleagues in general practice at Colosseum Dental to deliver an effective screen and intervene initiative.”   About CDS  Community Dental Services CIC (CDS) is a 100% employee-owned social enterprise providing community dental services to the NHS and oral health improvement programmes throughout Bedfordshire, Derbyshire, Essex, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk & Waveney, Nottinghamshire and Oxfordshire.   - Together we will enable our communities to enjoy a better quality of life -  communitydentalservices.co.uk