Circle Foundation Trust

Mission Statement

1. Circle Foundation Trust believes that every individual has something to give to their community; that everybody should be given the opportunity to become actively involved in their community; and that such active involvement by all members of the community is to be desired. However, we also believe that individuals should be free not to become so involved if they choose.

2. We believe volunteering is a valuable activity in its own right and that volunteers play an important role in the community. Volunteering can bring about social change through its effect on individuals, organisations and systems. We believe that there is nothing that the right volunteer cannot accomplish; that volunteers, trainees and paid staff can work fruitfully together; and that we should not recruit volunteers and trainees to replace paid staff.

3. We value cultural diversity and equality if opportunity. We believe that they are key to accomplishing our objectives.

4. We are an energetic, entrepreneurial voluntary organisation which strives to operate at the cutting edge of those areas where we are involved. That means we are frequently working in areas where there are few certainties, either of funding or anything else, and where that lack of certainty can at times become stressful. The fact that we also believe that decision should be delegated to the lowest possible level also makes demands upon staff. However, we also work within a management structure where close supervision of staff is the norm, and creative team work is the practice.

5. We believe in the excellence of our Organisation based on hard work; we believe that we have the ability to adapt to change and that we should exercise that vigorously, and continuously.

6. We expect all staff to work hard. We expect them to fix things fast, to learn from mistakes, and not to make the same mistake twice. Time is precious and should be used effectively. We believe staff should be encouraged to develop in order to achieve the organisation's objectives.

7. Circle Foundation Trust is a caring organisation. We care for the people we serve, the resources entrusted to us and the people we employ, be they volunteers or paid.

8. Circle Foundation Trust creates opportunities for people to play an active part in the life of their community. Determination and dedication are both ideals with encourage swimmers to fit into their involvement. The Organisation's ethos is Creating | Encouraging | Promoting | Awareness ¥ Mainstream Community Cohesion. What meaning do these words have with regard to a voluntary organisation's like ourselves? We nurture our work to set a target to attain to meet our objectively widely publised as part of our transparency policy; we then encourage those involved to convince themselves that they can reach the target in a given time. Then we ask those organisations involved with us to consider whether they are doing their best to ensure success.

9. Circle Foundation Trust is a voluntary organisation working in partnership with Regeneration, London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, London Development Agency, Thames Gateway Partnership, VisitBritain, London Civic Form, CEN, CVS, and other Voluntary Groups in the Borough of Barking & Dagenham.