Mint Lane Wellbeing Hub: Ensuring a secure future.
In December 2020, Mint Lane Wellbeing Hub—a charity offering mental health support, counselling, and a community café—commissioned us for a space audit and service development report. Earlier that year, we had supported their successful community shares initiative to secure funds for purchasing their building. This new commission focused on optimising their space and services to enhance financial sustainability and reduce reliance on external funding.
Our role:
Our role was to thoroughly evaluate Mint Lane’s building use and condition, making recommendations that would optimise the space and boost its income potential. This included auditing the current layout and occupancy, reviewing service and rental agreements, and exploring new avenues for revenue generation. We also analysed tenancy agreements and potential service improvements to help ensure the Hub could achieve its goal of financial independence.
Challenges:
One of the primary challenges was balancing the Hub’s ambitions with its limited resources. Like many charities, Mint Lane Wellbeing Hub needed practical and affordable recommendations that could be implemented within a tight budget. Additionally, the pandemic presented unique operational constraints, requiring a flexible approach in both our audit process and our proposed recommendations.
Outcome:
Following a detailed space audit, we delivered a comprehensive report to Mint Lane, covering centre culture, space usage, staff capacity, policy compliance, and hire revenue. Our actionable recommendations included revising tenancy agreements to optimise space use and maximise contributions, along with a development plan to enhance efficiency and community impact.
Due to financial constraints, Mint Lane couldn’t implement all recommendations immediately. To support their priorities, we concluded our consultancy after delivering the report, allowing them to allocate funds toward essential infrastructure improvements.
Key Learning:
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Financial Resilience through Space Management: Effective space management can boost a charity’s financial resilience, but plans need to be realistic given resource constraints.
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Value of Strong Partnerships: Building strong relationships with tenants and partners can increase income potential while enhancing overall impact.
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Importance of Regular Audits: Regular audits and service reviews help ensure that resources are used effectively and align with organisational goals.
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Benefits of Phased Implementation: Flexible, phased recommendations allow charities to implement changes progressively, minimising financial strain while moving towards sustainability.
This project exemplified our commitment to helping charities like Mint Lane Wellbeing Hub achieve sustainability through thoughtful, data-driven strategies for space and service optimisation.