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A week in the life of… a community connector manager

Anthony Morrow has worked at Sanctuary for six years. His job involves supporting residents in local communities across Scotland, writing applications for funding, and running a trauma-informed project

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Anthony’s favourite part of his job is listening to people’s stories
Anthony’s favourite part of his job is listening to people’s stories
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A week in the life of… Anthony Morrow, community connector manager at Sanctuary #UKhousing

Monday

I’m passionate about finding ways to support residents and creating sustainable communities where people choose to live.

Today I read applications for funding from community groups and assessing the impact they will have in building resilience in our communities as we move forward from the coronavrius pandemic. Groups can apply for grants through our community investment fund which supports important local initiatives.

During the pandemic there have been a lot of people wanting to help others, which is wonderful, but part of my job is to ensure that residents aren’t overwhelmed and know where they can go to for support with different aspects of life.

Community partners which are already reacting efficiently and offering longer-term sustainable projects are often the best investments. It’s all about identifying the projects that will have the biggest impact on residents long term and help them to build relationships and trust.

I find that quite often the projects we continue to invest in over time make the biggest difference in the community – and it’s amazing to watch them grow. For me, building resilience in the community is key. And resilience means consistency, good relationships, working together and building trust with residents.


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Tuesday

I’ve had to adapt enormously over the past year. A challenge has been to do what I do virtually – I used to love going to community groups and seeing those connections build at the heart of our neighbourhoods.

One of the things I’m best at is getting people together in a room and listening and watching residents from communities get together and help each other. Obviously, that’s not been possible for a while now, so I’ve been spending my time focusing on a project that I have wanted to get going for a while: my trauma-informed work.

It’s been proven that good relationships are the antidote to adverse experiences and help mitigate stress. Whether experiencing adversity for the first time or whether it’s been intensified by the pandemic, coping often links back to how well connected people are. The stronger the relationships people have in their life, the better able they are to cope with the difficulties life throws at them.

I deliver a workshop about this to colleagues. I’m in the process of rolling it out across Sanctuary and contractor partners. Childhood trauma is a subject I’m really passionate about because it helps us to better understand the situations some of our residents face and consider new ways to get them the support they need.

Wednesday

Following the recent transfer of Thistle Housing Association to Sanctuary Scotland, I meet my new team (virtually). I’m really looking forward to getting to know my new colleagues, the new area and residents.

In the afternoon I spend some time helping Sisco, a prisoner recovery and addiction charity, to write an application for Scottish government funding. I’ve been able to offer my skills and expertise through Sanctuary’s employee volunteering scheme, and it’s great to be able to support them.

Thursday

There are so many community projects I’m excited to see get going again when restrictions lift.

There is a breakfast club in Priesthill, Glasgow, that I know residents are itching to get back to. It was initially started because people simply wanted more opportunities to chat to their neighbours. There were more than 100 residents attending before the first lockdown – it was buzzing like nothing else. You can’t buy that, it takes time. It grew and eventually they were celebrating birthdays together, singing and dancing – you got a real sense of community belonging there.

Today I work on a risk assessment, evaluating how we get the breakfast club up and running safely again when we can. It’s projects like this that really remind me of the flesh and bones of what I’m doing – it hits home and that helps me focus. I have met these people and I want to do my best for them.

Meeting and hearing people’s stories is my favourite part of my role because each person is so different. I can’t wait to get out there again.

Friday

I work full-time but condense my hours into four days, and Friday is my non-working day. This working pattern gives me more time to enjoy life outside my work and ensures a good work-life balance.

I have a 12-year-old son and dogs, and with the recent pressures of homeschooling, this has worked well for me. A work-life balance is so important. The best thing you can be is present, and to be that you have to look after yourself. There’s no such thing as a superhero!

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A week in the life series

A week in the life series

Our ‘A week in the life’ series features housing professionals talking through what they do in their job on a day-to-day basis.

Find out about the different challenges housing workers in a variety of roles face in a given week. 

We aim to feature staff from housing associations, ALMOs, local authorities and more.

Click here to nominate yourself or a colleague for inclusion

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