Kairos in Soho (KiS) Information 2010
Kairos in Soho (KiS) is a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) voluntary and community organisation (VCO) in London.
KiS’s vision is of a society in which LGBT people have every opportunity to achieve their potential and aspirations. This is a society in which the enormous contribution of diverse LGBT people in the social, cultural, political, and economic life is recognised and acknowledged openly, and in which prejudice is consistently challenged.
1. Organisation Summary
KiS is based in Westminster and operates across London to address the community, health and social wellbeing interests of LGBT people.
The aim of KiS is:
To provide space and opportunity for Lesbians, Gay Men, Bisexual and Transgender people to gain support, grow and effect wider social change
KiS was established in 1994 and became a Registered Charity and Company Limited by Guarantee in 1997. KiS is committed to a community development approach within an LGBT and equality context. The organisation maintains a focus on the individual and the individual experience of being LGBT, rather than responding to mainstream initiatives that focus on single aspects of LGBT life such as community safety, sexual health or mental health. The organisation challenges the stereotypes which undermine equality through its services, its promotion, through partnership work, and through influencing the work of others.
Volunteering is key to the organisation’s community empowerment approach and much of the organisation’s work is delivered and supported by LGBT volunteers.
KiS is a user-led organisation with a Board of Trustees comprising a majority of LGBT people.
2. Values
KiS’s values inform all of the organisation’s development and planning.
Equality
KiS is committed to working with the whole and diverse LGBT population to promote equality and participation and to reduce discrimination and oppression. This includes discrimination grounds of sexuality, race, nationality, gender, age, faith, disability and social class, recognising that there are many ways in which people’s experiences and backgrounds interrelate. In the LGBT sector this is sometimes more about increasing understanding, building relationships and offering support to communities of identity to organise in ways that best suit the community and the resources available.
“Why is it that democracy still means everybody but me” Langston Hughes
Independence
KiS is committed to the development of structures and financial support that have the greatest potential to enable independent action. This means pursuit of funds from independent givers, a diverse income base, and maximum individual community support for the work. Maintaining independence means that the organisation has the best possible chance to maintain a holistic approach based on LGBT needs and aspirations, and to work thoughtfully and constructively with the community, the sector, and mainstream providers.
Innovation
KiS is committed to innovation. The LGBT sector is chronically under-funded and equalities legislation which might address this is recent. The community itself is encouraged to expect little and individuals are often obliged to conceal themselves to ensure safety and protection. KiS aims to work creatively with others to shed light on complex community issues and create fresh approaches and thinking.
‘It seems to be true that centres of creativity tend to be at the intersection of different cultures, where beliefs, lifestyles and knowledge mingle and allow individuals to see new combinations of ideas with greater ease’ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Authenticity
KiS tries to work in authentic ways in an environment where LGBT life has historically been distorted and misrepresented, and where LGBT people are often encouraged to understate the complex impact of discrimination on themselves. This may mean constructively challenging what appear to be superficial approaches to the issues and working with the whole community to learn together.
Integrity
KiS is concerned with the wellbeing of the whole person and the whole community. The aim is to work supportively and consciously to develop collective and integral initiatives. As an organisation KiS tries to connect across different areas of work and consider the experience of the community as a whole, rather than responding to agendas from outside that encourage a deficit model of intervention. Integrity means consistently and constructively challenging and encouraging greater awareness of the overall impact of multiple prejudices, including within the LGBT community.
3. KiS’s Objectives
In 2007 KiS conducted a Strategic Review with funding from Charities Aid Foundation and updated its strategic objectives.
1) Community Activities:
To provide community activities and events that inform, encourage and connect individual LGBT people
2) Strategic Influence:
To engage in the development of policy, sector strategy and infrastructure
3) LGBT Space
To develop sustainable LGBT space for social, strategic and community action
These three strategic objectives are the cornerstones of KiS’s activity. Work with individuals from across the broad LGBT population is integral to the organisation’s thinking on strategy and policy. Influencing strategy and policy is central to the way KiS is working on developing physical space where LGBT people may find both resources for support and ways to contribute to innovation and creativity in LGBT community facilities.
KiS has a fourth internal objective to build a robust, sustainable and independent organisation able to respond to the needs and experiences of LGBT people now and in the future.
4. Main Projects
This is a significant period of change for KiS. In August 2009 work commenced on a number of new projects:
· In Our Name (ION) Partnership Project with London Friend, PACE and the Metro Centre; ION aims to provide sustainable London-focussed voluntary and community structures to support a diverse range of LGBT groups and organizations
· Second Generation is a community engagement project that aims to bring together LGBT people, friends, families and allies in creative, supportive spaces, across diversity, across generations. Under this programme KiS also runs a diverse LGBT guided tour of Soho and a number of other community activities
· Identity Building is KiS’s long term programme to develop significant London LGBT space with a focus on arts and culture, heritage, the environment and social and education issues; KiS currently offers Soho space to a range of smaller and diverse LGBT groups
· Health Equalities Project is a development and research programme bringing together LGBT health experts, community members and health practitioners to build intelligence towards greater LGBT health equality
In the next six months KiS will develop its own infrastructure, including a new website, database and premises; and also undergo a rebranding and name change process.
5. Staffing and Recruitment
KiS currently employs ten paid full-time or part-time staff and this post will bring this number to eleven. This represents a three-fold increase over the prior year.
This is an exciting and creative time to join the organisation and it is also a time of change, with all the challenges and opportunities that change can bring.
KiS is recruiting a Community Programme Manager (full-time) to work closely with the Volunteer Development Manager to build the volunteer base and community programme across diverse LGBT communities in London. The post also ties in closely with the Identity Building Project and In Our Name.
6. Funders
KiS is currently funded by City Parochial Foundation, Big Lottery Fund, City Bridges Trust, Friends of KiS Scheme, London Councils and Westminster Primary Care Trust. KiS is also working with NESsT, an international non-profit supporting organisations to become more sustainable through social enterprise. KiS will be one organisation in an international pilot study to develop enterprising approaches to LGBT work.
Further Information
For more information please go to our website at www.kairosinsoho.org.uk or call 020 7437 6063.
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