Charity Commission info on FUN
You can check out the Charity Commission record for families United Network
Our mission, vision and values
FUN provides service for families with children and young people aged from birth to 25 years. It’s free to join and as a member you and your family are able to access all our services.
At Families United Network we are passionate about what we do and why we do it. Here at FUN we are pretty proud of what we offer and we hope you will join us on our journey.
FUN aims to provide support for families by creating a relaxed and non-judgmental environment which supports inclusion. A particular benefit for members is the ability to try new experiences in a safe and understanding setting. Through our program of trips and clubs, families broaden their horizons as they gain confidence to access new activities for the first time. All of the activities that are offered allow families with disabled children and young people to access events and facilities, sometimes for the first time, in a way that families without disabled children take for granted.
Our mission
To provide children and young adults with additional needs or disabilities with the support and leisure opportunities needed to reach their full potential.
To provide support to parent carers and siblings in their role as care givers.
FUN needs and wants to expand its services to families living with disabilities. We are aware of a huge amount of unmet need across Bedfordshire and our local region. We intend to grow, but in light of the current funding climate we want to make sure we do so with careful planning and a big dollop of realism. It’s important that we develop the level of funding and a growing list of supporters to make this happen.
Provide services to children and young people with a broader range of disabilities and needs.
Provide a growing number of Saturday and weekday clubs and activities for teenagers and young adults.
Develop social enterprises to provide employment, training and other opportunities for young adults with additional needs.
We are very committed to working in partnership within our local area, and ensuring that we add value to our community. That means not duplicating existing services or competing with existing providers in a particular area.
Who we are
We’re making a difference
Parents often have to choose part-time or no work in order to care for their children. The pressures they are under also take a toll on their health and they need support and help.
In 2002 FUN was registered as a charity and has provided a range of services since. FUN are working hard to expand and develop services, because we recognise the huge level of need in Bedfordshire and surrounding areas.
Some of Families United Network trustee’s have valuable personal experience in children with disabilities, to compliment this we are currently looking for people to serve as trustees who have a professional background in accounting, legal or media/marketing.
Over the years we have raised money for FUN with organising curry nights, comedy nights, selling air fresheners and shopping bags and more recently Cameron did a 1 mile sponsored event. We have raised a total of just under £13,000 and that is something as a family we are very proud of.
I am Julie Tompkins Mum to two children, Tyler (age 11) & Kayleigh (age 6) and a qualified Certified Accountant since January 2000 working full time based in Watford. Tyler has global development delay and has been using FUN since beginning 2014. FUN have provided Tyler with a safe environment from which Tyler has thrived upon and this has increased his independence and confidence as he develops into a young man.
I wanted to be able to give back to this amazing charity to help us to develop and grow, continue to support other families whose children, siblings and family can benefit from the facilities we can provide and improve upon in the coming years.
I joined the board of trustees as the charity have a similar philosophy as mine and I hope that by providing support using my business knowledge and with my sporting background enable the charity to develop and strengthen its offering within the area that it currently operates.
I am passionate in my belief that young people should have every opportunity to fully realise their own personal potential. I hope that becoming a Trustee of FUN will help in some way those members that come here to achieve that potential.
We are a team that is united in our passion for delivering amazing projects to our service users and partners. At Families United Network, hard work and high expectations are the norm …but so is having FUN!
We are Families United Network!
I have worked for FUN now for over 10 years. I have 2 children, my youngest boy has severe learning difficulties. This is how I first came across FUN, my family have been members of FUN for a number of years and the whole family have benefited from all that FUN offers. I am now in a position where I can give back, helping support families and this can be as little as a listening ear.
There is never a quiet day at FUN, we are always looking at new ideas to better the service we already provide, from meeting new families to jumping from an aeroplane to raise money.
My name is Anne Collinson. I am the mother of four children including my son Samuel who is 18 years old and has autism and ADHD. I have worked for FUN since 2010 and I know first hand how important the charity is to families living with and supporting a disabled child. I am pleased to be able to contribute to the charity’s continued success, so that it can continue to offer the help and support that children and young people with disabilities and their families desperately need.
Hi my name is Samira and I have recently joined FUN as a Youth and Young Adult club lead. In the short while that I have been here, I have thoroughly enjoyed it. The staff and Volunteers are all very friendly which helps create an enjoyable working environment at FUN. This further has a positive effect on the young people and families who use this service. The staff work so hard in ensuring that everyone who experiences the services here at FUN walks away feeling happy and fulfilled.