Single Parent Action Network (SPAN) was a Bristol based grassroots charity with national reach. Our vision was to engage and empower one-parent families living in poverty and isolation, from different backgrounds and cultures, to improve their lives and play a greater part in society.

We worked to realize this vision through:

• Campaigning for policies and services that support single parents and other disadvantaged families to improve their life chances. SPAN brought voices from the grassroots to the corridors of power in Bristol City Hall, Westminster and the European Parliament.
• Conducting research that highlighted the issues facing single parents, other disadvantaged parents and their families. We actively involved parents in this process giving them the opportunity to have a voice and be heard.
• Supported parents in groups and 1:1. We delivered the inclusive parenting programme Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities and had a dedicated parenting support team, which included a father support worker and a Somali speaking support worker.
• We delivered a wide range of adult learning opportunities in partnership with further and higher education providers to support parents’ personal development, skills and employment prospects.
• We provided childcare for children to parents accessing SPAN services as well as members of the wider community.
• Partnership work and a network of member organisations who were all part of our SPAN Family!

 
After our merger with another Bristol based training charity Silai for Skills in 2013, we managed a large community building in inner-city Bristol – The Silai Centre. This Centre was SPAN’s headquarters and the main site for our front-line service delivery. From the Silai Centre we ran a number of social enterprises, which include a community café, a pre-school and sewing & upholstery workshops. Any profit generated through these activities was used to support the charitable aims of our work.