Community Partnership

Award winning community partners

We're an independent HR firm with a giant heart. Cash? Not much. Time, brain power, and a truckload of passion? Buckets and buckets! Every day, we stare down the barrel of well-being woes, training tragedies, and people plan pandemonium. But, instead of crying into our coffee cups, we roll up our sleeves and dive headfirst into making a gigantic splash for good. Enter stage left: Slades Junior Parkrun, The Parks Foundation, The Boo Charity, The HR Sounding Board and Goal 17. We’re not just talking the talk, we’re walking (well actually, running) the walk. Grab yourself a cuppa and get settled while we toot our horns for a moment.

We are proud supporters of…

The HR Sounding Board

If you’ve ever worked in HR, you know it's not all confetti and cake in the break room. Often pegged as corporate's 'party poopers' or 'fun police,' HR roles can sometimes feel like a one-person island in a sea of teams, especially if you’re in a standalone role. We’ve been there, it’s not fun.

But contrary to this perception, we’re actually pretty awesome people (if we do say so ourselves!).

So, we’ve created The HR Sounding Board, a non-stuffy accessible club for HR professionals. It’s a safe space for people to share stories, ask questions and get advice from other like-minded HR professionals. We know, it’s not revolutionary, but it’s hugely needed within the local HR community.

In true 2024 style, The HR Sounding Board is a blend of in-person events and an online forum.

We’ve put on a number of events so far, including bigger seminars to smaller peer groups. These events have offered jargon-free advice on Tribunals, Agile HR and Employee Red Flags (if you know, you know!). Sounding it out amongst peers, we’ve helped to shine a light on the trickier situations, offering alternative perspectives and de-bunked some myths.

Become a sounding boarder

Our partnership with

The Boo Charity

The Boo Charity is where we flex our international muscles, with this zero-admin charity having roots in BCP but its heart in Kenya. Under the chairperson’s guidance (our awesome founder, Debbie) we see a lot of magic happening in the young people’s lives. After a trip to Kenya in 2022, we’ve seen first-hand the incredible impact Boo is having.

Their Nyamache Life Skills Centre is solely funded by the money Boo raises. Nyamache is a vibrant community, but one that’s disconnected to economic hubs and jobs are few and far between. This project aims to overcome job poverty by providing vocational, business and life skills for free to the poorest young adults within the community. As a result, many graduate with everything they need to start their own businesses and many becoming employers themselves, breaking the poverty cycle for them, their families and their local community.

Putting all the governance and boring bits to one side, over the last 3 years Debbie has organised several fundraising events. Boo Ball, Golf Days, Birthday Bashes, the list goes on... The point here is that these events account for 75% of donations, so they’re a vital component for keeping our work going in Kenya.

We’d encourage you to take a look at their website and have a read, because the few words we have here just doesn’t do it justice – www.boo-charity.org.uk

Get involved with The Boo Charity

Our partnership with

The Parks Foundation

Where would we be without our green spaces?! There’s a reason that in the pandemic we were all encouraged to go on a daily walk – immersing yourself in nature works wonders on your mind, body and soul. As a group of dog mums, we probably spend more time than most in our green spaces and we’d be lost without them. Come on, what’s better than taking a walk on a sunny day, seeing people come together and nature blossoming? Psst, this is your sign to go for a walk, but not till you’ve finished reading!

Debbie serves as a trustee for The Parks Foundation, where we collaborate in strategic planning and provide pro bono HR support for the Foundation and the staff. Why? Because this role allows us to bring our professional expertise to the community service sector, creating a more efficient and impactful organisation. And more awesome parks mean an even more awesome community!

Get involved with The Parks Foundation

Our partnership with

Junior Parkrun

Imagine this: Kids sprinting like there's ice cream at the finish line, all because Debbie thought, "Let’s just do it!" Fast forward three years, and we’ve got giggles, jiggles, and fitness wiggles every Sunday. And guess what? Streetwise HR didn’t just cheer from the sidelines; we braced ourselves at the start line and paced ourselves to enjoy the journey!

Debbie, is a co-event director – what does this mean?

Start-up costs, Streetwise HR got it covered! P.A. system, whiteboard, stationary – all necessary start-up costs.
Come rain or shine Debbie helps to get the team together every Sunday. Being responsible for children, it’s vital that we have enough responsible adults to make sure the event goes ahead.
We shout (if you’ve met us, you know!) about Junior Parkrun all the time – we’ve welcomed kids of all abilities from the local community, making it a fun event for the whole family.

Achievements? We've got them by the bucketload:

Considering we started from scratch just a few years ago, we now have 90 regular runners. Seeing them beat their PBs, receive their milestone wristbands, wear the milestone capes and keep coming back makes it all worth it for us! Oh, and 90 kids means 90 birthdays, so there’s always cake.
In May 2023, Debbie received the BCP Chairman’s Community Award, alongside another volunteer, for their active contribution to the local community.

Get involved with Junior Parkrun

Our partnership with

Goal 17

More recently, Katie has dedicated herself as a mentor for a young adult, part of Goal 17. As young adults leave the care system, they need a big sister figure to call on – be that how to roast a chicken or needing help with a job application. Drawing on her Mental Health First Aider qualification and years of mentoring experience, Katie is well-equipped to help support someone through these challenges. Tapping into Katie’s brainpower and mentor mojo means turning "what the heck do I do now?" moments into "watch me soar" certainties.

Get involved with Goal 17

Become a community partner

Contact our HR Gurus to understand how you can integrate community partners into your business

Contact us

Don’t take our word for it…

“The event is run entirely by volunteers and overseen by two Event Directors, for Slades this is Emily and Debbie, who ensure that the event is run safely each week, recruit the required number of volunteers, train the volunteers on the morning and inject a liberal dose of fun into each event. All of our Event Directors give up their time to ensure the event happens every week and supports the local community. Slades Junior parkrun has been going for three years and is now an unmissable event for juniors and parents.”

Kirsty Weston
Slades Junior parkrun Ambassador
“Debbie has been a trustee at The Parks Foundation since April 2021. She has been a keen and enthusiastic member of our Trustee board, bringing expertise in HR that has been invaluable to us. As our charity has grown, introducing a trading arm and with that more employees, Debbie has been a sounding board for HR related matters, providing advice and guidance. More recently, as our numbers have risen to 27 staff, Debbie has, through her business, Streetwise HR, been helping us set up a new online system, and stepping in with HR matters. Moreover, Debbie is a great support to me in my role at Interim CEO."

John Hanssen
The Parks Foundation Interim CEO
“As a zero-admin charity we are 100% reliant on the goodwill of our supporters and volunteers and we have been so grateful for the advice and support Debbie has given us over the last few years. With her background, Debbie is able to assist us with ensuring our governance is up to date and puts a lot of time and effort in helping organise all of our events and also rallying after the rest of us which can be a challenge in itself.”

Russell Hicks
The Boo Charity Founder
“A great session this morning talking about HR red flags. It was lovely to get together with other people locally to sound out some of the more tricky situations you can find yourself in within the world of HR.”

Jennifer
Passenger HR Manager
“Really fantastic seminar from Streetwise HR Ltd, can't wait for the next one!”

Kate
The Stable Family Home Trust HR Administrator