What happened last Friday ...take 2!!

I spy Jamie from Red Road!  And Nicky from Education....

Well...my last blog post was getting so long yesterday that I decided I needed to split the feedback from last Friday's launch into two!

Here is part 2 of the feedback......

Clare Jones, joint Chief Executive of Women Centre took to the stage, first to show us an exceptionally moving DVD and then to provide us with more information about the project here in Barrow.

The DVD proved to be more emotional then many of us thought.  Clare invited us to hear the voices and share the journey's of 4 women who had used her centre and whose lives had been turned around as a result.  I don't know about anyone else but the hairs on the back on my neck were standing to attention throughout much of the video clip and tears sprung to the fore more than once. 

Clare outlined the plan to develop a 'one stop shop' for Barrow's women.  It will become the best place for other services to be based (so they are starting to tell us...we haven't made this up or even exagerated!) and add value to those services.

Clare told us that the important thing to note about this project is that it has the ability to connect up all the excellent work that is already going on.  it will provide a place for women to go to find out about the full range of provision for them in the Barrow area.

I think you can perhaps just read the vision of the project in the photo :
"To grow a vibrant, sustainable, women only centre which will become a strong resource to women in crisi and distress which embraces a positive ethos towards self-development and empowerment."


Clare suggested we often underestimate the prevalence of domestic violence in women's lives and the many ways in which it can prevent women from moving forward.  Barrow's Women's Community Project will be a safe space for women...a place where they can come for help, advice and support....and a place where they can access a number of different services they may have need of.

Women who perhaps do not meet the threshold for mental helath services but need something will perhaps benefit from the project.  We do not have to look at issues in a medical way - we will be looking at wellbeing as a whole.  We will enable women to make decisions about their own lives, offering support as and when they want us to.

The centre can be used by women who need to meet with probation officers as part of their court sentences. 

We will need to make sure we cater for the needs of younger women and also older women who may have caring responsibilities.

The project in Barrow will be about accepting and embracing women who are victims of abuse, who have alcohol or drug issues, women with parenting responsibilities, and girls and young women who also have these issues and responsibilities.

The centre will be a place of HOPE, it will be where there is someone to hold your hand, help you deal with different parts of your problem so you can turn your life around, where there will be someone who will help you find the ladder you need to climb out of your tricky situation.

It will be a place where women will be able to recognise their own strengths, abilities and skills and learn how to build on these to make the changes they want.

The centre will be where women can open doors to new horizons for themselves and their families.

After a powerful and moving presentation...and after some lovely coffee and biscuits served by the very lovely Laura from The Forum....it was time for the attendees to have their first opportunity to tell us what they think.  and they had been thinking A LOT!!

They had plenty to say!

 

 

I can see health partners, the Head Teacher of Greengate Juniors, someone from Signal films...and lots of significant others!  All had a brilliant contribution to make and the Steering Group are more than a little pleased with how it all went!

It was a fabulous event...thank you to everyone who gave up their time to come along, and most importantly, contributed to the discussion and filled in the evaluation forms.  Clare will be turning these into an evaluation report which we will be in a position to share soon.

Thank you, thank you, thank you...today is the first International Day of Happiness and I am today the Pig of Happiness and I think you all are too!

Bye for now.  Love, Rebecca xx