Winter 2013 newsletter final

Nottingham Women’s Centre has received over £260,000 from the Big Lottery Fund for its innovative project to help around 650 women

improve their mental health and well-being through a counseling and

empowerment scheme. The project called RENEW which stands for

“Re-energised, Empowered and Networked Women” is the first of its kind in Nottingham which combines the therapeutic benefits of

empowerment with one to one counseling in a women-only

space. RENEW provides the opportunity to access one to one

support and attend empowerment sessions.

A trained psychotherapist will introduce women to non-medical

therapeutic techniques in a group setting and encourage the women to

build empowering relationships to increase confidence, self-esteem

and psychological wellbeing. Creative therapy sessions will be offered

including singing, drawing, creative writing and healthy cooking.

To find out more about our exciting plans for RENEW, come along to

our course information day and speak to Emma or Linda.

I :

Mel’s Corner 2

Nottingham Wom-

en’s Conference

NCVS Skillsbank

3

Wolan – Breaking the silence!

4

Fundraising update 5

New Garden Project

6

Daycare Staff Spotlight

7

Christmas wishes Soup kitchen

8

Exciting launch of RENEW!

Find out about our courses and activities at our next

Course Information Day: Tuesday 10th December

10am — 2pm

It’s at this time of year that we look back on a year’s worth of achievements and begin to consider the

challenges and opportunities that lie ahead of us.

2013 was a big year for Nottingham Women’s Centre in many ways. We were successful in applying to two

large funders – the Heritage Lottery and the Big

Lottery – allowing us to launch two completely new

projects at the Centre.

The first, WoLAN (Women’s Liberation in Nottingham and After) is a one year project and now

over half-way through. Through WoLAN we’ve connected with a whole new generation of volunteers

(101 volunteers at the time of writing this, most of

whom are under 30) and reconnected with

inspirational women from our past. I cannot wait to

see the final exhibition from the project in March next

year.

The second project, RENEW (Re-energised,

Empowered and Networked Women) is only just

beginning. This new mental health project will increase

the support we can offer women with common mental

health issues such as depression and anxiety. This type

of project has never been needed more than it is now

– with the 'squeeze' that austerity puts on people's

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Our AGM is on

5th December,

5.30pm—7pm.

Please join us!

finances (particularly women’s) contributing to a sharp rise in the number of people affected by

mental health issues

In addition to 2013 being a year of growth for us,

we also continued to deliver our core services

and as we look ahead to 2014, we hope to again

maintain a steady ship. One of the key challenges

ahead for us is the transition of Probation ser-

vices from the public sector to the private sector

next year. We have worked with Probation for

nearly 4 years, delivering the CHANGES project

to women offenders. The impact of the proposed

reorganisation is very much unknown at the mo-

ment but we are confident in what we can bring

to the table and will be fighting hard to maintain

this successful service.

All in all, if this was an end of year school report

I think we’d probably be well on track for an ‘A’ grade this year. With that in mind, I want to end

this update by saying a huge thank you to all of

the staff, volunteers and trustees of the Centre,

each of whom has played their part in making this

such a successful year.

Mel’s Corner

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NC S S !

Pragna Patel, Director of

Southall Black Sisters

There were workshops,

information from local and

national campaigns and a

campaigning space for

women to network about

their own campaigns and

ideas.

It was a really successful event, and one NWC are

very proud to have sponsored and been involved

with. A big thanks goes to Nottingham Feminist

Action Network (NFAN) and everyone involved

for a great conference and a fabulous month of

feminist activity. Here is what some attendees had

to say:

‘ Ex c ep t i o n a l l y p owe r f u l a nd mov i n g ’ ‘I am going to call myself a feminist for the first time!’ ‘Inspired to start a new project off the back of this

event!’

Nottingham Women’s Conference was held on 21st

September. It took place at the Indian Community

Centre in Nottingham, and was packed out by 163

women, all eager to discuss, share and listen to a

wide range of feminist issues. There were also over

40 fringe events in the weeks surrounding the

conference, raising the profile of prominent issues

for women.

The event was

chaired by Finn

MacKay, the founder

of the London

Feminist Network

but featured a huge

range of speakers like

Julia Long, a feminist

academic and campaigner,

Chris Herries, first female

Chair of Co-operatives UK and

Nottingham Women’s Conference and Fringe

Festival

On 7th November, Nottingham Community and

Voluntary Service launched their exciting new

project: Nottingham Skillsbank. The project’s motto captures its objective in one phrase:

‘Bitesized Volunteering for busy people’. It aims to place skilled individuals with the desire to vol-

unteer in to voluntary organisations that need

them. This provides local voluntary groups with a

new wealth of knowledge and experience to

draw upon, which otherwise might not be availa-

ble to them.

It has come about after a successful pilot scheme,

run with the University of Nottingham in 2012. It

aims to improve the quality of volunteering and en-

courage skilled professionals to engage with their

loca l communi ty — great for us !

It’s a brilliant project in that it is entirely flexible, useful and builds good relations with local people.

Nottingham CVS has over 40 years experience in

the voluntary sector so they are excellently in-

formed about local voluntary services and skilled

people in Nottingham. Who knows what this could

mean for volunteering at NWC? Watch this space!

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This week women took to the streets of Notting-

ham and reclaimed the night. Meanwhile Notting-

ham Women’s Centre history project has been re-claiming history, reclaiming women’s voices and hearing loud and clear stories of women making

history in Nottingham.

Zaimal one of the main organisers of the Reclaim

the Night march speaks out about the ‘silences that we face’ as one of the forms of violence that we experience both locally and globally. Silencing is a

major tool to keep imbalanced power structures

firmly in their place and women’s lives restricted. In Women Now a 1970s publication by the Nottingham

Women’s Liberation Group, an article called ‘Know Thy Place’ talks of silencing as one of the barriers women can face the normalising of the version of a

world where the people are kept down to allow

other’s privilege to be kept intact.

Silencing is necessary for abuse of power to contin-

ue from the lies and deceit and of victim blaming to

trying to crush the power of an unbreakable spirit

such as 24 year old Nadezhda Tolokonnikova the

punk-singer and activist who spoke out in song

against Russian human rights violations. Amnesty

international reports as I write that Nadia is still

missing. Days ago she disappeared on her way to a

Siberian prison camp being punished for refusing to

be silenced on appalling prison conditions.

This week Val Lunn, Director of Women’s Aid spoke out about the history in women’s struggle for liberation an idea which goes beyond equality

change to the ideal of women being free to be true

to their selves and their dreams. In her Reclaim the

Night speech Val points out that ‘change has never been offered or given to us...change has happened

because we have demanded it and fought for it’.

Breaking the Silence —

WoLAN Shouts it Out!

Half-way through the WoLAN project we have

now gathered over twenty stories of people who in

their own way made stones for bridges of liberty

under which flow rivers of hope from which we can

drink and be refreshed. Artists, writers, activists,

cooks, gardeners, musicians, radical bookshop

workers, scholars, psychologists, counsellors and

one Lord Mayor joined voices so far.

We now have 101 volunteers signed to the project

there is room for you too! Come and help prepare

for our exhibition which at Angel Row gallery

throughout March where we can sing the praises of

these everyday heroines and join them in making

history through film, art work, interviews and song.

Or come and join us and find your voice writing or

singing at these WoLAN Events:

Writing for Healing: 25 November, 6.00pm-

7.30pm at Nottingham Women’s Centre. Just come along on the night.

Sing it! December date TBA. Look out for posters

in the centre.

We want to hear your voice: contact

[email protected]

ring 0115 941 1475.

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December is almost upon us and it is always a

great time to take stock - it has been a very

busy few months for the fundraising and

marketing team at Nottingham Women’s Centre – apart from RENEW and the 2014

Year of Adventure Initiative, we have had

some new and exciting projects that we have

been spreading the word about and others that

we need to find funding for within the new

climate of “partnership and collaboration”.

One of such projects is our library project -

(LIB-erate) which is now looking positive with

respect to funding- we have had to put this on

hold in the past due to a shortfall in funding.

Thankfully, one of our corporate partners has

recently offered a generous £9000 match

funding with the condition that we find the rest

of the funding - the entire project costs

£27,000.

If you know of anyone that can help, please do

ge t i n touch w i th Olumide a t

[email protected]

or call 0115 941 1475. We would also be happy

to hear from you if you would like to support

the work we do with a fundraising initiative of

your own in aid of Nottingham Women’s Centre.

Our 2014 Year of Adventure project is

progressing brilliantly. We have added Zorbing and

Skydiving to our suite of challenge events – thanks

to everyone who have signed up to be part of the

project so far. If you would like more info or need

a fundraising pack, kindly email Steph at

[email protected]. Our

focus really is to challenge and empower women

and most importantly to have FUN whilst raising

money for a great cause – so we have kept costs

and time commitment to a minimum to ensure

that no woman is excluded and yes, Nottingham

Women’s Centre staff and some of our partners will be taking on the challenge too! We know that

there is strength in numbers, so we are counting

on as many women as possible to sign up to help

us achieve this amazing feat. If you are one of

those who thinks firewalking is too mild, then

Zorbing and Skydiving might just be for you.

Adrenaline, fun, inspiration, friendship and a

sense of achievement – all that we need to

usher in 2014!

FUNspiring ways to support the women's centre

Finally, we are always on the look-out for skilled

fundraising/marketing volunteers – so either get in

touch directly or via the new NCVS Skillsbank at

http://www.nottinghamcvs.co.uk/volunteering/

skillsbank

Peace,

NWC’s Fundraising and Marketing Team

Helping women achieve

It is time for the Nottingham Wom-en’s Centre garden to end its sleepy way of life and finally once again let the

women at the Centre benefit from it. For the next year the Nottingham Women’s Centre Garden Initiative has made it its mission to let the garden become a place to meet other women from the centre, or even get some alone time, a place to get some fresh air and sun, enjoy a tea with fresh herbs from the garden or a nice treat made with vegetables or fruits from the Centre’s garden. So, where is this mysterious place? You can see the garden’s treetops from the café and maybe next time you are looking outside the window, you might take a trip down there?! Although the project is still in its infancy, it has al-ready come a long way. The project is supported by “Treedom Forestry”, an organization for forest education & wellbeing experiences for children and adults and led by one of our volunteers. And since the beginning of November it is also funded by the

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In August we held an away day for our staff and volunteers to review our work and plan for the year ahead. We also did an exercise to look at our core values as an organisation and all came up with some similar things – our emphasis on empower-ment, our ‘family’ environment and the flexibility we show in the way we work to try to accommodate different needs. Do you agree?

Let us know.

Nottingham Women’s Centre: Garden Initiative

Major Oak Fund, through

Nottingham Community

Foundation.

With all this support it is

finally time to get started!

We certainly do not get

put off by the winter fiercely approaching. Before

the first frost strikes Nottingham the bulbs for the

spring bloomers have to be hidden. What is more

inviting than to start the gardening season and be

greeted by a sea of tulips? We also have to decide

what exactly we want to plant as well as where and

when, so that by the first sunbeam we can start the

garden’s transformation.

Why not JOIN US?! We are still looking for volun-teers who enjoy working in the garden, or who have their own allotment and would like to share their knowledge with us, or who just want to try it out and experience the benefits of working outside Contact [email protected] for more information.

The daycare has been busier than ever with lots of

children and lots of activities to keep them happy!

We’ve been enjoying the last bit of sunshine in the garden and are very excited about the Sensory

Garden Project which should make the garden even

more fun for the kids. We’ve also had some new equipment and soft play donated by the City

Council which the children really love.

We would also like to welcome Charlotte to our

team. She is currently a NVQ2 and working

towards her Level 3. Welcome to the team,

Charlotte!

We are now looking forward to Christmas which

we’ll be celebrating with a party – dates to follow.

Please note

that the

daycare will

be closed for

Christmas

from 20th

December to

6th January.

Update from the Daycare!

Staff Spotlight: Steph

I’ve been an intern here at NWC since late Sep-tember working with Olumide. As I only come in

for one day a week, it’s an interesting but brief snap shot in to the work the centre does for women in

Nottingham. As someone who had no idea this

bustling place even existed, it’s enlightening and ac-tually really refreshing to experience. The centre is

such a warm and welcoming place to work and vis-

it. As an English student at the University of Not-

tingham, I’m very involved with voluntary support services for Students in the city, so it’s really nice to be involved in a different organisation that pro-

vides valuable and much-needed support to another

area.

A big part of my role so far has been helping to or-

ganise the ‘2014 Year of Adventure’. It’s really exciting! I love the fact that it’s not just about fundraising but about empowering women to do

really challenging things at the same time. A little bit

of shameless plugging: You should all sign up! I love

working in the office

because it satisfies my

need to be super busy

and crazily organised!

I’m a huge fan of ‘to do’ lists!

I’m originally from Oxford but I’m in my last year of university

now. Hopefully, London awaits on the horizon after

graduation! I have two very cute, very chubby West

highland terriers who are the loves of my life.

They’re a mischievous twosome! I love nothing more than snuggling up with a cup of tea and an

episode of Jonathan Creek! I’m a compulsive clean-er so everything in my house has to be immaculate

and ordered at all times, even my wardrobe. Col-

our coordination is the key!

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N - ’ C ?

Pop in to the centre & fill an application form, email

[email protected] or visit

our website at www.nottinghamwomenscentre.com

Contact:

30 Chaucer Street

Nottingham

NG1 5LP

Tel: 0115 941 1475

Have a contribution for the next newsletter?

Do you have a story, news to share, a recipe or health tip?

Submit your ideas and / or contributions to:

[email protected]

Here at Nottingham Women’s Centre, we’d like to wish you all a very merry Christmas, and a happy new year! Christmas is an exciting

time for everyone, and at this special time of year we would like to

thank all our hard-working volunteers who contribute so much of

their time and enthusiasm to making the centre the place that it is!

It’s been a big year for us, and who knows what the next year will bring for NWC?

Christmas Eve Soup Kitchen

Christmas at NWC!

Just because the year is drawing to an end, doesn’t mean the centre is slowing down! This Christmas Eve, we’re running a soup kitchen! All are welcome to attend, and

volunteers to help run the kitchen would be very wel-

come. This is a was a very popular and heart-warming

event last year so we are very pleased to be able to bring

in back. Come along to enjoy tasty food, warm beverages,

cake and (most importantly of all) presents for children!!

The soup kitchen will be open on Christmas Eve between

10am-3pm for anyone who wants to pop in and enjoy the

festive atmosphere!

We will be closed during the following

periods over Christmas:

Wednesday 25th December -

Wednesday 1st January

We will be back open on Thursday 2nd

January.

Newsletter edited by Steph Lockwood