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Queens Award for Voluntary Service
NATIONAL LOTTERY COMMUNITY FUND

Year: 2021

Home 2021

We’re Not Everyone’s Cup of Tea

BGilbert

Peer Support Groups aren’t every Woman’s cup of Tea It’s easy to represent a rose-tinted hue when it comes to running a peer support group for women who experience multiple and complex disadvantage, but the group setting does not suit all women and it can be difficult to organise and to maintain. We do present the positive aspects of a women’s community group in much of our social media, as most of it is. But in the interests of honesty, I write today about some of the issues we encounter in our year to year experience. Running and maintaining a women’s group is not easy Throughout the 7 years Cohort 4 have been in operation we have formed a community…

group of women holding up large cheque in front of building

Cohort 4 Celebrating Lottery Community Funding

BGilbert

Queens Award winning Community Group celebrate Lottery Funding Tucked away down a quiet side street in Atherstone is Cohort 4. Based at the St Benedict’s Community Hall in Owen Street, Cohort 4 organise a range of weekly groups run by women, for women who have multiple and complex disadvantage. There are social groups, lunch groups and creativity sessions, all without charge for women from the surrounding areas. The growing team at Cohort 4 include a specialist Mental Health Practitioner, an Activity Coordinator and Women Support Project Workers. Cohort 4 celebrates receiving a huge £216,493 from the National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK. This vital funding, raised by National Lottery players ensures that the…

This is not just Bread Pudding, it is so much more

BGilbert

This is not just bread pudding, it is so much more. I sat eating a slice this afternoon, savouring the deliciousness with a cup of frothy coffee, thinking about Julia and our group of women at Cohort 4. I thought about the ordinariness of a bread pudding and yet each week Julia makes the group this cake from everyday ingredients, including often left over or donated FareShare bread. The comfort it brings is far greater than the sum of its parts. Food historians traced back to the 11th century in Europe, it has been a popular sweet dish in England since the 13th Century, made from scraps of stale bread and known as ‘poor man’s pudding.’ For me this is…

Hope, Peer Mentoring and a feeling of Family

BGilbert

I can honestly say without a shadow of doubt that without cohort4 I wouldn’t have a friendly blackbird who eats my compost heap or met a lovely pair of bats called Billy and Betty. I definitely wouldn’t be looking at my final court case and I certainly wouldn’t be having a little man entering my life soon and I wouldn’t have a massive family environment to bring my baby’s to!! I wouldn’t be who I am today without the help support and kindness of everyone! I will never loose hope because cohort4 brings enough to share. I will never feel alone again because there’s so many people around that help and guide me. Thank you to cohort4. I’m now in a beautiful…

sofa, table and chair in lounge

Working together to make a difference

BGilbert

Working together to make a difference This last couple of weeks Cohort 4 has worked together with P3 to make a significant difference to one of our group members in Nuneaton. Sharing resources, expertise and connections certainly has transformed the safety and wellbeing of one resident in our area. P3 located and secured a sheltered accommodation flat for an older Cohort 4 group member and organised all the processes, paperwork and tenancy details. Then Cohort 4 took over to arrange to have the flat cleaned, carpeted and furnished ready for today’s big move in… thanks to our Men’s Support Worker Neil for your hard work.  Thanks then also to Number 8 Charity for some excellent quality (gently used) furniture and…

NEW TO COHORT 4 – THE DAWN DOWNES FUND

BGilbert

The Dawn Downes Fund – To help women in our community fleeing domestic abuse About 9 months ago we were very honoured to make contact with North Warwickshire Councillor Dawn Downes and was amazed with all the community work she does.  Dawn was very much involved with the Maternity Ward at George Eliot Hospital in Nuneaton and supported ladies experiencing domestic abuse.  Dawn was very passionate about what we do at Cohort 4 and arranged for us to have Christmas gifts not only for our ladies but for their families also – we were very much overwhelmed by how much was donated and helped our ladies and families in this pandemic time. Dawn had also set up a group called…

Cohort 4 celebrates International Women’s Day: our work with women in the EU #IWD2021 #ChooseToChallenge

BGilbert

8th March is International Women’s Day and we at Cohort 4 reflect on our work with organisations in Malta connected to prevention of gender based and domestic violence. Within our social enterprise trading arm, Cohort 4 have for some years delivered training regarding risk relating to domestic violence and the DASH (2009) Risk Checklist to social work, domestic violence risk assessessors and to senior police professionals in Malta. We took this risk assessment process from the UK to Malta and have shared knowledge about multi agency practice and appropriate information sharing protocols.  As well as delivered training to multi agency professionals in Malta, we’ve made many firm friendships and connections. Katya Unah the Assistant Director of the Commission on Gender…

Social capital, community strength, apple crumble and coming together in difficult times

BGilbert

“Social capital is the glue that binds together communities otherwise at risk of coming unstuck. The Covid-19 crisis has reinforced the values of community purpose.”Andy Haldane, Chief Economist at the Bank of England wrote a blog post for The National Lottery Community Fund about how national crisis brings out the best in people. He outlined how social capital is the glue binding communities together. His blog comes when the Lottery publish their report about ‘Making a Difference’ and how Lottery funding has helped over 14,000 community projects to create the resources for community groups to imaginatively and creatively address some of the acute issues affecting individuals at this challenging time. Certainly the National Lottery along with our local Community Foundation…

woman reading a book

Cohort 4 – Our group means so much to me!

BGilbert

Cohort 4 – Our group Coming into this group is the best thing I ever did. I still remember my first day I didn’t know what to say or do Sat there being waited on (my terminology) I didn’t have to help do drinks etc I felt lost, not doing people doing for me. How strange. I cried when I got home, told my pa the next day I wasn’t going again it was out of my comfort zone, He suggested I give it a couple of months So glad I did The network we have between everybody is amazing Cohort 4 has helped me so much Our three musketeers on hand 24/7 (Maria, Bev & Fay) Then Julia, Margaret, Gilda…

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