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Projects
Advocacy Project
Project aim
To offer 1-1 care and support that includes advocating and raising issues that affect women’s lives.
Advocacy is central to all the work of GROW and we are positioned to speak out on behalf of our service user’s, challenge inequalities in service provision and give a voice to many issues that would ordinarily remain hidden.
The project provides a service for women with complex needs including those with mental health problems and those affected by drug and alcohol misuse. We are proud of the quality of support we offer: unlimited time to develop a relationship with their project worker, mutual trust and respect, and independent Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG), regarding any aspect of both their and their families’ lives. As well as accompanying women to attend appointments with various agencies i.e. housing, health, benefits, and education, social services, court, time is also spent ensuring that the woman has fully understood what has been said.
This year we provided support to 30 women, including sessions in Creative Writing and Music. The course aim was to create a story about a fictional street. We let our imaginations run riot as we created fictional characters who lived in GROW Avenue..
Initially, there was a lot of shyness, but with the support of Jean, our professional writer, the story developed with many exciting twists and turns. We then had the support of Sian, an excellent and innovative musician, to put music to the story. She arrived with many weird and wonderful home made instruments for us to play.
Despite the anxieties of singing in public our confidence had grown so much that on the final session we performed 'live' to an invited audience, dressed in character, and made a CD of the production.
Unfortunately, many funding streams require outputs of education, voluntary or paid work. For many of our service users this is also their long-term aim but the reality is that it could be several years before this becomes a reality. The support offered enables them to take small, comfortable steps that can be built on, gaining confidence and self esteem as well as qualifications that will make them attractive to future employers but, so they also feel ready to re-join the job market.
GROW’s dream for the future is to continue to support women, at a pace that is suitable to each individual, which will ultimately benefit both their families and society.
At GROW we are all passionate about the work that we do and the rewards are self evident from assisting a women to leave the house, to get on a bus, to walk into a cafe, to complete a CV, to fill in an application form, attend an interview and to be offered a job. For the individual woman, all are steps that need celebrating.
Project links:
1. Advocacy Project
2. Lone Parent Project
3. Diversity Project
4. Training Project
5. Rotherham Women's Network
6. Creché
Registered
charity no. 1088792 Company no. 4126612
GROW
The International Centre,
Simmonite Road, Kimberworth Park, Rotherham,
S61 3EQ
Tel. 01709 511171 Fax. 01709
552 321