Good Neighbours
Sea Mills & Coombe Dingle
Community Hub Update #5
22 July 2020
Dear people,
Firstly, this message is going out to everyone who has volunteered, or offered to volunteer, over the past few months. Do let me know if you don't want to hear from me again.
Things have moved on a lot since the lockdown started; some people are getting their 'normal' routine back again, but many are having to make significant adjustments, and a great many people still need help in some form. This update is about learning from the past and preparing for the future: your experience and ideas are important.
We are being asked to provide some feedback on the whole volunteering experience - from both sides: both helping others and being helped. The idea is partly to recognise and celebrate all the wonderful activity which has been taking place and making peoples' lives better, and partly to help those providing services to understand the changing situation, so they can plan accordingly.
So, I have two requests and an offer.
Firstly, whoever you are, and whatever you have done, please send me right now a very brief summary of what you have done since things shut down in March. "Weekly shopping for one person, and walked dogs a couple of times" is the kind of level I'm looking for. Please reply before you move on to the next email! If you have signed up but not been asked to do anything, I need to hear that, too. And if you were helped, do say as well. Thank you.
Secondly, please have a think about your experience of the past few months, what went well, what went badly, what lessons were learned, and what do you think we should be doing (or doing differently) in the future. Take a day or two, and then get back to me with your thoughts. If you have any ideas or suggestions for the Council or other groups, for what they can do and how they can best support us and others in the coming months, now is a great time to share them. And please include any feedback you have received from people you have helped: quotes and short stories as examples of what has happened, as stories help people to understand much better than abstract ideas. They are especially asking for good news stories, but don't let that stop you sharing anything you want to say. Obviously, I'm not asking for a ten page essay, but any feedback, stories and ideas would be very much appreciated - if possible by Sunday evening. Thank you.
Thirdly, I have been offered a place or two on some Mental Health training. It will be online, of course, on the morning of Friday 21 August, from 9.30 am to 1 pm. It should be good - there will be two qualified and experienced trainers, some input and the chance to ask questions, with the overall aim of understanding mental health problems, and knowing how to respond to them. If you are interested, or think you might be interested, please let me know.
Now, please, hit 'Reply' and send me a brief summary of what you have done! Thank you very much.
All the best,
Paul.
