15 minute read
Treasure hunting
Our Barnstaple store was such a success that we’ve only gone and opened one in Bideford
Take a look at some finds, plus gems we’ve been showing on our Facebook pages recently (re:store Charity Shop). Like us to get the heads up on what’s new in-store – and don’t forget to tag us on your re:store bargains.
SILK BESIDE THE SEA: handpainted scarves by local artist and re:store volunteer Jane Williams available to order at www.artisansilks.co.uk with 10 per cent of profits to NDADA MELLOW YELLOW: perfect match with dark denim
BLISS IS A BOOK: great reads for everyone in all our stores
METALLICA: elegant accessories for glam nights out
GROOVY BABY: handmade floral print Sixties midi skirt. A vibrant pink festival must-have
MARVELous giant framed posters for young superheroes
ENGLISH ESSENTIALS: sophisticated menswear for every pocket
re:store Bideford, 1 High St, Bideford, EX39 2AA. Tel. 01237 459291.
COMMUNITY
Volunteering makes you happy!
It’s official – so get out there and get stuck in. We’ve found some great ways you can volunteer and connect with the north Devon community
Did you know that studies have shown that being a volunteer can help to prevent social isolation, improve mental health and even have a positive effect on physical health? Volunteering has been linked to lower blood pressure and living longer. Not to mention that it looks great on your CV, if you’re looking to give that a boost. We’re all so busy living hectic modern lives that it can be hard to imagine how anything else could be fitted in, but volunteering needn’t be a chore, and you might be amazed at the range of volunteering options on your doorstep. Take a look at some of these ideas and see if anything grabs your fancy.
Be a friend of NDADA
People who make contact with NDADA are often in need of an objective and reliable friend to support them. We also need friendly people to help with children and young people at Refuge. There are a number of other ways you can volunteer for NDADA, including helping out in the Bideford and Barnstaple shops, selling advertising in re:story magazine and helping with lots of behind-the-scenes activities. Take a look at the NDADA website to find out more. www.ndada.co.uk
Find a furry companion
If you love dogs but can’t fit one into your home-life, why not offer to walk a dog for your local Dogs Trust or The Cinnamon Trust which helps the elderly and terminally ill take care of their pets? www.cinnamon.org.uk www.dogstrust.org.uk
Use your transferable skills
If you have a clerical or professional skill and a few hours to spare, The Citizens Advice Bureau would love to hear from you. It relies on volunteers who can help with professional services, fundraising, IT, administration, campaigning, trusteeship and supporting witnesses. www.citizensadvice.org.uk
Do you like to be beside the seaside?
Do you spend time on the coast? Why not get involved with the two minute beach clean movement? Pick up as much litter as possible in two minutes and take it to a bin - recycling what you can, of course. www.beachclean.net
Conserve our countryside
National Trust rangers cover a huge area and have a big task on their hands to look after the countryside around Devon and always appreciate help.
www.northdevon.wordpress.com/ volunteer-opportunities/
Get crafty
If you have any level of ability in knitting or sewing you could help the Special Care Baby Unit at North Devon District Hospital take care of poorly and premature babies by making comforters and other practical items. Call 01271 311772 or email ndht.charity@nhs.net for more information
If nothing here floats your boat, get in contact with Devon Voluntary Action. Its team will be able to tell you about a range of opportunities in Devon and match your skills and amount of available time with the right organisation.
www.devonva.org/want_to_volunteer
North Devon’s Cookery School for inspiring but achievable cookery skills; cooking from scratch, for interesting every day, for specifi c diets or for stress-free entertaining.
TEACH PARTY TEACH HENS
TEACH BLOKES TEACH ONE2ONE
TEACH FAMILIES TEACH TEAMS
JELLY & GIGGLES PARTY TEACH STUDENT SURVIVAL
Enjoy interesting cooking in a warm and welcoming home environment. A perfect venue to bring guests for an exclusive “cook-your-own-party”!
01598 710277 | www.twotartscookeryschool.co.uk
arta ahura
ORGANIC, HANDMADE, NATURAL LUXURY
TOWELS | THROWS | ACCESSORIES
Enduringly beautiful and versatile in hand-loomed raw organic cotton, silk and linen – find them in selected shops and at www.artaahura.co.uk
SUPPORTING PEOPLE AND ECOLOGY THROUGH CRAFT
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Chronic muscular pain?
Find out how Somatics can help you?
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Debbie has been teaching for 10 years, originally trained by the Pilates Foundation and is a member of The Independent Pilates Teachers Association.
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NDADA
Winning through
After years of crisis management to keep the refuge going, the team at North Devon Against Domestic Abuse is celebrating winning a generous pot of funding from the Big Lottery. CEO Sue Wallis explains what it means for north Devon
Timeline
1975Launched as North Devon Women’s Aid Refuge in a small terraced house with few facilities 1998Moved into purpose built refuge accommodation
This is a great leap forward,’ smiles Sue, of NDADA’s receipt of £670,000 worth of funding (over five years) from the Big Lottery Women and Girls fund. ‘It means we have some security as an organisation and can implement some exciting plans to work with many more people over the next five years, including children who will learn that life can be different.’ Sue and NDADA’s financial administrator sat together for days putting together the bid and creating a very detailed budget (for which they were especially commended) in order to access the £48m fund to support the empowerment of women and girls. ‘It’s not necessarily around domestic violence,’ says Sue, ‘but the Lottery was particularly interested in femaleled organisations where there is a lot of input from the service users, as well as an opportunity to expand the voice of young women. ‘This is a one-off fund which was released as a result of the outcry after the government withdrew a massive amount of funding last year. The Big Lottery asked organisations to make an application for up to £750,00 over three or five years, or – for larger, strategic projects with a national focus - between £2-5m.’ The CEO of the groundbreaking charity is riding a wave of positivity and enthusiasm after the win, which is shared by the entire NDADA team, saying: ‘this is a real recognition of success, especially for the members of staff who are working on the front line delivering the service. They can often feel very detached from the public face of the organisation.’ Big plans for the funding include a new re:store upcycle bus which will take the charity’s clothes shops (currently in Barnstaple and Bideford) out to rural areas of the
Can your business support NDADA?
Small and medium sized businesses have a responsibility to their own staff with regard to domestic violence, but often don’t have policies or ways of addressing the issues. Working with NDADA as a supporter of the charity is one way of broaching this. Here are some ways in which you can get involved:
• Make NDADA your charity of the year
• Coffee mornings and cake sales always raise funds and NDADA will always send a member of the team to support the event
• Hold social events for your team or your clients at one of the re:store shops. Provide drinks and nibbles, let people enjoy some shopping and NDADA will provide the space for free
• Advertise in re:story magazine
• Introduce a Give As You Earn (GAYE) scheme where employees can donate direct from their salary each month, before tax
To find out more about supporting NDADA, please call Sue on 07772 768533
2002First outreach services offered in the community 2011 Changed name to North Devon Against Domestic Abuse to encourage male victims to seek support 2012First re:store charity shop opened in Barnstaple
community, where information and access to help around domestic violence issues will be available alongside funky clothing and accessories. ‘The bus is an exciting bit of the project and holds opportunities we don’t even know about yet,’ says Sue. ‘Another benefit is that we’ll be able to expand our work helping people with complex needs, including mental health issues and substance and alcohol abuse. The project funding is going to allow us to have a specialist member of staff where previously we’ve had to rely on external agencies from a health service that’s pushed in the extreme. We’ve not always been able to act as quickly as we need to and it’s been a huge issue for us for a long time. ‘We also know that we are going to be able to learn a lot from this,’ says Sue. ‘The Lottery is very interested to understand what is best practice, so the people who have received funding have an obligation to share information about what we learn with the wider community, which is a very positive move. As an organisation we feel very supported by the funders, which is unusual. The only place we usually get that is from Lloyds Foundation, who we have worked with for a long time.’ It may look like everything’s rosy for NDADA right now, but Sue is keen to say, ‘we can’t give people the impression that we don’t need additional income, as that’s not the case. We need to continue to fundraise and work with individuals and businesses to keep NDADA and the refuge open.’
NDADA in a nutshell
• NDADA provides temporary refuge to women and children who have suffered domestic abuse, and offers support and aftercare to any woman who has left Refuge • It encourages service users to determine their own future and helps them achieve it, whether this involves returning home or starting a new life elsewhere
• Recognises and cares for the emotional and educational needs of children involved
• Offers support, advice and help to any service user who asks for it in the community • Educates and informs the public, the media, Police, courts, Social Services and other partners and organisations about domestic abuse
• Supports families in a holistic approach to help keep families safe and relationships healthy
2013 Local authority and government funding ceased
2014
re:store Junior charity shop opened in Barnstaple 2016re:store charity shop opened in Bideford
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re:store
{ the fashionista’s best kept secret }
A shop with a difference.
So stuffed full of beautiful and cool things you’ll forget you’re in a charity shop. What will you discover on your visit?
re:store 39-40 Boutport St, Barnstaple EX31 1RX re:store 1 High St, Bideford EX39 2AA re:store junior 79 Boutport St, Barnstaple EX31 1SR
FAMILY
Happy families
Knowing what’s holding you back is often the key to making positive changes. Rosanna Rothery finds out about the mums who, quite literally, have been smashing down barriers to a happy, healthy relationship with their kids
The mums are scribbling things that hold them back on a giant wall. Mental blocks include traumatic experiences, frustrating encounters and self-defeating emotions. The act of sprawling spontaneous graffiti over a wall is just one of many fun, creative activities on Grow Together, a course to help victims of domestic violence heal their relationship with their children. ‘All these things get shoved on the wall,’ says intervention worker Rachel Tossell, who runs the course. ‘We look at each individual item and we share ideas. We ask: “what can help break that wall down?” The women then write their solutions on post-it notes which they stick on themselves. Then they all smash down the wall together.’ This cathartic act of demolition is just one of the many tools used to empower and support mums who want a better understanding of how domestic violence has affected their relationship with their kids.
‘It’s called Grow Together because we don’t want to dismiss what the mothers are already doing. They are already a parent and they just need to build on the positive stuff,’ says Rachel. The six-week programme, developed in the NDADA refuge but now being adapted for mums in the community, helps women regain confidence in their parenting skills.
‘There is always time to heal’
‘The perpetrator can put quite a lot of obstacles in the way of a woman being a good mum: dismissing her parenting or encouraging the children not to listen or answer back,’ says Rachel. ‘When they come out of the relationship there could be a lot of things leftover that affect how things are with their children.’ Simple recreational activities encourage children to express their feelings and creativity. A nature walk, doing a jigsaw together or just collecting garden foliage for an art project can turn into therapeutic and fun bonding experiences. ‘Not all children need professional help but some do, so it’s about awareness,’ says Rachel. ‘We look at how play can be therapeutic so children can talk and express themselves, which is a really important part of healing.
It’s Never Too Late to Have a Happy Childhood
An excerpt from the poem by Bruce Williamson to remind us we can play at any age
Wonder and wander around, feel happy and precious and innocent, feel scared, feel sad, feel mad, give up worry and guilt and shame, say yes, say no, say the magic words, ask lots of questions, ride bicycles, draw and paint, see things differently, Fall down and get up again, look at the sky, watch the sun rise and sun set, watch clouds and name their shapes, watch the moon and stars come out, trust the universe, stay up late, Climb trees, daydream, do nothing and do it very well, learn new stuff, be excited about everything, be a clown, enjoy having a body, listen to music, find out how things work, make up new rules, tell stories, save the world,
‘There is this real fear you can make it worse for children by talking. It’s important to say you can’t get it wrong. Children may find it difficult to express themselves, if they are not used to it, but that is quickly superseded by the positive stuff.’ Mums who had unpleasant things happen to them when they were young often appreciate Rachel’s assertion that it’s never too late to have a happy childhood. Riding bicycles, drawing, painting and blowing bubbles can be enjoyed at any age. Each session ends with mum being read a story, a magical tale they can re-tell to their children at bedtime. ‘Stories are fantastic at helping us look at a situation, and once removed they can explore how somebody else dealt with their anger, sadness or loss.’ It’s hoped that by working with partners, the delivery of Grow Together can be extended to fathers. By the end of each course, Rachel often notices a positive change in the women and their relationship with their kids. ‘I had one parent once say, “I’ve started taking my child out to a coffee shop after school once a week”. ‘The relationship before was fractious and negative and there was no fun. But by focusing on the positive and doing fun things with the child, it changed their relationship.’
