The Malt Cross Trust is pleased to announce the charity has secured almost £10,000 in funding to support vulnerable women in Nottingham.
Working in conjunction with local charities BoxSmart and Nottinghamshire YMCA, the Trust has been awarded the grant by The National Lottery ‘Awards for All’ fund to deliver their collaborative ‘I am Wonder Woman’ project over two seven-week programmes.
The project will create support sessions for local women (aged 16+) affected by issues ranging from long-term unemployment to domestic violence and mental health problems in order to develop a unique blend of health, technical and transferable life skills.
Healthy living and empowerment sessions will be delivered for participants at the Malt Cross by BoxSmart, a local community group that supports women from the Black and Minority Ethnic and Refugee (BAMER) community who have experienced domestic violence.
Nottinghamshire YMCA will then deliver digital media programmes using the charity’s YMCA Digital radio station, based at NGY MyPlace, on Castle Gate in the city centre, to provide the women with a platform to voice their experiences and build a wider support community.
The need for this funding can be contextualised by The Nottingham Insight‘s 2017 report that highlights how 15,500 people are affected by domestic violence in Nottingham every year, with 42% of those accessing services being from the BAMER community.
“By giving participants a voice and creating a welcoming, safe and trustworthy environment, we hope to give these women who have faced – and perhaps are still navigating – complex life challenges a chance to express their personal journeys and nurture a positive support network,” said Tamara Kenna, Fundraising and Research Officer at the Malt Cross Trust.
Support sessions will start with experiential activities and discussions about healthy living, such as nutrition, exercise, managing stress and developing healthy relationships.
Darren Goodlad, who manages YMCA Digital, explained: “After each session, participants will learn new technical, vocational and life skills, such as creating digital content and creating podcasts to share their story and ambitions, the value of self-worth and how to inspire themselves and others.
“With invaluable support from BoxSmart, the participants will take what they have learned about healthy relationships and healthy living and be encouraged to share their new learning with their peers in their community, as well as local people through the podcast which will be played through the YMCA’s online radio station.”
Weekly sessions will alternate between Nottingham city centre’s YMCA Digital hub and in the workshop space at the Malt Cross on St James’s Street off Market Square.
For more information about the project, please email fundraising@maltcross.com; or visit the BoxSmart or Malt Cross websites.