Jean's Bothy update
Argyll and Bute Council · 8 November 2022
Back to Helensburgh and Lomond Area Community Planning Group — 8 November 2022 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Jean’s Bothy report to November H&L CPG Jean’s Bothy is a mental health & wellbeing hub based in Helensburgh. Anyone over age 16, living in Helensburgh & Lomond can join to be a member, accessing therapeutic activities, workshops and sessions to improve their own mental health and wellbeing. We have a monthly programme which includes a variety of regular sessions as well as one-off taster sessions. IncludED the stageplay – Over the last 3 years our members along with Glasgow based Mark MacNicol (Creative Change Collective) have worked on writing a stageplay. Starting with a blank sheet of paper and the question “Who was Jean of Jean’s Bothy” weekly workshops were delivered for members to share their ideas in a safe space. A full 45 page script was formed and funding was finally secured earlier this year to take it to the stage and on tour! We received funding from AB Council to develop the play and take it to Helensburgh, and funding from ABTSI Community Mental Health & Wellbeing Fund to tour with it. The tour started in Helensburgh, went to Greenock, around A&B and finished in Glasgow. Over 500 people attended the show. The play was directed by Libby McArthur and the 2 characters Jean & Sally were played by professional actors Rachel Ogilvy & Caroline Guthrie. Theatre audiences are struggling and although audience numbers were smaller in some of the venues than we would have liked the responses we had from those attending were really positive. The themes explored were inclusion, disability, mental health, equality and campaigning. There are future possibilities to take this to other areas in Scotland. Our members saw a positive impact on their own mental health being involved in the process too. The title of the play was taken from ENABLE Scotland’s “IncludED in the Main” campaign 22 steps on the journey to inclusion for every pupil who has a learning disability Art Exhibition in Helensburgh Library – Our Art Group have worked with Karlyn Marshall (Helensburgh Art Hub) for the last couple of years. A collection of their work over that time is currently being displayed upstairs in the Helensburgh Library. These pieces are also for sale. Open for anyone to go along and have a look during Library Opening Hours. Our members have grown in confidence and ability during their sessions. Co-op Local Cause for this year – Jean’s Bothy has been selected as one of the 3 local causes that the Co-op will fundraise for this year. Anyone using their co-op membership card when they shop will have the opportunity to select Jean’s Bothy as the one to support. There is a process to go through online to select the cause and then it’s just remembering to use your card when you’re shopping! We will use these funds to deliver nutrition and wellbeing courses to our members (we recently carried out a pilot stage with Gillian Paterson (Lomond Nutrition & Wellbeing) and also cooking sessions which will include budgeting and learning basic skills. Versus Arthritis will be delivering a Pain Management Workshop on Wednesday 9th November to members. A high percentage of our members have chronic pain and these sessions are not just for those with arthritis. We expect it to be a full course! Magic Torch Comics recently completed a 4 week Comic Workshop. Paul Bristow worked with 6 members to create comic strips related to their memories and connection with Hermitage Park, as well as taking some voice recordings too. We are working with Albatross Arts to offer members Arts & Wellbeing Craft Workshops, using different materials and methods to improve their skills and wellbeing through creativity. There will be a joint exhibition created at the end with a number of different organisations
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We have recently introduced a New Members Meet – last Wednesday of every month. This allows for any new members or those who haven’t been along for some time to meet others in the same position, to ask questions and visit Jean’s Bothy for the first time. We have a HNC Social Work student on a work placement with us for the next 6 - 8 weeks, working alongside some of our activities in group settings. This will allow her to achieve her SVQ level 3 and give her some experience in mental health support. Mindfulness Sessions with Wendy Alexander start in December. These will run every month alternating between a topic and then a follow up session. Member have requested mindfulness sessions for a while. Jean’s Bothy is looking forward to having Wendy with her wealth of knowledge and experience supporting our members. Membership Numbers – Our membership number has reached 291 since it opened in September 2018. Not all are current and active. We have 198 currently on our mailing list who receive a daily email. Helensburgh Lions Club recently donated funding for a Bike Shed which is now being built by members. We hope to have the lions club along in the next few weeks to officially “open the bike shed” A number of cycling initiatives and activities are planned over the next few months including: 2 members completed their Cycle Leader Training and we hope to offer another 5 places before April. Bike Marking Event took place on Wednesday 26th Oct. Local police came along to support members to register their bikes to prevent theft and increase security. Bike Maintenance will be delivered by Helensburgh Cycles. Beginners Cycling will be delivered to members in the new year. Our recent annual cycling fundraiser around Isle of Cumbrae raised £710 which will help support future activities at Jean’s Bothy as well as improving members confidence in cycling and their fitness levels. Our Photography Group meet weekly and are currently producing a Bothy Calendar 2023. These should be available to buy from Saturday 19th November.