When we texted the families on our Barlanark and Maryhill Families programmes to say we had to finish 2 weeks early due to Covid-19, none of us could of predicted just how big an impact this would have. For the months that followed, we had to adapt to meet the needs of the families. We achieved this through various methods such as walk & talks, zooms, wellbeing packs, and interactive care packages.
It was our priority at SSF to ensure the families received the post-programme care that they needed but also to sign-post what else was available in their community.
What happened next?
On November 2nd we were able to bring back our free 12-week wellbeing and physical activity programme. This was achieved through a valuable partnership with Cranhill Development Trust and their community shop, “The Cabin”. They have been great support to the programme, working with us to provide a great service for the families with a variety of foods at each session.
Each week, the families learn about various nutrition, exercise, and wellbeing topics. In addition, young people complete a Youth Scotland Hi-5 Award, while parents take part in ETC ‘Goal Setting’ and ‘Conflict Resolution’ modules. Here is one of our Young People completing his Hi-5 Award challenge.
Moving forward…
Due to further restrictions we are currently not running the programme indoors.
Does this mean we have stopped running the sessions? No.
Does this mean we have adapted our delivery to continue a service for the families? Absolutely yes!
For now, we will be running our programme outdoors, and will return to the hall as soon as it is safe to do so in line with the latest Covid-19 guidelines.
Thanks to ongoing support from The Scottish Government’s Investing in Communities Fund, Big Lottery Young Start Fund, and Glasgow Communities Fund, we will continue supporting families through the Families programme over the next 2.5 years!
