Outside the Box 2024
As we near the end of 2024 we would like to reflect back on the projects and people we have worked with over the last 12 months. But before we share our 2024 project summaries, we are excited to announce that we are hosting an event at the SCVO Gathering in February. Our event is titled “Climate chat – everyday climate action” and you can sign up here: Tickets SCVO Gathering 2025. We will also be running a workshop at the Corra conference focusing on innovation.
In our 20th year, our work has taken us from communities on the Moray coast right down to the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway and even as far as Worchester and Cornwall! Here are some of our highlights:
Moments of Freedom
The women of Moments of Freedom created new resources, hosted events, strengthened community relationships and even visited the Scottish Parliament. They spent the summer working with the Clydesider Magazine doing creative workshops. The resource that came out of the sessions is now being used to help other New Scot women across Scotland, sharing their tips and advice. You can download it here: A flavour of new life
East Renfrewshire Equalities Forum
In East Renfrewshire we helped to establish the new Equalities Forum. The aim of the forum is to raise the voices of people who may not usually participate in public forums or decision-making to support communities to be well represented and heard when it comes to decision-making across East Renfrewshire. We have continued to support Forum and delivered interactive sessions on Inclusive Communication and Language to members.
Scots Syrian Roses
From May 2023 to May 2024, we worked alongside the New Scots women’s group Scots Syrian Roses to explore meaningful integration, their valuable contributions to community life, shared learning, networking and more! Over the year we met fortnightly in North Ayrshire and worked with the group to increase their community connections, access to services and enhance their group activities. We played lots of indoor kurling, created resources, facilitated trips and speakers and lots of lovely Syrian community breakfasts.
Queer Families
Our Queer Families project has gone from strength to strength securing a National Lottery Community Fund award. This will help the Queer Families group increase the family-friendly LGBTQ+ spaces which are so important to families, create new resources for families and wider communities, and help people find creative ways to reduce inequalities around starting and raising a family, so everyone can have a joyful and connected family life. The award will be used to hold more LGBTQ+ family events in Glasgow, hold events in nearby areas (as some families travel for several hours, from the west and east coasts, to join the group), connect with other groups and families through open community events, and create resources based on the Queer Families group’s experience, so that future families have the information and support they need.
Borders Buddies
Borders Buddies supports people to return to doing things they enjoyed before but which, either due to the pandemic, ill health or other factors, they have stopped doing. This year we have been supporting people to try out their own ‘taster sessions’ to teach a group of people new skills. We have set up more Buddy pairs in Tweeddale and Hawick and delivered regular group sessions in both areas. We have also supported some Buddies who wanted training to undergo First Aid and Mental Health awareness training.
Connecting Equalities
We stood down as the secretariat for the Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Older people Age & Ageing in March after a number of years. We continue to attend regular meetings of the Older People’s Strategic Action Forum with the Minister to feed in what we are hearing from older people, into policy and strategy including the Scot Gov cost of living measures and work to advance the wellbeing and rights of older people.
Coastal Connections
Our work in Moray came to an end in March after a 2 year National Lottery Community Fund award. The project brought together local people who wanted to make changes on issues that are important to them and their communities along coastal Moray.
Climate Chat
We received funding from the 2023-4 Scottish Government’s Climate Engagement Fund to run our Climate Chat project. It aimed to chat with communities of interest, focussing on equalities groups, in engagement activities around climate action. We created over 15 resources in English and Arabic which you can download here: Climate Chat Resources
LINKS Eyemouth
In Eyemouth we ran the LINKS Family After School Club where families came together to cook and do some upcycling in the Community Centre. LINKS was very fortunate to receive funding from the Multiply Programme, which is a UK Government funded programme, launched as part of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to run a series of courses supporting adult learners to improve their numeracy skills through cooking. We are now sharing our learning in other areas in the Borders.
A huge thank you to all of our partners, funders and community members. We hope you have a peaceful festive break, and we can’t wait to be back in 2025!