I visited Spondon’s Community Care Hub, and was incredibly impressed with what goes on there. The atmosphere was warm, busy and welcoming to all. Bacon butties, cake, tea and coffee were on offer, along with a friendly chat and a hug! There was also an impressive amount of Lego and a couple of dogs!
The organiser, Gill Studdard, has set this up independently, and has built up a large and loyal volunteer base, many of whom were service users to begin with. The Community Care Hub also offers a food bank and counselling sessions, in a cosy room that she has kitted out herself from generous donations. The counsellors, like Connor, are trainees working towards full qualifications.
Gill has ambitions to extend beyond Spondon into Oakwood and Allestree and maybe beyond. I am really keen to support her in doing this, as it was clear from first stepping into the place what a uniquely valuable asset this is for any community. We know that loneliness, isolation, food poverty, and lack of support and advice are big problems in our society, and it’s heartwarming to see an individual like Gill being so effective at addressing it.