In our series of ‘Meet the Team’ articles we have been focusing on some of our newer members of staff. Here, we focus on one of our more well-known faces, especially to anyone who has used our fantastic One Colchester Hub. Amanda Findley has been with Community360 for 5 years and has been instrumental in coordinating events at the Hub as well as working on the One Colchester Winter Resilience Project.

  • Tell us more about the Winter Resilience Project

The winter resilience project provides support through the One Colchester Initiative. Community360 chairs and co-delivers this project bringing together representatives from the public and voluntary sector to support our communities during winter.

The project runs from September to March every year where we support the local community to stay warm, well, safe and connected.  To help those affected by the cold, we put together a special winter pack containing warm clothing, a flask, tea, milk and biscuits, a torch and hot water bottle.  We distribute the packs in partnership with a number of organisations so we can best target the people who would most benefit.  We also produce a booklet which brings together information about the support available.  Outreach activities alongside other organisations are also organised, so we can get information out to people who might not be able to come to us at the Hub.

  • What do you enjoy most about your role and who you work with?

I love working with such a wide variety of people, it is so rewarding – From our wonderful caring staff to a variety of organisations who are committed to supporting people through these tougher months, to the individuals who come into the Hub for looking for practical help, signposting or to attend our groups and activities. Just knowing you are making a difference is very gratifying.

  • What sort of feedback do you get from the people and the groups who you work with on the Winter Resilience Project

Sometimes people can’t believe they don’t have to pay for the winter pack, and they are so grateful to have that little bit of help.  Everyone loves our winter booklet too – it’s a really great source of information, signposting people to help and support.

  • What winter challenges do you see this year?

It has to be the cost-of-living challenges that are foremost in our minds, particularly issues around heating costs.  If people can’t afford to heat their houses properly, huge problems like black mould start to arise and we know this has a massive impact on people’s health, particularly amongst children.  So, we do want to raise awareness of that and look at ways we might be able to help.  We also know that financial challenges have an effect on people’s mental health so we are always looking for ways to help, whether it is coming into the Hub to be around other people or raising awareness of how people can access specialist support services.

  • Tell us about the activities and groups at the One Colchester Hub

We run lots of regular groups at the Hub, including the Monday morning friendship group, a women’s group, IT support, ballroom dancing, pranic healing, crafts and textile activities provided by The Textile Collective. One of our newest groups is Dominoes and this is proving popular!  We have Warhammer and Hip-hop groups one evening a week and our Saturday opening includes crochet, knitting, a Zumba class and Carrom game sessions. So, you can see there is something for everyone, for all ages.

The Hub space is very flexible so we can also run larger one-off events and activities such as craft fairs and themed marketplace style events.

  • How can people get involved?

I would encourage anyone to come along to the Hub and have a look at what’s going on or to just pop in for a chat with our staff.  We are open 10am-3pm Monday – Saturday and we’re always pleased to welcome new faces.

To find out more about the Winter Resilience Project please visit

https://www.community360.org.uk/what-we-do/winter-resilience/

The One Colchester Hub can be found at Long Wyre Street, Colchester