Community lunches tackle loneliness in County Durham with support from Banks Group – Durham Magazine

A monthly community meal to combat social isolation in a County Durham village is set to welcome local people during the winter months thanks to a four-figure grant from the Banks Community Fund.

West Rainton & Leamside Village Partnership hosts the free Friendly Faces event at the Jubilee Hall on North Street in West Rainton, attracting up to 60 residents each month and providing free transport for all via the Easington Lane Community Access Point, who need help getting to and from the venue.

The event was created in the wake of the pandemic when local business owner Julie Dawson of Julie’s Deli began preparing weekly free meals for a number of senior locals who needed help.

The Village Partnership assembled a team of volunteers to reach more people in the local community and secured government funding to meet the growing need for local support. During the project’s busiest times, up to 120 meals were prepared and delivered throughout the area each week.

As the pandemic subsided, the partnership began to consider how best to address the increasingly visible issues of social isolation in the village and how to bring diverse members of the community together for the benefit of all.

In addition to the free lunch, the Friendly Faces event, which takes place on the second Tuesday of each month, also includes additional activities such as quizzes, bingo and dominoes and gives the 15-person volunteer partnership team that runs the event the opportunity to interact with participants to talk about any additional help they may need.

A £2,000 grant from North East employer Banks Group will enable organizers to cover the project costs from October to March and will also support Jubilee Hall’s position as a ‘warm space’ during the winter months.

Residents of local care homes, including some with dementia, will also be invited to the events to improve their contact with the local community, while meals will be available for delivery for anyone who is ill or unable to attend.

“During the pandemic we have built many positive new relationships with older people across the village and wanted to find a way to ensure they continued to have the social contact with their friends and neighbors that has obviously been so important and useful to them.

“Friendly Faces is open to anyone who wants to come along and providing free transport means people with mobility issues or without their own transport are not left out.

“We meet a real diverse mix of people at our monthly lunches and it is always a joy to see how much fun everyone has talking and spending time together whilst enjoying the meals and activities we provide and enjoy entertainment.

“It also gives us a great opportunity to see how everyone is doing and see if there are other issues we can help individuals address and also tell them about other things that are happening in the community. “

“The banks have been very proactive in reaching out and looking at how they can support our work and we are really grateful for their support in covering our costs in the coming months.”

Chris Burns, Treasurer at West Rainton & Leamside Village Partnership

Banks Homes is currently building 150 quality new homes at its Cathedral Meadows development on Station Road in West Rainton, a project which also includes a new play area, new landscaped areas and new public open spaces.

“The community’s commitment to caring for its most vulnerable members over the last few years has been invaluable and has clearly made a real difference to their wellbeing.

“There is a lovely atmosphere at Friendly Faces and we are delighted to help the Village Partnership continue to welcome everyone every month.”

Kate Culverhouse, Community Relations Manager at Banks Group

Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group project who is interested in applying for funding from the Banks Community Fund should contact the company via the application form on its website (www.banksgroup.co.uk/contact-us/ ) to find out if any group or project is eligible to participate.