Really sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We’ve been waiting for Black Country Touring to confirm a few things for us.
Aardman are now kindly giving the film licence for free but they have quite strict marketing guidelines for us to follow so we are just in the process of getting together the artwork for the promotion of the event – which needs to be signed off/approved by Aardman – this should be early next week.
We’ve also been looking at the easiest option for our audiences to watch-along and join Q&A afterwards so that it’s accessible to everyone.
They have suggested a platform called Eventive, which seems to be the best option. Despite the cost if this is a successful ‘test run’/pilot we would like to do more like this with our audiences who are isolated within their own homes.
It will mean we can livestream and switch over to Zoom for the Q&A seamlessly everything will be in one place – the platform also include ticketing. Please can we re-allocate the costs to cover the one-off platform:
In response to the pandemic and lockdown restrictions, plans for Coseley’s Community Cinema had to be reimagined.
The Coseley Community Cinema applied for funding from Film Feels Connected, a UK-wide cinema season, supported by the National Lottery and BFI Film Audience Network, to reconnect with our local audience.
East Coseley Big Local worked in partnership with Black Country Touring, Film Feels Connected and Aardman Animations to bring a virtual Watch-along of Shaun the Sheep the Farmers Llamas followed by an interactive Q&A with voice actors from the film.
The online watch-along was aimed at people of all ages who may have been isolating, feeling uncomfortable about going out to the cinema, and families finding new ways to entertain their children during lockdown. The funding provided an opportunity to be creative and trial a new online activity for the community.
Community Connectors helped generate a build-up to the event with Pom-poms 4 Loneliness activities. They invited people, including the coffee morning group, to craft sheep pom poms in the build-up to the event. This collaboration enabled more isolated people to engage in the activity.
Over the last few months, we’ve collated insights and examples from East Coseley Big Local workers and Core Group members of ways in which Big Local funded projects and partners have responded to COVID-19. We have recorded these in the following review.
We’ve started to look at emerging challenges as a result of the pandemic, potential activities which would respond to Big Local Plan priorities, and how East Coseley Big Local could continue to support the community’s recovery post-lockdown.
We’ve asked the following questions to guide recovery plans:
How can East Coseley Big Local continue to nurture and harness the energy, kindness and creativity that has grown within the Coseley community?
How might East Coseley Big Local work with streets and neighbourhoods in order to strengthen support networks?
How might East Coseley Big Local help to rebuild confidence in the people who live in Coseley to feel safe to leave their homes?
With the rising demand for community groups to support local people who have been directly affected by the pandemic, how might East Coseley Big Local get behind this by helping people to discover and access existing local resources (of all kinds) and streams of funding designed for this, as well as Big Local funding?
What support might groups and clubs in East Coseley seek over the coming months? What useful existing resources could they be helped to access, unlock or share?
Maintaining our connections and partnerships and building on community empowerment
The response to the pandemic sparked a new sense of empowerment within communities. Residents are more confident and believe they have the ability to make positive change happen where they live. People of all ages became actively involved in their communities during the pandemic.
Through partnerships formed via the Covid-19 Support Networks, community groups, partners and residents, Big Local workers have been able to identify more vulnerable people in Coseley. The pandemic has enabled response teams to reach out, support and connect with many more people who are isolated. It’s important to maintain those connections in order to continue to find people that may like to engage in Big Local activities.
East Coseley Big Local may work towards harnessing the energy of volunteers who generously gave their time to support vulnerable people as part of the Support Network and explore how they might engage further in Big Local activities to support the local community and make positive change.
Creating, maintaining and improving community hubs and green spaces
In 2019 East Coseley worked with APEC Architects to plan and deliver community engagement activities and surveys, and undertook assessments of community buildings and green spaces, to support the development of the new plan. As part of this work, a set of resources were created containing assessments of local community buildings and spaces which East Coseley Big Local could use to aid decision making. These resources could be used to support community venues and groups to recover in light of closures due to Covid-19.
Keeping our community venues safe
When lockdown restrictions begin to ease, many community venues will be thinking about reopening to continue their activities, but many need support to ensure they do this safely. East Coseley Big Local has started to support Coseley’s community groups and venues to understand what rules may apply and what procedures they need to think about before they reopen or restart activities.
Before anything reopens, businesses, not-for-profits and community groups will need to show they are ‘Covid-19 safe’, which means thinking about safety measures and procedures.
The Covid-19 pandemic will likely change the way we work, socialise and go about our daily lives. Many people who were shielding feel anxious about coming out of their homes and fear what life is going to look like for them in the future. Many will need to feel confident that the risk of infection is low and that local community venues and meeting places have taken the necessary precautions to ensure their safety yet remain welcoming and friendly spaces to go to. Part of our work with isolated people may be to educate and inform people of Government guidelines, and support people in the community to rebuild their confidence and feel safe to leave their homes.
East Coseley Big Local projects could continue to initiate, develop and grow online activities to keep people connected when they are unable to leave their homes due to Covid-19 or other reasons. Supporting people to build confidence with technology has become an important part of tackling loneliness and isolation in Coseley.
Have you noticed or heard about any of the following, or other changes to the way that people in Coseley work and live during the pandemic? Here are some of the general things we’ve noticed happening in Coseley and surrounding areas:
More people taking an interest in growing
The value of a neighbourly chat over the fence
An increase in acts of kindness for vulnerable neighbours
An increased appreciation for open spaces
People started slowing down and embracing nature
People discovering new places on daily walks
People reviewing unnecessary spending, exploring simple ways to entertain at home
Older people using technology to connect with loved ones and to find old friends
People cycling, running or walking to places instead of using their car
People using local businesses more for essential supplies
In September 2020, residents, groups, organisations and workers in Coseley came together to discuss and gather insights from the response to the pandemic, and generate learning to inform the Big Local delivery. Here are some of the things people said:
Observations of ways local residents, groups, organisations or workers in Coseley supported people in communities to stay connected and well during lockdown:
New groups emerged to take action and to help other people access services. Local residents responded to the pandemic by setting up community support networks on social media, including Facebook pages ‘Here to Help’ and ‘Born and Bred’ sharing local information and advice. Next Door was set up for Roseville (Nextdoor is the neighbourhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services.)
The work of the JST Community Connectors, supporting residents with family living far away, and the efforts of local groups and residents supporting local isolated people.
Collaborative working with groups and organisations, Just Straight Talk, Coseley Food Bank, residential homes (Willowfields and Jack Newall Court) Dudley CVS, Integrated Plus, and external funders, helped Big Local workers to meet the challenges of the pandemic and reach more vulnerable people in Coseley. Big Local Community Connectors also teamed up with local community groups using communication tool, Whatsapp, to maintain connection.
Local groups, including Coseley Food Bank, found it good to interact with more people and support people in need with food supplies and shopping. Families were also supported with bespoke food bank parcels if there were particular dietary needs.
Older residents used social media to connect people together to improve local green spaces. An 82 year old man who wanted to look after his wife’s grave used Facebook to call out for help to improve the churchyard, and to let them know when he’d be there if they wanted to help or simply have a chat. A section of the churchyard has now been transformed.
Helping people to stay connected using tablets funded by Big Local resulted in people making new connections and reconnecting with old friends. The reach and value for money of this project investment was recognised.
The pandemic made people look out for their neighbours more than ever before. People were looking after their neighbours despite having to self isolate. This included small acts of kindness to new neighbours who were new to the area, signposted to useful local information. This helped to bring people together.
Volunteers in Coseley have gone further than simply doing people’s shopping, going the extra mile to respond to other needs including tackling loneliness by befriending, connecting to others or supporting people with IT.
Groups have received funding from Big Local during the pandemic. The Coseley Station gardeners, have maintained Coseley stations platform garden throughout lockdown. The team have received £500 of Big Local funding to continue to improve the green space. Local group, New Hope Church, received funding from Big Local for Baby Bank, to connect with and provide essential supplies for families.
Some restrictions have been lifted but people are still restricted in what they can do and Government guidelines change on a daily basis. The pandemic isn’t over.
There are barriers for people with technology. Some people are without I.T. equipment, have low confidence in using new technology or poor wifi, meaning that some people were not able to connect in virtual ways.
Local groups recognised the need for venue improvements during the pandemic, for example, 1st Coseley Scouts have found the motivation to make improvements to the scout hut.
Big Local Community Connectors joined virtual meetings delivered by Local Trust to connect and take part in conversations with other Big Local areas. It was noted that other Big Local areas faced similar challenges and emerging themes.
Big Local workers found that many people wanted to continue to volunteer and support vulnerable people in the community when the Covid-19 Support Network ended.
What stands out about how Big Local funded work adapted in approach to continue to support and connect local people during lockdown? i.e. what did we change?
Using new technology to connect including Zoom; Christ Church used Zoom every day for prayer.
Big Local Community workers have adapted the way they work with virtual interactions, including telephone calls, video calls and Zoom gatherings to keep people connected.
Responding to people’s needs to meet physically as lockdown measures eased, providing opportunities to get involved in safe outdoor gardening activities.
Work during the pandemic adapted to the situation, projects would be different going forwards in recovery, and must be looked at accordingly.
The quick turnaround of funding from Big Local, e.g. to fund the baby bank at New Hope Baptist Church; helped to set people free to do what’s needed.
Immediate reaction from local groups at the start of the pandemic and preparation of local groups ahead of lockdown.
Bringing in outside funding to trial activities to connect people in different ways, including, fish and chip suppers, online Coseley Community Cinema.
How might any of these changes inform future delivery against Big Local plan priorities?
Intense levels of activity during lockdown can’t be sustained, but perhaps there will be more effective ways of responding to things – shown by how swiftly responses were developed.
Coseley’s community centre’s and buildings can no longer be used in the same way. Groups and venues of all sizes are now looking at ways to ensure they are safe and fit for purpose, and are ready for use when restrictions are lifted. The Big Local group recognises that groups and venues will experience new challenges and need support in ensuring they can run their usual activities in a safe way.
Reconnecting with people who previously attended Big Local activities particularly those experiencing loneliness and isolation. If data protection was addressed, Big Local could fund Christmas goody bags to be delivered to older people who would normally attend Lunch and Chat events.
What learning for the next 3 years should East Coseley Big Local take away from this period, based on your interactions, observations, conversations and experiences during COVID-19 response?
The importance of mental wellbeing of people in the community. People and families forced into isolation. People who fear coming out of isolation. Not just young adults but young children who do not understand what is going on but feel things are quite different and cannot cope with change. An example is Christmas at school. School plays and parties, if they take place the young are used to what went before but may not understand why it is different now. Coping with school life as it is now and maybe family life as well.
Changing ideas and the way Big Local moves forward.
How the community has pulled together and to not let that slip away again
Over the Summer, Just Straight Talk (JST) applied to the Heart of England Community Foundation Coronavirus Resilience Fund and received a grant to support the most vulnerable people and isolated people in the community. Part of this funding allowed the Just Start Talking’s Community Connectors (funded by East Coseley Big Local) to treat people shielding in Coseley to a free fish and chip supper.
Residents who would normally receive a friendly phone call from JST’s community connectors during the lockdown, instead enjoyed a doorstep visit and friendly chat, with the added excitement of feeling a little bit of normality with a delivery of fish and chips.
One of East Coseley Big Local’s plan priorities was to continue to organise Coseley community meals to help people who may be feeling lonely to come together to connect socially and build friendships. These meals took place four times a year but were cancelled due to lockdown restrictions.
When lockdown rules eased during the Summer months, JST’s Community Connectors organised an outdoor meet-up at Jack Newall Court for those feeling socially isolated and in need of non-virtual connection.
“As part of the recovery process for our community, we decided to help with their confidence in those steps to rejoining society by doing the chippy run meet up. Providing chairs placed at a sensible distance apart and hand sanitiser with optional extra PPE available we decided to give it a try. The importance of eating a meal together.”
Big Local workers are aware that many people will be experiencing new feelings of anxiety due to the pandemic. Part of our work in the recovery phase of Covid-19 may be to help isolated people to rebuild their confidence and feel safe to leave their homes.
“We understand that the recovery stage from Covid was for some is going to be harder and slower than others and we need to respect that in each other but for now, it was great to feel a little more normality” JST Community Connector
Since the beginning of the lockdown in April, Big Local workers and projects have been exploring new, creative, and virtual ways to interact, connect with, and support the Coseley community.
One of these new connecting methods included Virtual Coffee Mornings, organised by Just Start Talking’s Community Connectors, providing a welcoming online space for people of all ages to connect and get involved in activities when feeling isolated in their homes. Before lockdown restrictions, coffee mornings had previously taken place at Rainbow Community Centre, where local people would come together to chat over a hot drink and take part in craft activities including pom-pom making for Pom-poms 4 Loneliness.
For some people, the move to a new online meeting space was an entirely new way to communicate. When it was discovered that some people were unable to join virtual activities because they lacked the IT equipment to do so, the community connectors submitted a funding application to East Coseley Big Local’s Project Investment Team to purchase tablets. This funding has since enabled more people to join in with the virtual coffee mornings and connect with friends online.
In the months following, JST’s Community Connectors supported people to build their confidence and learn new digital skills through one-to-one tutorials. Some of the people who received the tablets wanted to advance their I.T. skills even further.
Billy, one of the recipients of the tablets said he’s now joined Facebook and it’s changed his life as he’s been able to get in touch with old friends as well as new.
Another resident, Jean, 83, was supported to create a Facebook account to connect with her wider network of friends and family.
“At 83 years young, many people would dismiss the idea of using the internet, never mind going onto Facebook which I understand but being open to going online opens up so many more opportunities to reduce isolation and loneliness from within your own home. Now she’s all set up, we’re both excited about old friends she may become acquainted with again.” JST Community Connector
One of the tablets, that was given to a Jack Newell Court resident, was hooked up to the TV in a common room, so now 15 residents join in and have taken part in all kinds of activities.
Supporting people to build confidence with technology has become an important part of tackling loneliness and isolation in Coseley.
More people are now motivated to join coffee mornings to reduce their feeling of isolation and loneliness. Due to this, Big Local Community Connectors plan to run more sessions, potentially 2-3 times a week to connect more people together.
Read more about East Coseley’s response to the pandemic…We’ve drawn together a report featuring insights from Big Local workers and Core Group members, research and existing knowledge to provide a record and examples of ways in which East Coseley Big Local projects and partners responded to COVID-19 during lockdown, in relation to East Coseley Big Local Plan priorities, and to indicate and give examples of emerging and potential activities and work which responds to Big Local Plan priorities and recovery post-lockdown. Read the review here: http://www.eastcoseleybiglocal.net/covid-19-review/
Since 2017, East Coseley Big Local has invested in projects that help people of all ages to connect, make new friendships and build confidence. These projects have included a Community Cinema, regular ‘Lunch and Chat’ events, and ‘Just Start Talking’ (JST), a project that connects and supports local people who may be experiencing isolation and loneliness within the Coseley community.
Many activities had taken place in community venues across Coseley and brought together many local people. However, in early April 2020, activities organised to take place at these venues were cancelled in response to lockdown restrictions.
A new way to connect people
Last year, JST’s Community Connectors built up relationships with people of all ages and hosted regular coffee mornings and craft sessions at the Rainbow Community Centre in Coseley.
When lockdown restrictions were imposed, coffee morning regulars (and new people introduced through the COVID-19 Support Network) were invited to join a virtual coffee morning using Zoom. This gave people the opportunity to continue to meet in a safe environment and chat over a ‘virtual cuppa’ without having to leave their home. Many people in Coseley have since been supported by Big Local to get online and use new technology through one-to-one coaching (socially distanced or over the phone).
The coffee morning group are invited to come up with ideas for activities, including virtual games, crafts and quizzes. Participants are also encouraged to lead and host Zoom coffee morning sessions to build their confidence.
As lockdown measures eased during the Summer, the Community Connectors responded to the different interests and needs of the group. Gardening activities were organised for people who were having problems with screen glare and those who wanted to meet physically at a safe distance outdoors.
Isolated people referred to the project are now invited out for walks to gently connect them to others which could potentially lead to new friendships.
JST’s Community Connectors have connected with many people experiencing isolation and loneliness during the pandemic, providing support and opportunities to get involved in new activities and connect with others.
Marilyn, who initially came along to a dementia cafe, was invited to an online craft session, she is now involved in the coffee morning. Her husband also now plays guitar at outdoor socially distanced gatherings.
Another lady, Marion, who was involved in the project, and had no-one else to support her, passed away. The connection and friendship she found with JST’s Community Connectors before she passed meant that she was able to talk to someone and share her life story. Marion’s story now lives on in a book calledLiving Memory.
Coseley’s coffee morning is now a registered Place of Welcome. Places of Welcome is a growing network of local community groups providing their neighbourhoods with places where all people feel safe to belong, connect and contribute.
JST’s Community Connectors host two online sessions each week, a crafting session on Tuesday 1-3pm and a social get together on Thursday 10-12pm. The team also offer over the phone/in-person tuition to help isolated people to connect online. To find out more visit their Facebook page
What else happened to keep people in Coseley connected?
At the beginning of Lockdown, Easter eggs were donated to Dudley CVS (East Coseley’s local trusted organisation) by the police to be distributed to older people. The eggs were then donated to East Coseley Big Local to distribute to coffee morning regulars and vulnerable people at Jack Newell Court. This became a way to start conversations and make new connections with more vulnerable people.
JST’s Community Connectors received a £30 prize from Chutneys Indian restaurant for their good work in the community. They decided to donate the prize money to the community and distributed to nominated people. From this, a new connection was made with a lady interested to get more involved as a participant in the project.
A new connection has been made with Broadway Halls Care Home in Dudley and they participated in East Coseley Big Local activities.
Sunflowers were gifted to people on Coseley by JST Community Connectors, to encourage photo sharing and interactions on social media throughout the growing process.
Read more about East Coseley’s response to the pandemic…We’ve drawn together a report featuring insights from Big Local workers and Core Group members, research and existing knowledge to provide a record and examples of ways in which East Coseley Big Local projects and partners responded to COVID-19 during lockdown, in relation to East Coseley Big Local Plan priorities, and to indicate and give examples of emerging and potential activities and work which responds to Big Local Plan priorities and recovery post-lockdown. Read the review here: http://www.eastcoseleybiglocal.net/covid-19-review/
Thousands of community support groups have come together across the country to support the most vulnerable in our communities. Despite being in lockdown and new daily challenges, we’ve come together to respond to the coronavirus outbreak with such positivity and we’ve seen overwhelming acts of kindness and community spirit.
We’re looking out for our neighbours as well as our family and friends, and more than ever before, we’re beginning to identify the most vulnerable and isolated people within our communities.
Some people will be self-isolating, some will be staying at home because they are most at risk of being hospitalised by COVID-19, some will be struggling to carry out everyday tasks, and some may have already been isolated and lonely and will be at increased risk.
Our East Coseley Big Local team have been presented with many new changes and challenges since the beginning of the pandemic. These challenges have become opportunities to find new creative and inventive ways to connect with and support our Coseley community.
Whether it’s dropping off shopping or medication, a chat from a distance, a friendly phone call, or tackling technology together as a way to keep in touch, we’re finding new ways to help people to stay connected and well, supporting them through their daily challenges.
Our Community Changemaker, Neil, has been working with the Integrated Plus team from our local trusted organisation, Dudley CVS, to establish a COVID-19 Support Network for Sedgley, Coseley and Gornal. Our partnership with Integrated Plus has enabled us to find the most vulnerable in the community in desperate need of help.
Neil, now co-ordinating the localities response to the outbreak, “We have always known that there are more lonely and isolated people out there and we know how difficult it is to get to them, to make them aware that someone cares. The need for food and medication has opened my eyes to exactly how many lonely and isolated people there are just in my area of Coseley let alone the Dudley borough, which means that when this pandemic is over, there is a lot of work to do.
Myself, Shona and Dave are still trying to do as much Big Local work as possible and helping those who need food and medication. I receive calls and referrals from people in need and then find the right volunteer to carry out those requests. Shona is out shopping, and Dave is on medication runs, dropping off to people with a smile and a chat. I’m so proud of my co-workers out there in the community but that’s what being part of a Big Local is.
Through what I’m doing now for Dudley CVS as a co-ordinator I am seeing some fantastic community spirit.”
Our East Coseley Big Local Community Connectors, Dave and Shona, are supporting people by volunteering with the Network and finding new ways to connect people through virtual coffee mornings.
Dave has volunteered to help with the efforts by carrying out collection of medication from chemists and deliver them to vulnerable people.
”One man, in particular, stated that I was the first person he had seen face to face for a week and it was so refreshing for him. We chatted for about 20 minutes (at a safe distance of course). He said that he had plenty of telephone calls but it was just nice to actually see someone and have a conversation.”
“Shona and myself make regular contact with many of the participants who were attending coffee mornings prior to lockdown. We have done some shopping for them and have regular chats. Contact has until recently been by phone or text. However, last week we started a virtual coffee morning using Zoom and those who dropped in really enjoyed it and want it to be a regular feature. For those that weren’t sure, we spent some time on a 1-2-1 basis coaching them through the process.”
An application has now been approved by Big Local to purchase tablets to enable people to join in with coffee mornings if they don’t have the IT equipment.
“We can now invite more people, and when we eventually come out of lockdown we can use the tablets for future basic IT training in the community.”
Shona has been thinking of new and creative ways to keep people connected, “Covid hit us like a brick and the dust that settled left a place we didn’t recognise and a community in hiding. Almost like stages of grief, we all had changes happening around us that were out of our control and hard to comprehend. We have definitely felt a loss, an anger, confusion and frustration knowing that being isolated from our community when they needed us most would be just as hard, if not harder for them.
But what has come from this? We are communicating more, we are being creative, we are trying new ways to keep in touch, which we will continue to use when this is over and we are making steps to getting people connected who never have been before. We are also speaking to new people with this new ‘thing in common’ and we are being signposted to people who are in particular need for extra help through Dudley CVS referrals.
We are in weekly contact with our community through phone calls, letter, texts, Facebook posts, by referring them for extra help and through video meet ups on Zoom as well as out in the community picking up shopping or medication for those people who normally attend our sessions. The support we are able to give these people who are usually well able and independent is strengthening our relationships further, in now their time of need.
Covid is concreting the foundations of our community and encouraging new shoots to sprout just like the springtime it consumes. Now we understand what living with this virus around us means, we can work alongside it and will continue to support, entertain and communicate with our Coseley community.”
If you would like to find out how you can get involved in the local #Covid19 effort in Coseley visit https://bit.ly/2xd1Yrx or contact Neil Langford at neil@eastcoseleybiglocal.net
If you would like to donate to Coseley Foodbank they operate from Darkhouse Baptist Church and is open Tuesdays 10am-2pm only to receive donations and issue food parcels.
Darkhouse Baptist Church is a place where things happen, the venue is well used and hosts many activities for the local Coseley community.
Kim is a Deacon at Darkhouse Baptist
Church and spends a lot of her time
looking to keep the space utilised. Kim
is also a member of the Big Local Core
Group and gets involved in many
activities to help her local community,
at the same time encouraging local
groups to use the building and the
facilities.
The Coseley Holiday Club came about
in 2015 after it was identified that
children in the Coseley area needed something to do during the school holidays.
“The first time we approached East Coseley Big Local for funding was because we wanted to provide some
sort of entertainment for the children during the school holidays. The club runs for 5 days at the end of the
summer holidays when children tend to get bored and fed up. Parents appreciate that their children have
somewhere to go at the end of the holidays.
Big Local have supported us every year since, in 2017 about 40-45 children came each day to enjoy
storytelling, singing, crafts, a magician and dancing from local group, Aace Dance. On one of the days,
several volunteers walked up to Bayer Street Allotments with the children to have a picnic and to learn
about gardening, picking raspberries, carrots and rhubarb. They also planted lettuces.
They learnt about musical instruments when local band, The Coseley Comets, came to visit, the children
enjoyed learning how to play all the instruments. Local young theatre group, Act One, did drama activities
with the children. We provide a variety of different activities for them. The money from Big Local was used
for a clown disco and an animal man to visit the club”
A lot of the children come back every year until they get a bit older. The numbers have grown over the
years with more advertising. We also like to tell them about other activities at Darkhouse such as the Girl’s
Brigade, the Stay and Play toddler group and the Boys Club, as we’re quite tucked away here and
sometimes hard to find!”
Kim has also formed a link with volunteers at New Hope Baptist Church who help out at the holiday
club.
“Since being involved in Big Local, people have started to recognise me and associate me with the venue.
The space is used a lot more now that we are connected with Big Local.”
Kim is involved with a lot of things in the community and has become a familiar face for local people,
this means she is able to signpost people to different things as she is so well connected.
“It’s given me confidence, I was never a confident person. Because I’ve got involved with all these things it’s
something to talk about. I never thought I’d run a Holiday Club, but I knew there was a need for it and how
much the children enjoyed it. As a volunteer I like working with the children, it’s great to see them enjoying
themselves.”
Darkhouse is also a location for the Coseley Community Cinema
“We applied to East Coseley Big Local for
blinds so that the Coseley Community Cinema
could take place in the hall. We had very old
curtains that didn’t work very well or block
out the light. We’ve also used the blinds for
Clubbersize in the summer too, to block out
the light nights in the summer. It’s vastly
improved the experience for both events.”
The Skittle League, which takes place in the
Darkhouse hall, was an idea that came
about to bring the community together. The
league is very well attended by people and
groups from the local community
“We applied for funding from East Coseley
Big Local for new skittles for the league. We already had a skittles alley which had been made by two local
men from the church, but the skittles were chipped and broken, so we bought brand new wooden skittles –
but have kept the old balls!
We started with 9 teams, now there are 13! It’s a chance to get together and network, chat about different
ideas for things in the community. A good way of connecting and keeping in contact, it’s great to see new
people on board. We’d never had much to do with Silver Jubilee Park as they were on the other side of the
road, but now we’ve made a really good link with them and they have formed a skittles team.
We run 4 fundraisers at the Skittles League, 2 fundraisers for the Girls Brigade and 2 a year for the church.
We also do raffles to raise money for the food bank, which is also located at Darkhouse Church.”
The Coseley Food Bank has been operating from Darkhouse Church for around 7 years and has 6
volunteers. People from Coseley can come with a voucher that they have been given from the local
Family Centre, Citizens Advice or Just Straight Talk. The food bank supports around 30 local people
from the Coseley community every Tuesday.
George Langford started as a Cub at the age of 6. He’s now 22 now and is a Young Leader.
George applied to East Coseley Big Local for funding for a scout recruitment drive in 2018. “The aim was
to find new scouts, we put the money towards a website to put ourselves out there. We built the website
ourselves. We had flyers and posters printed that we handed out at the Coseley Big Event, we also put
posters around schools to get information out there about what we do.”
The website has given us an online presence and has attracted many new people, we can see this from the
traffic to the website. We’ve built up numbers and it’s still on going. So the recruitment drive worked.
Big local have supported us to exchange information and get us to the Big Event. We bought huge banners
with the money funded by Big Local, which showed us off at the event. We had a steady queue at the event,
did a raffle and helped to sell tickets for the events rides at the same time.”
We’ve been able to connect with the local community and encourage our scouts to help in the community.
One of our next events is a carwash to raise money locally.
The best thing about being a scout leader is giving something back. We have a laugh, it’s really rewarding.
George Morgan is 20, he’s been with the 1st Coseley scouts since he was 8, he became a Young Leader at
18. “I’ve made some great friendships through being in the scouts and I’ve done activities that I thought I’d
never do. Cliff diving was one of the best activities I’ve ever done! We get together, do activities, we like to
have a laugh and a joke. We like to make it enjoyable because that’s what makes people stay. That’s what
made me stay, every week there was something new to do. I like to help young people to get their badges.
We go on camping trips where scouts get to do stuff they’ve never done before like shooting, archery,
abseiling, activities that you thought you would never do until you came here. We also go away for a week
annually. We’re going to Blackpool this year, it’s a great get together in the summer. It’s just pure
camping, we get the tents and marquee up – it’s more of a holiday – we go on hikes, to theme parks or
water parks. I love the simple things like sitting around the fire. It’s a place to make good friends and
mingle with scouts from different areas.
The activities the young people get to do with the scouts are just fantastic. If they are here enjoying
themselves they’re not out on the streets with nothing to do. If they are here they can do activities that they
have never done before, meet new people and learn new things.
They also learn life skills like cooking, cleaning and camping – so they can learn how to put a tent up at a
festival! I don’t know what I would do without it. My best friend told me about scouts and how fantastic it
was, 12 years later I’m still here. All it took was one positive message. I spend a lot of time doing what I do
because it benefits them. I want to do what previous leaders did for me.
Girls started joining in the ’80s. Most scouts come from the cubs. There is a nice divide of boys and girls, I
think the scouts reach out to everyone. We are looking to recruit more scouts, so we’ll be going to the Big
Local Big Event this June, we’ll have a stand with a banner and we can talk to young people about what we
do and why it’s worth joining,”
Anthony is Scout Leader, he has been with 1st Coseley Scouts since 1964, 55 years ago he joined as a
cub when he was 8. He has seen many changes over the years. One of the things he’s most proud of is
going away for a week every year, this began in 1982 and they haven’t missed a year since. They’ve
been all over the country, Whitby, the Lake District, North Wales, and Torquay, to name a few.
East Coseley Big Local set out to bring families together, to improve green spaces and to get local people
meeting and talking to each other. Coseley Bowling Club is a great example of just this.
One of the first projects to be supported by East Coseley Big Local was a large net to keep bowlers safe
from cricket balls from the neighbouring cricket pitch. Last year the club was supported to create a
Buzz Garden to attract butterflies and bees and improve the overgrown green space for the benefit of
the people who visit and bowl at the club.
Joe has been Chair of the bowling club for 3 years. When asked of the impact of Big Local support, he
said “You can see that it’s made an impact by just looking around the bowling green. We’ve had support
from Big Local for timber partitions to tidy up the green and prevent the old one from rotting. Last year we
had the new shed as a facility for visitors to watch the bowling. Big Local has bought tins of paint to do the
place up and make it nice for the community. All the hard work that volunteer Joe has put into maintaining
the Buzz Garden – we wouldn’t have had anything as good as this without our volunteers and the support
of East Coseley Big Local.
People come from all over to use the bowling green – Edgbaston, Dudley, Dartmouth – it covers a big area.
I’d like to think the green shows Coseley in a good light.
We just want to keep on making it better. We’ve put a lot of time into the green. The money needed to
maintain the green is generated ourselves.
Volunteer, Joe, has been involved in the Buzz
Garden since the start.
Joe said, “It was a wilderness and we wanted to do
something with it. I put gravel boards down and
raised it all up, we then started to get more ideas.
We selected plants that were wildlife friendly.
We’ve seen a massive difference to the wildlife on
the green. We now feel like we can spread our
wings to do more, we’d like to do different beds
with different flowers, some people have been
talking about edible beds.” When Joe was in his
20’s an old gardener who was in his 70’s said to
him “Never let a weed see a Sunday.” This is now
Joe’s motto!
Joe has put slabs down and added paths in
amongst the flowers. The Buzz Garden does what
it’s supposed to do and attracts many butterflies
and bees. There are Lavender and Buddleia
plants – also known as a butterfly bush – from
Joes garden. In amongst the garden plants are
little painted stone houses. Julie who paints the
stone houses, started by bowling for the ladies
team and is now groups secretary.
The bowling green also attracts many birds,
including Wagtails, Wrens and Swifts.
Chair Joe said, “We have 50 odd bowlers at the club. We had 5 teams, we’ve now got 8. It’s constantly
expanding especially the ladies bowling team. It gets people actively involved, which is the biggest impact
to the community. The cricket club is also a really active group, most of our bowlers use the cricket club
too so that makes it a thriving place.
It benefits people by getting them out. Families can bring their children to a safe place. New friendships
have developed here. It keeps me busy anyway!”
The club is now looking to attract more people to come and have a go at bowling. If people like it, they
can join the club. “The age range of people who come here is 17 years old to late 70’s. A lot of bowling
clubs have aged and eventually closed. We have a steady influx of middle-aged people here, many 30 year
olds took it up for the first time and found they liked it. It’s a very vibrant club that I think is going to carry
on for a bit. Bowling is a dying thing in a way, there are fewer greens now, pubs used to have bowling
greens, and with the general demise of pubs, the greens have gone. I like to think that we appeal to a wide
age group and we bring families together. We have a laugh here.
The Coseley women’s league is in their 4th season. They buy their own uniforms in pink. We all like to look
professional and represent the club.”
The bowling club has 2 teams that play at the Coseley Skittles League, “The Skittles League is a great way
to connect with the community. This is how we got to know Bayer Street Allotments. We’re getting to know
a lot of people involved in Big Local and meeting with others who care about Coseley.”
In the future, they would like to get a toilet on the green.
Read more about East Coseley’s response to the pandemic here:
