New club for older residents at Brixton Windmill
On April 26th we launched a new weekly club for local residents living near to the windmill. The Brixton Windmill Community Club (BWCC) takes place each Thursday from 10am-1pm at the new centre in Windmill Gardens. It is for older local residents living in any of the SW2 5 postcode areas and it has been established with the help of a generous Lambeth Wellbeing Fund grant for the next two years.
The club is organised by volunteers from Friends of Windmill Gardens and kicked off with a group of residents attending from the Blenheim Gardens estate. Before the first meeting we had leafleted every house on the estate and chatted to people we met as we went round. The Blenheim Gardens Resident Management Organisation are supporting the project and we hope it will grow to be part of the weekly routine of local residents.
The BWCC is a membership club specifically for those over 55s who have been affected by the last two pandemic years and the aim is to provide a space where they can socialise with their neighbours, beat those ‘Covid blues’, meet new people, and enjoy a wide range of activities over a cup of tea or coffee. We even finish each session with a light lunch of delicious home-made soup & roll made with locally sourced ingredients.
So far, club activities have included; fun chair exercises with Ingrid to get everyone moving; crochet and knitting with Scorpio; lots of chat and laughter while playing board games; plus some cooking. At every session, club members can get welfare advice and any information needed from Ferisa, who is an experienced community connector, and also from other FoWG volunteers.
At the fourth club session, on June 16th, we will be asking members how they want the club to be run over the next two years and what activities they would like organised. At the Brixton Windmill Centre, we have good resources for art and craft projects, the terraced garden adjacent to the Brixton Windmill Centre is just outside for gardening projects and we have skilled windmill volunteers who can lead on a range of different projects and activities.
We look forward to making Thursday mornings at the Brixton Windmill Community Club the regular place to be for older residents living near to Brixton Windmill. Come and join us.
So do come along to the BWCC on any Thursday morning – everyone is welcome and if you are not over 55 you can always help by volunteering and making this new venture a success.
For more information contact jean@brixtonwindmill.org
We want to thank our funders; Lambeth Wellbeing Fund, Awards for All, and the London Community Foundation. We also thank Blenheim Gardens Management Board who have supported the setting up of the BWCC .
