World Jungle Newsletter - January 2015
In this issue...
Happy New Year!
We hope that you had a lovely break over Christmas and wish you a very happy new year. We are very excited as we enter 2015, with lots of new projects planned for the year and a number of programmes starting in January including developing the Chantry Centre in Dursley as a Community Hub, extending our workshops for schools programme, and building on our Health & Fitness work across the local area. As an organisation, we hope to build on the success of our previous work, growing and strengthening partnerships, and having a positive impact on our local community and the lives of individuals living within it.
Inspiring the community to 'Get Active Together'
We are delighted to have received support from Gloucestershire County Council to establish a ‘Full of Life’ Community Hub at the Chantry Centre in Dursley focused around promoting health and wellbeing for older people in the local area.
Weekly sessions will take place at the Chantry Centre on
Thursday mornings from 10am-12noon, delivering a mixed programme of activities aimed at older people promoting health, wellbeing, and getting active together. The first session is planned for
Thursday 29 January.
We are aiming to establish a group which belongs to and is led by the people who use it; bringing a change of culture from providing services for older and vulnerable groups to building their capacity to develop and influence services for themselves. We hope that this group will become a strong and active voice in our community, helping to combat issues of loneliness and isolation, and helping people to feel healthier and more independent.
Councillor Stephen Lydon, who backed the scheme said:
“I am really pleased to be able to support the planned health activities that World Jungle will be undertaking. It’s great to see more planned use being made of the Chantry Centre making it a true community hub for young and old. I look forward to the continued success of the centre.”
- VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITY!
We are looking for dynamic friendly people to help out with this exciting new project, either helping with activities, serving refreshments, promoting the project to elderly members of the community, or contributing in any other ways they feel able. Interested? Please come to an informal meeting this Thursday 8 January at 10am in the Chantry Centre, Long Street, Dursley or email Ben Ward.
Supporting help for Young People in our community
World Jungle is working in partnership with the Cam and Dursley Youth Forum and Youth & Community Services to launch a high profile campaign this January to raise the awareness of self-harm, and the prevention of it, in young people.
The “In Need Of…” campaign is responding to an increasingly prominent issue that affects the lives of many young people. The campaign will be launched with a special event at
Rednock School in Dursley on Thursday 29 January from 3pm-5.00pm.
We hope the event will attract lots of people, whether they have been directly affected by this issue or perhaps know of someone who has. People are invited to come along and meet representatives from a range of organisations that specialise in both raising the awareness, and the prevention of, self-harm. There will also be a mix of live music entertainment and a range of stalls and free activities to try, run by World Jungle, including Samba and African Drumming.
Extending our Workshops for Schools Programme
World Jungle has successfully provided a range of cultural and creative workshops for schools across the South West for a number of years. Working with all ages from Key Stage One to over-16’s, our inclusive and engaging workshops cover a variety of topics and skills to support the National Curriculum – including
African Dance & Drumming,
Indian Dance,
Carnival Dance, Music & Arts and
Circus Skills.
2015 sees us launch a new programme –
‘Get Active with World Jungle’, specially designed cross-curricular activities fusing PE with PSHE; promoting healthy lifestyles, emotional wellbeing, confidence, aspiration and respect. Please
contact us if you would like more details.
Get Fit 2015
From this week, all our regular Health & Fitness classes have resumed, including Fitsteps, Zumba Gold, Zumba Fitness and Pilates. We have classes every day of the week, daytime and evening, at venues across Cam, Dursley and the surrounding villages. For a full listing and class timetable, please visit the ‘
World Jungle Health’ section on our website.
Try something new this year
Looking for a new challenge this year? Here are two suggestions for you to consider!
- How about going along to a free taster session of CAPOEIRA (from Oficina Da Capoeira), a traditional Brazilian style of movement which promises to improve fitness, confidence, balance and control. Two new weekly Capoeira classes run by the amazing Lua from Oficina Da Capoeira are starting up in Dursley from THIS WEDNESDAY in the Tabernacle Community Rooms. They will take place every Wednesday, 4pm-4.45pm for children and then 6pm-7.30pm for adults. The first class is free (whenever you start) then £4 (children) and £7 (adults) after that. For more information, telephone Lua on 07745 307387.
- Chase away the winter blues and experience the sounds of Carnival … Come along to our weekly Samba Drumming group on Monday evenings 6.30-7.45pm at the Chantry Centre, Long Street, Dursley (upstairs in the Band Room). Not just big drums but lots of small percussion instruments too. This friendly and enjoyable class is open to everyone, no experience necessary and all instruments provided. £5 session (or £3 for 10-16 year olds).
A great night out with the Soul Destroyers
Popular Bristol Band ‘The Soul Destroyers’ will be playing a fundraising gig at the Chantry Centre (Lister Hall) in Dursley on Friday 27th February at 7:30pm. The Soul Destroyers are a fourteen piece band which the Bristol Evening Post say 'just have to be the best party band around'. Tickets are £10 each and are available from The Chantry Centre, the Labour Party shops at 10 Silver Street, Dursley and 5a Lansdown, Stroud, via the
World Jungle website or from Jane and Ben at their fitness classes.
