Stockton SOUP #4 Was SOUPER!
Thank you to everyone who joined us at Stockton SOUP#4 we gave away £762.42!
It is our great privilege to support and celebrate some of the brilliant people and projects doing amazing things in Stockton on tees. Here are the four projects who shared in March.
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"Though young people in Stockton have so much potential, I think that so many fail to see it in themselves. I want them to aim for more and to realise that they are capable of way more than they ever imagined."
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Project 1 - Axiom Adventure
Axiom Adventure run outdoor activities for young people aged 11-18. Despite all the opportunities to do outdoor pursuits in the Tees Valley, not all young people are able to take advantage of these - this is especially true for young people who may be economically deprived, those with challenging behaviour or more difficult backgrounds. Axiom Adventure seeks to rectify this.
Axiom Adventure believe that getting young people outside their comfort zones and into new environments helps provide really unique opportunities for personal growth. Axiom Adventure helps young people to develop many skills that will be beneficial in life, but that may not always be taught in a traditional classroom setting, such as problem solving, team building, and overcoming hardships. They seek to create a safe place where students can challenge themselves and realise their full potential.
Axiom Adventure received 16% of the vote and walked away with £121.99.
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Creating an engaging place for children to develop, explore and play while parents learn to bond with their children more, grow in confidence and have much needed support and community.
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Project 2 - Little Munchkins
Following cuts to a local children’s centre two mums decided to set up Little Munchkins to help fill the gap. They felt that not only were the children missing out on their valuable playtime-vital for development, but also that parents, grandparents, carers would equally be left without a place to go where they could interact, share stories, problems and support each other. Little Munchkin serves an area of social deprivation and diverse ethnicity so aim to provide a great opportunities for local families to grow and develop.
Little Munchkin carefully put together a program to nurture ‘learning through play’ -vitally important in child development. Each week is themed, The Hungry Caterpillar, Chinese New Year and Space are just a few they have already covered. Activities are all centred around children's developmental needs. Children experience different types of ‘play’ all aimed to stimulate confidence, creativity and expression. These include, messy play, arts and crafts, role play, sensory plays, active play, story time, parachute play, bubbles and singing.
As much as Little Munchkins exists for the children lots of emphasis and support is also in place for parents and carers. Adults are encouraged to interact with their children, deepening their bond. Parents are exposed to new ideas helping enhance play at home, and many grow in confidence thanks to this. Breast Feeding Peer Supporter is available to offer advice and support to any breastfeeding mums who attend the group.
Little Munchkins is entirely volunteer led and weekly expenses are always more than the £1 they charge per family (They charge this no matter how big the family, as they are committed to keeping it affordable for EVERY family) Without funding there would be no Little Munchkins!
Little Munchkins received 19% of the vote and walked away with £144.86. (6 weeks room hire)
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Creating something beautiful, but also something everlasting - Love, hope and awareness. Our aim is a legacy of strong, sustainable community and life long friendships.
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Project 3 - Stockton Peace Blanket
The project is a very simple one, a group of women getting together to create a Peace Blanket. This will be several fabric squares sewn together to create a banner or blanket. Each woman will create her own square depicting what Peace means to them.
There are two main purposes of the Peace Blanket. Primarily it is about bringing women together in a non-threatening environment. Some of the women are refugees or seeking asylum, other women are from the local community and businesses. The project is open to any woman in the local area. The other purpose is to provide a legacy which can be used to raise issues of peace. We will display the Peace Blanket to raise awareness of issues such as violence, hate and conflict. Nationally we have seen a rise in hate crime and we have also seen examples of that in Stockton, including different ethnic groups who suffer racial abuse and hate crime daily. There are more people in Stockton who are welcoming and inclusive and the peace blanket seeks to raise these people up, challenge discrimination and promote inclusive communities
Stockton Peace Blanket also received 19% of the vote and walked away with £144.86.
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Raising aspirations, self worth and restoring dignity through food! A cafe where hostel users gain experience, qualifications and confidence.
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Project 4 - Little Sprouts CIC
Little Sprouts CIC have been delivering outreach cooking sessions over the last 18 months to the hostel users and others. People living in hostels range from young people leaving care or home, those who may have experienced domestic violence, been in prison, have mental health problems, struggle with drug mis-use or may just have hit hard times. To help them reconnect with their community one of Little Sprouts priorities has been to create a safe area/ nonjudgmental café/space for hostel residents who want to meet children, family, or friends. As the living accommodation can sometimes be disruptive, challenging, and noisy this a real need.
As well as a safe space, residents have the chance to be involved in the running of the café, helping cook and prepare meals. This results in the learning of new skills, gained qualifications such as basic food hygiene, growing self esteem, greater confidence and a reduction in their own social isolation. The combined experience and qualification can offer opportunities towards employment and social housing, which are vital to many residents. So far residents have enjoyed the opportunity to be involved in making their own community better.
Little Sprouts want the café to have a warm welcoming atmosphere, where the residents want to be, and also want to contribute. With the money raised at Stockton Soup they will aim to equip the café with cups, plates, cutlery and cooking equipment. These basic luxuries e.g to eat at a table in a safe and environment, can help restore people’s dignity, reduce isolation and with the support staff on site help them make progress to become part of the community again. During their recent Xmas meal Little Sprouts became aware that many residents did not even possess a cup to have tea in, as many of them have been left with no/little belongings.
Little Sprouts received 46% of the vote and walked away with £350.71.
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wow, aren't they all brilliant?! If you would like to support any of the projects further or anymore information please email us on stockton.soup@gmail.com
We know these are just the tip of the iceberg of people doing amazing things in Stockton! We want to keep going, keep cheering, keep supporting, keep celebrate, keep highlighting and keep raising money - but we really need you to joinwith us! Pop these dates in your diary will you, organise your mates, your lifts, your babysitters, your time and join us at the ARC Stockton at 6.30pm.
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Don't forget that not only does every single penny and pound donated at the door get given away to projects pitching on the night, but we secured match funding meaning for every £1 you donate £2 goes to the projects. No running costs are taken from your donations, all team are volunteers, the venue is gifted to us by ARC and the homemade soup and rolls by the fantastic guys at No 60.
Check out the event page on Facebook here and make sure to let us, and your friends, know you're coming by clicking the "Going" button.
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VENUE UPDATE...
In January we moved to a new home at ARC. We are now hosted in The Point venue, giving us loads more room to grow, making it easier to see and hear the pitchers and musicians and giving us space to freely move and chat.
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