Hello Timebank members and friends!
The year is swiftly passing by and we are now entering Autumn, a time for shedding the old and re growing, something we can all do in our own lives.
This issue of the Timebank South West newsletter is packed full of news of what we have been doing during September with our local Timebanks as well as updates from local incentives, libraries and events.
"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall".
F. Scott Fitzgerald
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* COVID19 Update
* Timebank South West Job Opportunity
* Timebank South West App Info
* Opportunities to exchange
*Recent exchanges
* Mayflower Quilt Festival
* Barne Barton Socials
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* Efford, Devonport and Stonehouse Socials
* Stonehouse Seed Store
* Creative All Out
* Plymouth Libraries News
* Devonport: Help a neighbour
* Stuff to do
* Resources
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Timebank South West: COVID 19 UPDATE
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In line with government the recent changes in Government guidance we are now back to being able to meet in a group of six or less people (including the outreach worker) outdoors or indoors.
Where we are able to use some of our indoor spaces we need to highlight that the risk of transmission of Covid-19 is lower outdoors than indoors – the virus survives for minutes outdoors but can live for hours on surfaces indoors and so it is up to the outreach worker as to whether they are happy to meet indoors with members. We all need to stay alert and take personal responsibility for maintaining a safe distance from each other and washing our hands or using hand sanitiser regularly.
If you have Covid-19 you will need to self-isolate for 14 days or if you suspect you might have Covid19 you need to get tested and not attend any social gatherings until you have the results and been given the all clear. Wearing a face mask outdoors is optional and we know that some people are exempt from wearing one, however if you feel safer wearing one please feel free to do so (it is still a requirement to wear a face mask in shops).
Our online socials will continue, and we look forward to seeing you all online for a good
old natter.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our timebank members and friends who have joined us on our outdoor walks and online socials. Your continued support means everything to us.
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Timebank South West Job Opportunity
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We are looking for a Communications and Administration worker to join our team, providing key support for the Outreach Workers.
It is an 8 hour position and you will be working from Four Greens in Whitleigh.
So if you are a keen organiser who is creative at the keyboard and fanatical about filing you might just want to visit our website for the full details!
Application deadline is 30th September.
Find out more
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Did we mention we had an App?
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All you need to know about Timebank in your back pocket!
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Opportunities to exchange
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Our main purpose as members of Timebank is to share our skills through exchanges to help others in our local community and beyond. We are continuing to promote and encourage members to swap skills and exchange hours. Take a look below at some of the exchanges we have available and please get in touch if you would like to earn some hours or if you need a helping hand.
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Help for Honicknowle: Sally and her Timebank members are doing their best to clear up the communal allotment, however, they could really do with some help so if you enjoy working in the garden and are up for earning some hours on a Friday please get in touch with Sally.
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Stonehouse Timebank have a large amount of different seed types that need to be cleaned and packaged ready to go out for swapping. Please get in touch with Zoe if you are interested in helping out and earning some hours.
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In Devonport we have a member who would like her garden furniture varnished. There are 2 chairs with a section of wood that joins them together acting as a small table. All resources will be provided. Please contact Zoe if you would like to earn some hours completing this exchange.
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We are looking for members who are happy to help out with food shopping once a week for two people who need support. The members are in Weston Mill and St Budeaux and you would be required to go to the members house to collect the payment method, go to the supermarket and then bring the items home and put them away. Please get in touch with Sally if you would like to earn some hours in helping out with this opportunity.
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We have had confirmation that mayflower 400 celebrations will now be held next year. In Ernesettle Timebank members are planning on putting together a number of activities to mark the date including a Oral History Project, exploration of the old ruins by the scout hut and a play!
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If you are a keen sewer/painter/crafter/actor and would like to get involved in the creation of costumes, props or characters please get in touch with Sally.
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Timebank member and outreach Worker Zoe has recently earned an hour from Jenny in Devonport. Jenny had a pair of her granddaughters denim shorts which needed embellishing with some lovely lacework.
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A total of 66 timebank hours were earned by members Hilary, Sarah, Sally, Louise and Louise for producing and delivering Up the Creek to 2,000 properties in Ernesettle.
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A total of 6 hours were given to Wayne for help on the communal plot at Ernesettle Allotment Project, which included building a compost area.
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A total of 4 hours were given to Tony for help on the communal plot at Ernesettle Allotment Project.
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A total of 3 hours were given to Paul for help on the communal plot at Ernesettle Allotment Project, which included building a compost area.
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A total of 124 hours were given to Sharon, Sharon, Tony, Alan and Sally delivering food parcels, picking up prescriptions and shopping for Four Greens Community Trust.
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A total of 3 hours were given to Kevin for cleaning Kerris' oven.
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A total of 14 hours were given by Tony, Lynda, John and Thomas for helping to cut back Linda hedge.
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Tony in Efford has recently earned another 2 hours for repairing and resealing the roof in Amanda's lean-to.
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A total of 15 hours were given to Linda for producing the library list for Timebank South West.
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Mayflower Quilt Festival 2020
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Timebank Outreach worker Sally recently visited the Mayflower Quilt festival at the Minster Church of St Andrew. Lots of quilts were on show from around the country and as far away as the USA. On her first visit she took along Ernesettle Timebank members Gwen and Val, and Tony from Efford on the second day.
Sally is also a Mayflower Maker - a volunteer for events linked with Mayflower 400- and has given 14 hours of her time to help steward the event directing visitors to safely peruse the displays and she has also shared her knowledge of quilting with the too.
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She was also able to help a non reading visitor with a one-off individual tour where she read the descriptions and details of each beautifully made quilt to the visitor.
The Mayflower Quilt Festival welcomed over 1000 visitors in the 10 days it was open to the public and, through sales of leaflets and refreshments from Eat That Frog, raised £2027 for UNICEF.
Do not worry if you missed out on the exhibition as it will be happening again in May 2021 where there will be more quilts, more calligraphy, a flower show and water colours on display.
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Barne Barton Weekly Socials
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Timebankers in Barne Barton have been meeting online every Tuesday 11.00am – 1.00pm.
Chats over a mug of tea or two have been lively and fun with a variety of topics from shopping, cooking, coping with covid-19 and isolation, haircuts, the weather, cats, rabbits, dogs, and fleas!
Anyone wishing to join in on the fun email Liza at liza@timebanksw.org
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Devonport, Efford and Stonehouse Weekly Socials
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Throughout September Timebank members in Efford, Devonport and Stonehouse have been keeping busy and connected in many different ways.
In Efford, wherever we can, we have enjoyed being out of doors and on Monday this week we were delighted to see the 12 foot Iron Human being set in place at West Hoe. Created by Sir Antony Gormley OBE as part of the Mayflower 400 commemorations, he represents 'the yearning to travel across the horizon to establish new life in another place'.
We have also spent time together browsing around Crownhill garden centre, purchasing plants for the garden and enjoying a hot cuppa. Next week we are looking forward to some apple pressing with Tess Wilmot and Dave Kernow as part of the All Ways Apples mini local events.
In Devonport we have begun working together on creating beautiful flowers, leaves, birds, mushrooms and other Autumnal things out of crochet, felt and knitted yarn. these will then be put together to create a number of wreaths to decorate as the seasons change.
In Stonehouse we have thoroughly enjoyed playing scrabble together, walking, creating card bunting and decorating it with our COVID thoughts, memories and feelings as well as just sitting with a cup of tea and having a good catch up.
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The Seedstore - a Stonehouse Time Bank project - was at the Union Street Party on Sunday. Party-goers were able to take seeds home to sow in their gardens and outside spaces. There were also a number of people who had seeds they had saved and no way of getting them to the Seedstore so we are hoping to get these over to them somehow.
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Do you have surplus seeds that could be donated?
If you give them to a Timebank South West worker they will be able to find their way to the Seedstore and be shared next year.
There are currently there are a few packets of wildflower seeds and lots of hollyhock and poppy seeds that can be sown now if you would like any please contact Zoe.
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Tom Buckley has also shared news of a Seed Store coming to Whitleigh soon!
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Meet, Mend and Make workshops have been unable to take place during lockdown but it is hoped that they will be able to continue soon. Meanwhile Fashion Fix is creating a website that will include information about sustainable fashion, instructions on how to make things, and local examples of textile creations. If you have been busy crafting during lockdown and would like to share a photo of something that you have made that could be put on the website please e-mail to fashionfixplymouth@hotmail.com. It would also be good to have photos of people wearing outfits that can't be considered fast fashion eg homemade garments or second-hand and upcycled clothes.
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Starting next week we will be hosting a Wednesday Morning Chin Wag, an hour long zoom chat for those who aren't able to get out and meet with their local groups to walk. We can have a cuppa and catch up on what people have bee doing to keep themselves busy or get ideas on how to keep yourself amused. Bring a quiz, write a poem, draw a picture - if you have something to share, we want to see it! to find out more email Zoe and she will send you a link to join in the chat.
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Good News from Plymouth Library Services.
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Plymouth Library Services have some really exciting news, they will be reopening ALL of our libraries over the next few weeks, hooray!
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Plymstock, Southway and St Budeaux Libraries will be open for you to browse our shelves and pre-book a PC for up to 45 minutes.
Estover and Plympton libraries will also be reopening their doors next week.
Devonport and Efford libraries will reopen during the week beginning 28th September. The remaining libraries (Crownhill, North Prospect and Peverell) will reopen during the week beginning 12th October.
To find out opening times and more information on our phased approach to reopening libraries in a safe way please visit our website:
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It will be a bit different from before so we have made a video to show you what to expect:
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Devonport: Help A Neighbour
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In their own words, Help a Neighbour is a hub where food donations from all across Plymouth ( St Matthias, Hamoaze House, Provide Devon, FareShare, Transforming Plymouth Together) will come in to be packaged into food parcels and delivered to those who need it in the area. Their aim is not to replace existing volunteer groups operating in the community but to help the pieces of the jigsaw come together so more people can be reached and faster.
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Their concern was that while many were able to prepare for Coronavirus, there would always be people who couldn’t, people who rely on others and if those carers become unwell, there is a real possibility that their most vulnerable neighbours would be left with no support.
Food parcels can be donated to and distributed from Devonport Live Café – run by Sarah Brown, another active member of the Devonport Community and provider of support through her community café.
I popped into Devonport Live last week to say hi to Linsey, Vee and Simon and find out a little bit more about what they have been doing.
It felt a little odd walking into a room which until March 17th was our Timebank hub, a place where we could all sit with a nice cuppa and plan our activities, crochet, macrame, flower arranging. A safe and welcoming place for members to feel at home and engaged with their community.
Now, the room is a little smaller due to refurbishments, but my goodness it is still fulfilling its job of bringing people together and helping people through difficult times.
Gone are the cups of tea and knitting needles and in their place are boxes of cereal, tins of soup, baby formula, coffee, toilet rolls and much, much more! All waiting to be delivered by a volunteer to a resident who needs it.
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Behind the organisation of Devonport Help a Neighbour are Linsey (centre)– Communications extraordinaire, Vee (Left)– logistics hot shot and Simon (Right)– expert in travel and general knowhow.
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Together they are not only ensuring the neighbourhood don’t go without the everyday basics, they also provide food shops, prescription pick-ups, phone calls and lifts to appointments etc. These are the little things that a lot of us take for granted, we do them without thinking, we have people to connect with every day and don’t think twice about it. These individuals did think about it, and not just for themselves, they thought about it for their community and together are making sure that through their Facebook page and word of mouth as many residents of Devonport are able to receive any of the assistance they are offering.
So far around 200 food parcels have gone out in Devonport, the beneficiaries are way more than the individuals who collect them though; their families, friends or their neighbours will all experience a little of the Help a Neighbour magic, through eating together, sharing their items or simply telling them about the parcels and how they can receive one too.
As of Tuesday 22nd September Devonport: Help a neighbour have been very lucky to be given the use of a room owned by Pembroke Street Estate Management Board, 102, Pembroke St.
The future of Devonport is bright and the team are looking forward to new opportunities in their new home.
A truly marvellous group, doing Devonport proud.
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We look forward to welcoming you to The Box from Tuesday 29 September 2020.
With reduced capacity on site to allow for social distancing, your visit will feel like a private view! However, we’re expecting tickets to go very quickly so do please remember to get in touch and cancel if you can’t make your chosen slot.
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Our formal AGM will be held on the 5th October 12:00–13:15. Come and join this year’s POP+ Festival as we zoom into another dimension on our good ship “Better Together”.
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We will take off on Thursday the 1st of October for a week of POP-tastic events: we have a stellar line up awaiting you in the digital galaxy. All we ask is that you board our POP spaceship and let us share our universal themes of collaboration, trust and learning. You are welcome to stop off on the way at various destinations, such as, our free tech-training sessions; future funding & learning and discovery. There will also be opportunities for virtual networking; reflecting on our COVID-19 journey and the incredible value of volunteers.
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The full festival listings are now live, and we suggest you have a good browse and plan your visit in advance, taking advantage of the booking systems that some events with limited capacity have put in place, so that you can make your way around in as enjoyable and stress-free way as possible.
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We have had a large amount of books made available to Timebank members to loan out, genres mainly being murder, mystery and thrillers. Timebank member Linda has been on the case and earning hours getting a list of them together. If you would like to see the full list of books available to borrow please get in touch with Sally or Zoe.
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Stay safe and well
From your Timebank Team -
Liza, Sally, Zoe and Chris
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