FAMILY SUPPORT
ADVICE AND SUPPORT FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
CURRENT PROJECT :
Learning together, Somali Development project Funded by the People’s health Trust
Activities:
- Parenting workshops
- Functional skills-Monday Morning 10am-12pm
- Parents Forum-Coffee Morning- Tuesday between 10am -11am
- Liaison and referrals to the main stream services, such as social services, local schools, housing and welfare rights agencies, health services etc.
- Advocacy and support on families matters.
- Recruitment, induction and engagement of new staff member [Family Development Officer @ 15 hours per week]
- Awareness Raising : promotions and outreach contact work to tell Somali families we are here [design / development of materials and implementation ongoing]
- Volunteer recruitment and training : 10 volunteers to be recruited for the year, we will open the opportunities up straight away to recruit 2 – 5 volunteers in the first 6 months who will assist all activities.
- Activities : 3 x weekly sessions delivered over 24 weeks = 72 sessions comprising :-
Social Activity : bringing Somali families together to engage in community activity, make friends with other families, share ideas and support each other.
Group Workshops : identifying issues with the families and arranging responsive workshops and educational sessions to address them e.g
CULTURAL CELEBRATIONS
Somali Independence Week:
Somaliland 18 May and 26 June; Djibouti 27 June: Somalia 1 July.
Ethiopian and Kenyan Somalis are also welcome to enjoy these events with their Somali brothers and sisters or with their own Ethiopian and Kenyan communities
Eid Parties:
EdulFitri takes place Just the End of the Month Of Ramadan every year).
Edul-Adha: occurs on the 10th of the Month of the Islamic Lunar Month of Dill Hijjah.
HEALTHY LIVING
Sports Activities
We organize a wide range of sports activities basis including football for both young people and elders, girls 5-a-side, fitness classes and personal MOT courses.
Healthy Living Seminars:
Health education is essential but can be a sensitive issue so we organise seminars catering for men and women separately run by Somali speaking professionals that work in conjunction with the NHS, local GPs and other health professionals,
FAMILY LEARNING
Creative Writing and Art Workshops
SIDA;s Community Schooling Program has strong links to Kings College University in London so we have access to some of the best creative writing teams in the world. While families can participate in creative writing and art workshops and share the joy of learning together as a group.
Supporting Basic Education
SImilarly, families can all enjoy courses in spoken and written English, the Somali Mother Tongue, numeracy and basic Information Technology skills
RELATIONSHIPS
Starting a new family
SIDA helps young couples seeking advice on how to strengthen and maintain their relationships and receive guidance on the complexities and responsibilities of starting a new family to prepare themselves for all the pressures of parenthood
Family Conflict Resolution and Mediation
The pressures of modern life can put a huge strain on family. SIDA works with family groups on how best they can cope as a group to resolve troublesome issues such as bullying, violence, racism, anti social behaviour and internal family conflict.
HOUSING ISSUES
Compared to other communities, Somali families are relatively large, having an average of 5 children per family, many of the communities’ families are led by lone female parents. We provide advocacy and advice on all housing matters such as repairs, re-housing, homelessness, private tenancy, home swap, anti social behaviour and other housing related matters.
FINANCIAL ISSUES
Although everyone in the UK is struggling financially, Somali families often struggle more than others because of the larger family sizes and the added pressure of sending money home to friends and family back in Somalia. SIDA offer advice and guidance on key financial matters to help make ends meet including family budgeting, explaining rights to welfare payments rights and debt management.