What happened in the summer?
Residentials were a big part of our summer programme. The longest was our one-week summer camp where, in addition to physical activities, the girls spent valuable time diving deep into discussions on different topics. The conversations dealt with many issues that affect them personally, such as identity and mental health. The girls found these sessions to be freeing – they appreciated having a safe space in which they could express themselves without judgement.
We work closely with a number of schools in and around Sandwell. During the summer we took different groups of girls from these schools on residential trips to Frank Chapman – a fantastic and well-equipped outdoor education centre just outside Bewdley. During the residentials, the girls took part in various activities such as high/low ropes, mind exploration, geo-caching, water fights and much more.
What were your goals for the summer?
Our main goals were to empower and raise confidence in the girls. We always want to provide opportunities for them to move out of their comfort zones and demonstrate commitment to the challenges they’re facing. We’ve found this is one of the best ways to raise their self-esteem.
What are your plans for next summer?
Listening to feedback from the girls, more residentials are high on our list as they’ve been so successful this summer. We’re researching places to go for inspirational trips and ways we can get the girls involved in demonstrating social actions.
The Rowley Regis Collective will be established in time for summer ’23 and hopefully we’ll be looking at starting another collective within the local area. Watch this space!
These activities are just a few of the many ways we’ve been powering up our community over the summer months. To keep up-to-date on what we we’ve doing and find out about future activities follow us on Twitter or Instagram.
If you’ve been inspired and want to take part or volunteer with one of our projects, get in touch with the team for more details!