Local Charities & Services

Hospital Garden: Creation of a Hospital Garden for the Rehabilitation Ward at Loughborough General Hospital. This was initiated in the millennium year. It is a practical project serving our local hospital. Members volunteer to look after the garden attached to a ward of elderly people, to help aid their recovery. Regular tidy up sessions involve digging and pruning along with planting up with spring bulbs and winter and summer bedding plants donated by less physically able members.

Women’s Refuge: Supporting the local Women’s Refuge for victims of domestic violence. We supply Toiletry Packs for when they first arrive, Easter Eggs for the children and household goods for when they are re-housed. We hope in the future to help with their garden and hanging baskets; toys for the under 5′s: and support any Domestic Violence Awareness initiatives.

Carers Tea: This is an opportunity for carers to meet people in similar situations and have a bit of a break and be pampered themselves for a while. The word seems to have got round and we have been asked to provide this service for other groups in the local area apart from our original one. Members provide their time and food to give them a good lunch at a local meeting place.

Charnwood Talking News: Our club is one of several groups in Charnwood providing a service to the visually impaired in the area. Every six weeks members get together to record articles from the local newspaper Loughborough Echo on to cassettes. Copies of the tapes are made at Loughborough University and sent to over a hundred people; 75% are women.

For further information about the Talking News Federation, visit www.tnf.org.uk

 Toiletry Packs: We collect and purchase toiletries for women and babies for distribution by the British Red Cross for relevant parties. We also give packs to “The Bridge” project who are involved in helping local homeless people.