We're diving into an exciting vision for the future of Shepperton with the Laleham Park Hub, a community space that aims to breathe new life into our beloved park! Michelle Eden, the mastermind behind this initiative, is on a mission to create a welcoming spot for everyone -think dog-friendly café, workshops, and a cosy place to grab a cuppa and connect. She’s all about building a community that not only supports each other but also embraces green spaces. Plus, we get to chat about the importance of volunteers and how they’re the heart of this project. And let’s not forget about Cruse Bereavement Support, a charity doing incredible work for those navigating loss - definitely a heartfelt discussion that sheds light on the support available in our community. So, grab your headphones and settle in, because this episode is packed with inspiration, laughter, and a few thought-provoking moments!
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Michelle Eden:Long term, we want this to be a real flagship of a community hub, as a legacy for future generations and we really want it to be able to protect the green space, you know, the park itself and the building actually be a really good example of an eco friendly community building.
Nerys James:Volunteers are the heart of the charity, absolutely critical, and here in Surrey North, we very much value our volunteers and see it very much as a parallel process where we are offering support to our clients. We then have to offer that same support to our volunteers. So training is very important.
Gareth:Hello and welcome to the Sheppertonian, the podcast about this village we all love, that is Shepperton in Surrey in the UK. In this episode I'll be highlighting another local community group and another amazing business, as well as sharing event dates for February,so get your calendars at the ready and of course, those lovely Sheppertonian Shoutouts. I have to warn you up front, today's featured business is a charity called Cruse Bereavement Support, who do amazing work.
But in the chat we had there were mentions of suicide and obviously bereavement. So if that's something that's currently a trigger for you, then either sit this one out or skip after the featured community section.
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I went to a very, very chilly Leyland park to have a chat with someone who's leading the charge to build a hub for the local community. Here we go.
So I'm standing in Laleham park on a big space with Michelle Eden, who is the founder of the Lelham Park Hub.
Michelle, welcome to the Sheppertonian. How would you summarise briefly what exactly the Laleham Park Hub is and what you're trying to achieve with it?
Michelle Eden: was knocked down in November:And we want to have a cafe which is dog friendly and changing rooms, toilets and showers for people that do the park run or use the river for water sports mascot Y and a flexible community space for us to have workshops and for hire and things like that. So we, we are the facilitator really.
And what we do in those facilities is really we can make suggestions, but ultimately it's what the community wants at the end of the day.
Gareth:That's interesting. Yeah. We'll, we'll come back around to that, I'm sure.
But can you share the story behind Laleham Park Hub and what inspired you really to establish it?
Michelle Eden:Yeah.
So I have been in the charity sector for about 15 years now as a volunteer trustee and co founder of a previous charity, which was a cat rescue charity called Here for Cats. And I basically learned that cat rescue is not about cats, it's about people. Loneliness, isolation, mental health issues.
It was almost running like a social services, in a way.
And I also learned that, you know, animals are great icebreakers for people opening up about their struggles and they're very, very good with children, especially children with special needs as well. And I really wanted a place where we could sort of signpost people to or raise awareness of support groups that were available in the community.
So having that sense of belonging and to work with other charities to raise awareness of what support they can bring to the community. So I then set on this mission to find a place in a green space because I know how important it is for nature to help people heal from these things.
And that's really where my journey started.
Gareth:And obviously this is a really popular spot for dog walkers.
Michelle Eden:Yes.
Gareth:So I assume that, you know, the dog walking community will be part of the plan. I don't know.
Michelle Eden:Yeah, definitely.
And when we've been carrying out research for this project, you know, all the people that we've met in the park, they've all said to me, oh, yeah, you make sure it will be dog friendly, won't it? And I'm like, yes, of course, yeah.
Gareth:Some puppuccinos and doggy treats.
Michelle Eden:Yes, of course, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Gareth:Well, you know, in some cafes there are lovely bowls of water for dogs on hot days, but in lots of cafes that aren't, you know, but just to have that welcome.
Michelle Eden:Yes.
Gareth:Is lovely. And in a space like this.
Michelle Eden:Yeah. And what's really interesting is that there is so many people that we've met in this park that are actually lonely, really lonely.
And I've just got some stats here that we found through our research. So according to our survey that we did, 77% of people believe that Laleham Park Hub will be a benefit to their mental health.
And also, 84% of people believe that the community does not have access to high quality space that fulfills the purposes of the Hub.
Gareth:Wow. Who are the people who surveyed?
Michelle Eden:So that was basically our followers on our social media. Everybody that we've met in the park giving out leaflets to the business community. We went to the Rugby Club, didn't we?
All local people, all the stakeholders. But yeah, it's been, I would say, nearly almost 100.
Gareth:Positive everywhere, overwhelmingly in favour of. So what kind of activities would you be promoting for a hub like this?
Michelle Eden:We are going to be promoting stuff to do with nature.
So this year we did a kids nature play day, which went down very well, and they all said that more activities like this is definitely what kids need, especially in the digital age. Getting people off the phone, socialising and things like that. We're looking at doing kids sports days.
We are going to be partnering with other organisations such as Surrey Wildlife Trust, hopefully do some activities there. The Eden Communities team as well. Potentially we could do some stuff there. But offering a place for people.
Just come have a cup of tea and a chat, really. Things like that.
Gareth:Round to that loneliness thing.
Michelle Eden:Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Gareth:Being in the vicinity of other people, it's amazing how it brightens your day, isn't it?
Michelle Eden:Yeah, yeah. Again, we've met lots of people in the park that have admitted to being lonely and how they really, really want this place open.
And then also there's the craft side of things that we could do here. Again, that is almost a form of therapy in itself.
Doing sewing or, you know, crafting or painting or things like that, that really brings people together and it opens up conversations which then you can potentially steer to other organisations that we might want to raise awareness of, such as Smell Form, Dementia Support or the Mind.
Gareth:I was going to ask about the other local charities. Yeah, yeah. How do you see Laleham Park Hub collaborating with other local charities and organisations to enhance that community support?
Michelle Eden:So we would like to invite these charities into our hub to raise awareness of the work they do.
You know, people might think they're just coming to our hub for a cup of tea or coffee, but actually what we're doing is we're sharing the work that these charities do, make them aware that the support services are there if they need them, hopefully encouraging more people to volunteer for those organisations. You know, volunteering is a great way of preventing actual loneliness and isolation and building friendships.
Gareth:Yes. And what about the community support element of that?
Michelle Eden:So, part of our. As part of our research for this, this proposal, we met with the Designing Out Crime officer, who met us in the park, with our architects and our.
Gareth:Sorry, what is a designing. Sorry, what was it? Designing.
Michelle Eden:Designing Out Crime Officer.
Gareth:What's one of those?
Michelle Eden:So they come to the park and they assess the park as to what risks our proposal will bring to the park, such as vandalism. Crime, all those sorts of things. So that, yeah, look what.
Look at basically what can go wrong and things that we need to sort of mitigate within our design and things like that, really.
And that meeting with our architects were the two local police councils that came out and they really would like to have a place that they can engage with young people, a safe place.
And also it'd be really good for the, you know, the local community police to actually have an ear to the ground and speak to any residents or any park youth about concerns they've got and really, you know, bring that community vibe to the park, really.
Gareth:Anything that kind of tears down the barriers between, you know, taking away that us and them feeling, isn't it?
Michelle Eden:And also, I think it's really important for local councillors to have a place to come to as well and really get a sense of what's going on in their local community. You know, have lots of footfall. People come and go all the time. So I think you'll have quite a wide remit in the area, really.
Gareth:Lots of people cover lots of elements. What kind of volunteer opportunities are available?
Michelle Eden:So, through our organisation at the moment, we've got two roles that we're looking for. One is we're looking for somebody with a background in construction to sit on our committee to be an advisor a few hours a month.
And we're also looking for somebody with a catering background that can advise us on the catering side or even potentially look at coming to work in the. In the cafe again, a few hours a month. But it is still. We are still at the very early stages.
Gareth:Yeah, yeah. What would you say have been some of the challenges in establishing and developing the hub? And how have you addressed those?
Michelle Eden:I suppose the biggest challenge we've come across is the fact that we're in a real chicken and egg situation.
Gareth:Okay.
Michelle Eden:You know, we don't have any facilities here. We've got no history or credibility as a charity, so it's been very hard.
Gareth:But you are local people.
Michelle Eden:But we are. We are. Well.
Gareth:And you know the area.
Michelle Eden:We know that. We know the area. I actually live in Hampton hill. I'm not 20 minutes down the road.
And it took us two years to be able to present to Spelthorne Council our idea.
Gareth:Okay.
Michelle Eden:And the way that we did that is we basically engaged with the park out there, you know, speaking to people, giving out leaflets, engaged with the local councillors and the Spelthorne Business Forum as well.
And just by keeping our face out there, you know, eventually people sort of took notice and we got introduced to the right people and presented to the council.
Gareth:Right. So where are you in that process?
Michelle Eden:So we are in the process of putting our finishing touches to our business plan, which we will then present to the council and then we have to wait for all the permissions needed.
Gareth:The work bit.
Michelle Eden:Yeah, yeah. The planning permission and that side of things. So there are still quite a big few hoops to jump through, should we say?
Gareth:Yeah. So, looking ahead, what are your short term and long term goals for Laleham Park Hub and how do you envision its growth in the coming years?
Michelle Eden: u're probably looking October:We want this to be a real flagship of a community hub as a legacy for future generations and we really want it to be able to protect the green space, you know, the park itself and the building actually be a really good example of an eco friendly community building because of everything that's going on in the world and probably new rules and regulations regarding heating and things like that. You know, there's going to be a lot of buildings that are probably going to have to be closed.
So we really wanted it to be an example of actually this is how you do it.
Gareth:Yeah, future proofing.
Michelle Eden:Yes, exactly. And in terms of actually on from that, potentially maybe develop other community assets in the area that are, you know, disused.
I think there's a disused toilet block on the site in Laleham park, which somebody's actually mentioned about maybe, you know, doing that up and turning it into a cookery school. Somebody, somebody suggested, but, you know, so.
Gareth:Kind of acting as elite pardon the pun leader in the field.
Michelle Eden:Yes. Yeah, yeah. But if we can help them with that, we'd like to share our experience on our journey to help others do the same.
And that's really what we'd like to be able to do, really.
Gareth: So you said: Michelle Eden:So it's taken over two years to get this far on a voluntary basis and we funded this from our own pocket so far.
Gareth:Wow.
Michelle Eden:So we're all volunteers and we're very lucky to have a lot of pro bono professional support, who share our vision. But mainly we are looking for somebody maybe to come and help run our cafe.
Whether that's a business that wants a partnering opportunity, we don't know. We would also ask them to contact their local councillors to say that they're supportive of the Leyland Park Hub proposal.
And really, we need their help to help us to secure planning permission. So any donations toward that will be really welcome.
Gareth:It's been a long old road, isn't it? What keeps you going? When in the.
You know, in those dark times when you're thinking, oh, crikey, another form, another thing to do, what keeps you going?
Michelle Eden:This is a question I really had to have to think about. And the reason I think I'm doing this because I know it's really important to have a sense of belonging and a purpose in your life.
And I think this proposal provides a great opportunity, not just for me, but for others to do that. And I think that despite all the bad news going on today, there's some really great people out there that really want to make a difference.
It's not just me. So I believe it's a bit like building a church without the religion.
Gareth:Right.
Michelle Eden:You know, that's the way that I see it. You know, if you build it, people will come.
Gareth:Yeah. Well, here's to that. So, final question. How can people find out more about Laleham Park Hub?
In order to just follow your progress or to get involved, the best thing.
Michelle Eden:Would be to go onto our website, which is lalehamparkhub.org Sign up to our newsletter, follow us on our social media channels, which is Facebook and Instagram, and there's also a donate button if you'd like to make a donation. But the best thing would be to sign up to our newsletter.
We can keep people involved in our progress and also raise awareness of any events that we're doing in the park as well.
Gareth:Fabulous, Michelle, thank you very much.
Michelle Eden:Thank you.
Gareth:I'm here with Nerys James, the branch chair of Cruse Bereavement Support at Surrey North Branch. Surrey North Branch bereavement charity. Nerys, thanks for coming on today.
Nerys James:Pleasure.
Gareth:If we could start perhaps with an overview of Cruse Bereavement Support and what its mission is.
Nerys James: nal charity. It was formed in:It now has something like about 80 branches throughout England and Wales.
Scotland is separate, so it's a charity that offers bereavement support, no matter what the nature of the bereavement is, to all adults and to children and young people.
Gareth:And what does that support look like in terms of what you offer to individuals who've experienced a loss?
Nerys James:It will look like in different ways in different branches.
Different branches will offer different levels of support, but the core of the support is one to one support that can be offered on the telephone, on Zoom or in person, and that very much is tailored by the client's needs and the availability of what the branch has available. We're sitting in the client room here in Surrey North, so this is where clients are seen if they are having.
Gareth:In person support and how welcoming it's been so far. Lovely cup of coffee.
Nerys James:Thank you very much for saying that to me. I help paint this room so I have an enormous pride in it.
Gareth:So you mentioned one to one sessions in a number of different ways and forms. How do you tailor the services to meet the diverse needs of different age groups, you know, particularly children and young people?
Nerys James:All clients are assessed as to whether we are the appropriate charity for their needs.
And all children and young people are assessed because obviously working with a 5 year old or working with a 14 year old to an 80 year old or a 35 year old is going to be very different. So that happens during the assessment process and obviously with children and young people, the parents or parent or carer will be involved.
Gareth:Lovely. Let's talk about volunteers. What role do volunteers play in delivering the services of Cruse and what kind of training do they undergo?
What kind of support do they have?
Nerys James:Well, volunteers are the heart of the charity, absolutely critical. And here in Surrey north, we very much value our volunteers and see it very much as a parallel process where we are offering support to our clients.
We then have to offer that same support to our volunteers. So training is very important. The initial training is a national training program, extremely well regarded.
It's not a walk in the park, as you would expect. It's a four day online program on Zoom. It used to be in person, but it's now on Zoom.
And the volunteers are required to work through their own feelings about death and bereavement and look at their own awarenesses and issues so that they can then that enables them to stay with the pain of the client's bereavement.
So that's the initial training and then as they volunteer, there's obviously a programme of continuing professional development offered within the branch so that their training is ongoing. It doesn't stop when they become a volunteer. It's ongoing.
Gareth:Yeah. And do they. Do the volunteers have a choice of how much time they can give?
Nerys James:They're required to give a minimum of 15 hours a year, but of course, many more do that. And the CPD can come in so many different ways. Podcasts, books, in person training.
The national charity offers a huge amount through their network, so it comes in a variety of different ways. And then when you couple that with the supervision that all volunteers have to have, that too is a form of cpd, if you like.
But it's an ethical requirement that all volunteers need to take their client work to a supervisor. And if there are issues they need to look at, they've got that support through their supervisor. And we are very, very strong on that notion.
There's a strong expectation and a strong requirement that they use the supervision to that effect.
Gareth:Right, so let's talk about the actual process of grief. How would you describe that?
Nerys James:Grief? Yes. Grief happens to us all, doesn't it? Grief is a loss. It can be a loss of a pet, it can be the loss of a home, it can be the loss of a person.
And where it is the loss of a person, it's perhaps one of the most painful experiences we go through in our life. And that person can be a family member, it can be a friend, it can come in any form.
And grief is painful because it's linked to the attachment that we had with that person.
And so the process of grief and the process of support is to encourage or to support the client in being able to talk about their feelings so that they articulate those feelings. Because something happens when we move the feelings from inside of us.
We talk it out and then the volunteer can offer that support to hold the painful feelings, which a number of relatives can't do, or friends. And a lot of those feelings can be normalized. A lot of people are very afraid of grief, that they think they're going mad or they're.
This is all very different for them, but the feelings have to be normalised, but also to help them think about how do they then create a new normal, what we call a new normal, a new life, a different life without that person who has died. So there are two things going on at the same time.
The grief, the loss of the painful loss, the grief feelings of the person who's died, but also reinvesting in a future that doesn't have that person in it.
Gareth:Yeah, that's a lovely way of putting it.
Let's move on to some personal insights from Nerys James, the Branch Chair, what motivated you to become involved with Cruse Bereavement Support and what has been your experience as branch Chair?
Nerys James:I've been a volunteer for a very long time, the best part of 37 years. And I was motivated, I in another life in my professional life.
I was working in the world of education and I was a deputy head teacher of a school on the patch in Surrey north and a pupil, this was now I'm talking about the early 80s and a pupil took their own life and I was as a deputy responsibility head of pastoral care and it was totally devastating.
But if we take ourselves back to the 80s, there was no support, there was no recognition, there were no counsellors, there were no educational psychologists coming in and it was almost like, oh, this terrible thing has happened, let's sweep it under the carpet, let's not mention it. Because that was the culture of the early 80s in terms of bereavement and my feelings didn't go away.
And what I did, I started going on courses thinking, well I need to know a little bit about bereavement. You know, I knew something different was happening for me.
Long story short, I went on a day course, then I went on another course and then I did the training and then I was encouraged to become a volunteer and it all fitted with me as a personality and I knew from my early years of supporting clients that I could do the work because the essence of doing the work is to stay with the client's pain.
Gareth:Well, okay.
Nerys James:Not to take that pain away, to let them articulate that pain and those feelings. And I knew early on that that was something that I could bring to the work. And then I did a lot of one to one work at that time.
Pre pandemic, way back we used to visit clients homes. Another era that obviously doesn't happen anymore. We see clients here in the client room. And then I became interested in groups.
I'd done a lot of group work in my work in education and brought.
Gareth:A lot of empathy. I suppose as a teacher you need to have that empathy for you.
Nerys James:Yes you do, you need to have that empathy but you also need to be able to make that switch of you're not instructing, you're not telling them, you're not giving advice, you're led by the client, whereas a teacher, you're doing a lot of the leading. So there is a switch to make there.
And then I was asked at that time to lead on groups, formed a team within the branch and became very interested and loving group work, working with clients. Six or eight clients in a group, two facilitators offering the support through groups. And then I'd become a supervisor.
I'd done some training within the branch and then there was a vacancy to become the branch chair. I don't think it was where I thought I was going to end up, but this is where I have ended up and very much enjoy this role.
It's different, but it's something about maintaining that sense of collective belonging and collective purpose and maintaining our standards and our high standards of work that we pride ourselves on here in Surrey north, in the work that we do with clients.
Gareth:So what are Cruse's goals for the future? Maybe at a branch level, maybe at a national level in terms of enhancing services or other services?
Nerys James:Well, certainly in terms of branch level, to maintain our services. It's an ongoing process of recruiting volunteers. But also there's another dimension to our work. We obviously have to fundraise.
We have to maintain the financial stability of the branch, cover our costs. We are always fundraising, we are always looking. We ask clients for donations.
There's no pressure, but we appreciate client donations and we appreciate support from the local community, from businesses from other Rotary give us huge sums of money to support us.
So we're always looking for money, right, to maintain and cover our costs so that we can continue to offer this service to clients within the four boroughs of Runnymede, Elmbridge, Spelthorne and Woking.
Gareth:And in terms of Sheppertonian listeners, yes, that money can come in the support of a cake sale. It doesn't necessarily mean that people need to put hands in their pockets. No, it can come in fundraise themselves.
Nerys James:It can come in so many different guises.
They can do sponsored walks, sponsored anything, quizzes, a whole range of things through their church, through Rotary, through other groups that they might belong in and to the business world in Shepperton.
If you're looking to support a charity, I know the bigger charities always attract the finance, but don't forget the smaller charities, because bereavement death is going to impact us.
Gareth:It happens to everyone, isn't it? Yeah. So let's round off, then.
If you are listening to this and perhaps have gone through a bereavement, what would you say to someone who's going through that right now?
Nerys James:I would say that if you feel you need support outside of your family, very often the family and friends and colleagues will give that support. Sometimes that doesn't come into play. Do not hesitate to contact us.
And Gareth, you have got our details that you can put out on the podcast because sometimes doesn't always it's not always the right thing for family and friends to support. And this is what we are here for.
Gareth:Wonderful. Nerys James, Branch Chair of Cruse Bereavement Support, thank you so much for spending some time.
Nerys James:My pleasure.
Gareth:Thanks to Nerys James there.
.uk or call their helpline on: th, from:Whether or not you've flown an aircraft before sounds a bit dicey, but I'm sure you'll be in safe hands. Next up is the charity fashion show for Valentine's Day. That's on Saturday 8th February, 6.45pm for a 7:30 show.
Join in an evening of fun and fashion as we strut along the catwalk. Fun's going to Rotary and Princess Alice Hospice and tickets for that are £15.
Then on Sunday, February 9th at 3pm at the Shepperton Cinema, Shepperton Studios, it's Macbeth, David Tennant and Cush Jumbo Star. And then on Wednesday, February 12th from 10am to 12pm, it's minding her own business presents Reframing Self Care.
That's at Totally Tangerine Cookery at the Courtyard Ferry Lane, Shepperton. And then for all you romantic souls, it's Kelly's Dance Studio Valentine's Dance.
The date is of course, Friday 14th February, and that runs from 7.30pm until 10.30pm Tickets are £20 per person and that's at Shepperton Village hall on the High Street.
And finally on Saturday the 15th of Feb, at the Riverside Arts Centre in Lower Sunbury from 10.15am, coffee and croissant for an 11am concert, it's the Coffee Concert with Stephen Robbings Piano Quartet. When I say quartet, that means piano, violin, viola and cello, not four pianos.
You'll find links to all of those events in the show notes, or if you head to thesheppertonian.uk and sign up to the newsletter, all of the links will be sent to your inbox. So I thought, moving forwards, I'd extend the Sheppertonian Shoutout to messages emailed in or sent via social media.
And it seems January is all about the cafes. This one's from Jenny who says, hello, everyone who's listening, I'd like to give a shout out to the Ferry Cafe down at Shepperton Lock.
It really does have a great selection of food and drink and such a lovely atmosphere. That it does, Jenny. Next up is from David.
David says, I'm not sure if it's allowed as it's not strictly in Shepperton, but I want to let everyone know about the Sassy Apron, which is just down the road in Lower Sunbury. It's such a nice little shop with so many delicious looking treats. Thank you, David. I'm sorry, but I can't allow that as it's not in Shepperton.
Looks like I just did. And finally, let's see, Paula says, I often go to Shepperton High street to pick up something for lunch and Cafe Mocha D do the best coffee around.
I want to give them a big shout out for always being so welcoming. Oh, that's a lovely one. So, yes, it's been all about the cafes this time. And that's it for this episode.
Thank you for joining me on this episode of the Sheppertonian. Don't forget to sign up for the newsletter if you want links to anything you've heard in this show. And until next time, I'll see you around.