Funds Received - £2,000.00
Interest Links provide peer-age volunteer befriending for children, young people and adults with learning disabilities across the Borders, who are socially isolated and have few opportunities for friendship and fun. They received £2,000.00 from Blakchill Windfarm Community Fund for their Berwickshire Branch. This benefited 15 members with learning disabilities and their family carers living in Duns and Longformacus, nine were in befriending groups and 4 linked 1:1. It also provided volunteering opportunities for pupils at Berwickshire High Shool and five adult volunteers from Duns.
Activities: From March to May we continuted our distance service. 1:1 links were in contact as Phone Buddies, or by video WhatsApp, text, emails or writing cards and letters. Members and volunteers also received a regular newsletter.
The adult members zoom "Get Together" group had materials delivered to members and volunteers homes and made gift boxes, woven placemats and Easter baskets. There was general chat and fun and it was great to see parents and carers involved and enjoying the fun too.
Weekly zoom sessions for the younger groups included an arts project about What makes us Happy, run by a young volunteer and an art project with an external tutor about the different elements of the pandemic and peopls feelings about it. Also mosaic workshops, cookery sessions and a Beetle Drive.
From the start of May 1:1 links started meeting face to face, much to the delight of both volunteers and members, some of whom had been very much missing their friends.
Face to face meetings for the younger groups restarted in June, initially outdoors going for walks, berry picking, on boat trips from Eyemouth and playing games. They moved indoors in the autumn, with Halloween fun, cake baking and Wii games, followed by Christmas festivities, Bunrs Nights, pottery, music and drama sessions.
The adult group met face to face for the first time in August and resumed its usual activities of games, music, arts and crafts and later Halloween celebrations. A multi-session Music project, originally planned for 2020 and postponed again due to Storm Arwen and the Omicron variant, finally got under way in February and the Zoom Blether group is still continuing.
The in-school groups resumed towards the end of the year and the Berwickshire High School group is now meeting straight after school at Southfields so it can have longer meetings and more intersesting activities.
A new adult group is also planned to start in Duns in March 2022.
Feedback included:
100% of memebrs with learning disavilities and carers reported benefiting from the project, see image for full details.
Members:
"The zoom calls have kept me happy during lockdown. I've enjoyed trying all the craft activities and chatting to my friends, Thank you."
"I really enjoy seeing B. Its nice to have a friend who isn't a carer."
"Loved seeing people on my tablet and speaking to them."
"Getting out on the boat was fantastic, best trip ever."
"It was great to be able to do normal things again after such a long time being told we couldn't go anywhere or do anything."
Carers:
"Its been tough for my son this past year but he looked forward to hearing from his friend he met through Interest Link and it put a smile on his face."
"My son and I have enjoyed being part of the group and feeling valued and cared for. The online activities have enhanced the benefits of Ineterst Link for us and we appreciate the bond that the group has. Thank you."
"My wife and I are pleased that our son has contact with people other than ouselves. Its great he is now getting out to see his friends again. In the past they have had wonderful trips out doing all kinds of interesting things together."
