YMCA’s Women’s Group (Bellshill & Mossend) – run by women, for women – promotes self-care and hosts a language café for New Scots.
Our Fun Fridays Youth Project brings young New Scots (aged 12-17) together with their peers to participate in activities chosen by the group.
Our project aimed to:
YMCA Bellshill & Mossend has linked with the resettlement team for North Lanarkshire and our Future Friday’s coordinators at our local high schools.
We have linked with second language teachers from community learning development.
We actively promote our programmes through various organisations in North Lanarkshire.
We are currently being supported by Wishaw YMCA to deliver a session for the women’s group.
We have met with our local ESOL classes to speak directly with New Scots.
We have included partnership working with local beauty therapists, yoga teachers, colleges, etc.
Bellsill and North Lanarkshire
July 2022 – December 2023
Female New Scots and young New Scots age 12-17
Women’s Group and Youth Group
The YMCA Women’s Group is running successfully with a steady attendance of 20-25 members each week. Engagement is strong, with women actively sharing their skills and talents with the group. For example, recent sessions have featured henna, home cooking, and upcycling, all led by members. Attendance continues to grow.
New Scots Fun Fridays currently attracts around five young people per week. Unfortunately, attendance remains low.
We attended local ESOL classes, speaking with teachers and ESOL participants. We spoke directly to New Scots, asking them specifically what they would like to see in their local community. Many shared that while they spend time learning English, they lack opportunities to interact with their friends and classmates outside of ESOL sessions. They requested that we create these opportunities at the YMCA Bellshill & Mossend.
We also consulted with the North Lanarkshire resettlement team, who informed us that there are currently few young people in the 12-17 age group in the area. This has contributed to the challenges in increasing attendance for our New Scots Fun Fridays project.
Young people and women are attending weekly, demonstrating strong engagement. Attendance in the women’s group is steadily increasing.
Both the women and young people are thoroughly enjoying the project and are hopeful that, with additional funding, the group can continue to run.
One significant challenge has been the varied English language proficiency levels within the group, which can complicate interaction and activity planning.
Additionally, some attendees reside in hotels, and when moved to permanent housing, this may be farther away, making travel and attendance more difficult.
Each week, members are growing more comfortable engaging in conversations with one another and with the staff team, and friendships are beginning to blossom.
We identify those with stronger English skills who can support others within the group, and we found some useful translation apps to aid communication.
We also cover transport costs where needed.
Reflecting on our approach, consulting with potential members before launching the programme proved essential. Regular weekly consultations with them have also been valuable, and I believe this is a key reason for the success of the YMCA Women’s Group.
New Scots’ Fun Fridays have now been incorporated into additional youth projects run by the YMCA, showcasing the fantastic work we are doing to ensure our New Scots feel welcomed and included in our community.
