Friday 19th June saw the official launch of the Farida Women’s Centre in Oldham. The event was a huge success and well attended by representatives from a wide range of agencies who came along to see the work we are doing. Our guest of honour was POPS’ founder, Farida Anderson, whom the centre is named after. Farida means ‘unique and precious’ and this is very much the message that we want to give every woman that uses this space.
The Farida Women’s Centre has been set up to provide a range of services and support to women offenders/ex-offenders and their families at all stages of the criminal justice system. We provide advice, guidance and referrals for issues such as housing and accommodation, employment and training, debt, children and families, domestic violence and mental health.
In attendance were representatives from the Commissioning and Development Team for Greater Manchester Police, the Justice and Rehabilitation Team from the Greater Manchester Public Service Reform, Probation, Police inspectors, members of the POPS board of trustees, Health Trainers, Mental Health professionals and POPS staff.
The highlight of the launch was a presentation by three service users who shared with the guests their experiences of accessing the centre, what had led to coming to use the centre and what difference it has made to their journey. Their stories had a great impact on everyone who attended. We were also delighted to hear from one of the Probation Officers who uses the centre for appointments with her women. She shared a bit about her experience of using the centre, the advantages of working together and the great feedback we get from service users. Some of the creative and art work was on display for people to see and the women had also created some hand-made cards for our guests to thank them for coming. We finished off with a buffet, provided by 2nd Chance and an opportunity to network.
The Farida Women’s Centre first opened in January and since then over 40 women have been referred to the centre through various referral sources – Police Triage, Probation, self-referrals and referrals from other agencies such as Release from Addiction or social workers. POPS Family Link Worker, Kath Johnson, is currently working with 15 women many of whom have made great progress since engaging with the service. Success has taken many forms but most pertinently the project has contributed towards women not re-offending, appropriate accommodation being found, payment plans established and support at child protection meetings. The Family Link Worker has also provided advocacy at appointments and court appearances and created a gender specific safe place where women can come and speak to someone in confidence. The women who have used the service have commented that they feel safe when they’re here and expressed gratitude for a place where they can talk honestly without judgement.
Keep an eye on the POPS website for updates on the Farida Women’s Centre.
