The Ropewalk warm space

Aim

The Ropewalk warm space will offer all of the community access to activities and refreshments in a welcoming environment, two days a week.

The Ropewalk charity is seeking support for a community project that we have run since June 2021. The Film & Food Wednesdays were started in June 2021 to encourage older and more isolated members of our community to get out of their homes and socialise again following the pandemic. The sessions have been extremely successful. As we now face a new threat to the vulnerable and elderly this winter this project has taken on renewed significance. 

Each Wednesday we show a film at 10.30am which is then followed by a 2-course meal and coffee. After lunch there is an afternoon activity which varies every week between artist lead craft sessions, talks and demonstrations. The charge is £5 for the whole day. We felt that this was affordable to all and the feedback we have had supports this. Although we have between 65 and 80 people attend each week the income doesn’t quite cover the cost.

We have considered increasing the entry fee but we know that for many of the pensioners who attend £5 is a big proportion of their weekly disposable income. This is only going to get worse as the current economic situation really starts to bite. Some of the participants have mentioned that they look forward to the hot meal and company all week and it is also a full day where they don’t have to put the heating on.

The Ropewalk would like to continue our Wednesday sessions and also add a Tuesday afternoon warm space with soup and hot drinks on offer and some craft activities. We are adding a facilitator to the Tuesday warm space as we feel it is not enough to provide a warm space but people who attend need to connect with others and exercise their minds. Whether this is through a craft activity of a reading /reminiscence activity there will be something each week to stimulate the attendees and bring more than warmth to their Tuesdays. This will be open to all and free of charge.

The money raised will go towards the increased refreshement & energy costs for the project.  It will also pay for the artist led sessions.

This project successfully funded on 18th January 2023