Weekly Update

Welcome to our weekly update!

You may have noticed some new courses this year, each beginning with the title “Living Well with…”. So far, we have three in the series: Living Well with Depression, Anxiety, and ADHD.

We believe that while it is possible to recover from a mental health difficulty, it doesn’t mean you can’t lead a life of value and worth alongside it. For us, recovery isn’t necessarily about being cured or returning to how you once were. Instead, it’s about recovering or rediscovering a life filled with meaning, purpose, and worth. We believe in accepting and celebrating our diversity, as that is what makes us truly human.

We have spaces available in our next Living Well with Depression course, where you will hear from others who have found ways to improve their wellbeing and find value in life again.

Read on for the usual weekly update info with courses on offer, community info and much more.

Get Involved in 10 Year Celebrations of the Recovery College through Fabric Art!

As part of marking our 10th anniversary this year we’re asking for YOUR help to create a community quilt! This is an opportunity for each of us to contribute to a shared piece of artwork, which will reflect our experiences and our creativity as a community, while celebrating 10 years of the College.

Could you make or decorate a simple fabric square reflecting the themes of Celebrating the College and what it Means to You and/or Creativity for Wellbeing? Help can be provided if you’re not sure how to do this – so please read on! The quilt will form a lasting memento of your participation in the College at this important 10-year milestone, so please do consider taking part.

You can contribute your square either by attending one of our fabric craft courses after Easter, or you can make your own square at home and then send or bring it in to us. Once we have lots of squares we’ll sew them together to make a commemorative quilt to be showcased as part of the WOVEN in Kirklees festival in June, as well as at various events into the future.

You don’t need fabric skills to get involved, just some scrap fabric and glue or paint – as long as you follow the instructions and make it to the correct size then your square can be included in the finished quilt. You can find out more and read the simple instructions for making your square here:

Get Involved in our 10 Year Celebrations through Fabric Art!

We can’t wait to see your squares and how they will all fit together as part of this creative, collaborative project! Thank you for your help!

Cuppa and Connect – Save the date!

Thursday 3rd April at Fresh Futures (AKA Brian Jackson Centre Huddersfield) 4pm 6pm

We are planning events for all our learners in 2025 to connect in different venues across Calderdale and Kirklees.

This will be chance to chat with staff, volunteers  and other leaners and be part of celebrating 10 years of the Recovery and Wellbeing College. We want to have more conversations with you to help us shape the college.

Watch this space for more info!

Magazines Needed!

At the Recovery College, our creative projects often require various craft materials. If you have any magazines you no longer need, we would greatly appreciate your donation! Please bring them to your next course at Mirfield Community Centre. Thank you for your support.

 

Courses coming up soon…

Living Well with Depression

Folly Hall, Huddersfield, St Thomas Road, Huddersfield HD1 3LT – Monday 24 February 2025 1pm – 3.30pm 6 weeks

Sometimes the simplest things can be the hardest. Minor tasks such as getting out of bed, answering the phone, making decisions, can all take major effort. With Depression, things that were once easy, become complicated and everyday becomes exhausting.

On this brand-new course, developed and delivered by Recovery College staff who have lived experience of this condition, we will share useful tips and provide practical information that will enable us to better manage symptoms as well as offering a different perspective on Depression.

Within this course we will invite people to explore a range of strategies that can be used to manage the symptoms of depression, including Mindfulness, Breathing, Bodywork and Creativity

Living Well with Depression

How to Manage Stress

Media Centre, Huddersfield, 7 Northumberland Street, Huddersfield, HD1 1RL – Tuesday 25 February 2025 1pm – 3pm 2 weeks

This informative and useful two-week course, kindly offered by our partners at the Richmond Fellowship, looks at the causes, symptoms and impact of stress.  With the help of friendly facilitator, Karl, we will discuss how to recognise – and effectively combat stress in our daily lives in a relaxed, safe and supportive environment alongside other learners.

Please note that due to Richmond Fellowship’s funding priority will be given to learners living in Kirklees.

How to Manage Stress

Deeper Roots

Holmfirth Tech, 140 Huddersfield Road, Holmfirth, HD9 3AR – Wednesday 26 February 2025 10.30am – 12.30pm 4 weeks

Join us as we explore more deeply the disciplines and practices introduced in our Rooting into Place course. This advanced course delivered by our lovely Peer Worker, Hannah-May is a way for us to continue our learning, deepen our understanding and rekindle our relationship with the places we live. Over four weeks we will discover a variety of place-based skills, including foraging, wild food identification, meditation, creative writing, journaling, land history and folklore, and learn how these crafts and skills were an essential part of our ancestral communities and how they served as a way for humans to connect in times of hardship.

This course is suitable for those seek an immersive journey, one that digs deep into the soil of a place and who have previously attended our ‘Rooting into Place’ course.

Deeper Roots

Dream Destinations – Travel Totes Printing

Howlands Centre, Dewsbury, School Street, Dewsbury, WF13 1LD – Friday 28 February 2025 10am – 12.30pm 2 weeks

Do you have a favourite place where you like to spend time? Where you feel comfortable and relaxed? It could be a holiday destination, the town you grew up in, or even a dream location!  Join our friendly and experienced facilitator, James, for this fun creative course. We will each design our own travel stamps – like the ones you would see on old suitcases – before transferring our designs onto lino to create prints.  Finally, we will print our designs onto tote bags and share our stamps with each other, resulting in colourful and unique bags that you can take home.  All materials will be provided.

Please note, to be fair and equitable to everyone, priority will be given to learners who have not undertaken this course previously.

Dream Destinations – Travel Totes Printing

Recovery & Wellbeing College courses

Click the icon or link below for details of all our upcoming courses:

Click to book – View all courses – Calderdale and Kirklees Recovery College (calderdalekirkleesrc.nhs.uk)

Recovery & Wellbeing College – How to book your place

If you are already enrolled with the college, please email us to request a place on your chosen course(s) at:  ckrecovery.wellbeing@swyt.nhs.uk  or call us on: 07717 867911 or you can use your learner portal to express your interest.

Please wait for confirmation that you are booked onto a course before attending.

If you are new to the College please enrol here.

Learner Portal

If you have enrolled with us within the last 2 years or so you will have access to our learner portal. This makes booking onto courses even easier! You can request to book onto courses and see what course you have attended. Use the links below to the portal and our user guide.

Learner portal link

User guide 

 

Other Community Offers

Path to healing – women’s online support group for women affected by substance use- starts this Thursday 13 February

Change Grow Live are launching a monthly online women’s support group for women affected by drug and alcohol use, their own or a loved one. It is starting this Thursday 1.30pm, a safe online space, they can keep their camera on or off and don’t have to share their name if they don’t want to. This is ideal for women who may be nervous about coming into a service or who may wish to remain anonymous.

The link to book is here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/path-to-healing-tickets-1232774805629

Women’s Health After 40 Event – with Calderdale Cancer Aware – Thursday 27 February

Apna Staying Well Hub, Hanson Lane Enterprise Centre, Halifax HX1 5 PG – 1-3 pm

Hot flushes, brain fog, low mood, tiredness, body aches..are you struggling with these? You are not alone.

Come to the Women’s Health After 40 event

There will be a short session led by a local female doctor, a chance for Q&A, a guest speaker from NHS Talking Therapies to show how you can access emotional support, interactive stalls regarding general health after 40, plus a chance to have a brew and a sweet whilst mingling.

Rachel Porter

Cancer Community Engagement Manager

Calderdale Cancer Aware Project

Hanson Lane Enterprise Centre HX1 5PG

Telephone:  01422 347 392        Mobile:   07519997924

Email: rachel.porter@regen.org.uk         Website: Calderdale Cancer Aware – Halifax Opportunities Trust

Click here for our official Facebook page

CLEAR Men’s Talk Digital Annual Showreel Event – 6^th March

Connect Housing, 21 Bond Street, Dewsbury WF13 1AX  11 am – 1 pm

CLEAR’s Men’s Talk Digital will be holding their Annual Showreel Event on the 6^th March at Connect Housing in Dewsbury.

The showreel will feature films made by the group including a recently produced short film focussing on young people who have been bereaved by suicide and supported by  Leeds Mind Suicide Bereavement Service

Johnathan Parker from Creative Frame CIC supports the men with their film making, providing training and a professional eye.

“The men have come a long way and developed some really impressive skills. When Leeds Mind contacted us about working with their young people, it was a great opportunity for the men to create something which was not only high quality, but vitally important in spreading the word about Leeds Mind Suicide Bereavement Service…the men bring their own lived experience to the process, enabling them to put people at their ease and encourage them to share their stories..”, said Jonathan.

For more information about Men’s Talk or MT Digital or to book a seat at the Annual Showreel Event, contact stuart.hawkes@commlinks.co.uk

CLEAR is a wellbeing service for adults in Kirklees run by Community Links and funded by Kirklees Council.

CLEAR event- celebrating 10 incredible years- Wednesday 26 March

Brian Jackson House HD1 5JP – 11am – 4 pm

Together, we’ll take a heartfelt journey through the past decade—from our beginnings to where we are now. Through stories, images, film, and live performances, we’ll bring the journey to life.
If you know anyone who has used the CLEAR service over the years and might want to join the celebration, please let us know or feel free to invite them to the event. We’d also love to hear your memories, thoughts, or reflections. Whether you want to share your experiences or simply enjoy the day with us, we promise it will be a special occasion filled with nostalgia, connection, and inspiration for the future.
We can’t wait to see you there! Mark your calendar and save the date!

Kirklees smoker/ex-smokers survey – Healthwatch Kirklees and Healthwatch Calderdale

Share your real-life experiences and opinions to shape the future of support for those on their journey to quit! Kirklees Council is re-designing its Stop Smoking Service and your feedback is crucial.
Whether you’re currently smoking and don’t want to quit, have quit, or are considering quitting, your insights are invaluable. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable illness and death in England. In Kirklees, approximately 41,000 adults (12.5% of the population) smoke. We want to know smoker’s and ex-smokers opinions, experiences, and feedback to create a stop-smoking service that truly supports our community.
Complete our survey to help create a service that supports everyone on their smoke-free journey.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/smokersandquitters-em

Welland Walks- Curious Motion- Elland- first Thursday of each month

Welland Walks are gentle and accessible walks for wellbeing, taking place monthly in Elland. An opportunity to come together with others and enjoy the wonderful benefits to our mood, sleep, and immune system that nature can offer. Each walk involves a short creative activity to explore our connection to the local landscape. Walks take place on the first Thursday of each month at 10am. We enjoy a route along the canal for around an hour, and start and finish at Project Colt on Elland Bridge. Children are welcome but remain the responsibility of their parent/ carer at all times.

Led by our fantastic Volunteer Walk Leader, Debbie, these are informal and restorative walks to help clear the mind and warm the body.

More details, contact and booking link at Welland Walks – Curious Motion

Third Sector Leaders Kirklees- volunteering roles

Whether you want to volunteer on a regular basis or now and again, there are plenty of volunteer opportunities available with Third Sector Leaders Kirklees. View their latest opportunities at the link below or use their site search options to find your ideal role. If you can’t find what you’re looking for or need some extra help, get in touch at this link https://tslkirklees.org.uk/volunteering-contact/

https://tslkirklees.org.uk/volunteering-roles/

Kirklees Libraries – MakerSpace survey

Kirklees Libraries are engaged in an exciting project to create two MakerSpaces within Dewsbury and Huddersfield Libraries.  MakerSpaces will provide a collaborative space for communities to come together to learn, share, explore, design and create. They will offer a wide variety of equipment, with everything from 3D printers and laser cutters to embroidery machines and woodworking tools, and much, much more.

They are carrying out a survey to ensure we hear the views of our community, to influence how we use our MakerSpaces, and to ensure they meet the needs of the people of Kirklees. We are particularly interested in hearing the views of small and startup businesses; artists, hobbyists and creatives; and families with children.

Kirklees Libraries would be very grateful if you would complete this online survey and share the link with your communities, customers and clients, so that they also have the opportunity to share their thoughts and opinions on this project.

https://online1.snapsurveys.com/makerspace

You can also browse Kirklees libraries events and groups at this link:  Kirklees Libraries Events

Waythrough – Peer Support What’s On! January – March 2025

These activities are open to everyone aged 18 or over who lives in Kirklees and experiences mental
health issues, problems, or concerns. You do not need to be seeing an employment advisor to join.
Simply call the number below and ask for Karl Jackson-Lander, the Peer Support
Coordinator, who will assist you to fill out a short referral form so you can attend.

Activities include: Assertiveness and Communication, Stress Management, Self Esteem and Resilience, Ways to Wellbeing, Mood and Food. Just click on the link below for full details, dates and times.

What’s On – January – March 2025 (PDF, 168 KB)

For more information or to book a place please contact:
Karl Jackson-Lander on:
Mobile: 07909 993203
Email: Karl.Jackson-Lander@waythrough.org.uk

 

Cost of Living Information:

Click the link below to find links to websites and workbooks that can provide help and advice with money, debt and the cost of living.

Cost of Living Information – Calderdale and Kirklees

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Have a great weekend

The Recovery & Wellbeing College Team

ckrecovery.wellbeing@swyt.nhs.uk

 07717 867911

Calderdale and Kirklees Recovery and Wellbeing College

Correspondence address:

Ravensleigh Resource Unit
28 Oxford Road
Dewsbury
WF13 4LL