Community Catalysts has been running a project in the South Lakes since May 2022. Due to its success, Westmorland and Furness Council has commissioned a second project in the Eden area, which runs from June 2023 for 18 Months.
We will work with local people across Eden who want to develop small enterprises and ventures offering a wide range of help and support for older and disabled people at home – we call these community micro-enterprises.
Community Catalysts will build on local people’s strengths, supporting them to start up their own community micro-enterprises. Never more than now have people needed opportunities to generate their own income and offer the much-needed support in our communities. We look to help local people unleash their creativity and passion to support more people in their area – helping local people to help other local people.
As well as helping people to set up new community micro-enterprises, we can also advise small groups and organisations already established in Eden who may be looking to diversify or extend what they offer.
We will try hard to build on things that already work well and to value and nurture people, groups and organisations with strong local knowledge and expertise. The project aims to capture learning and actively use this to affect local system and culture change – working in partnership to improve the way that health and care works for local people.
Hannah Turner has been employed as the local Catalyst to lead the project in Eden and says:
I’m really pleased to be working in this unique role, supporting people who offer a personalised approach to care and support. It’s been so interesting finding out about the groups and services working in Eden and understanding how we can best work together. I have always chosen to work in roles which support older people and this is an exciting opportunity for me to combine my skills and experience to ensure people have a wider range of choice to live their version of a good life. It’s fantastic to have the support of Westmorland and Furness Council and to be working back in the area in which I grew up.