I moved to Hendon in 2015 with my partner when I was pregnant. We didn’t know anyone but fell in love with the house and decided we would just make it work. We, along with our daughter and pet rabbit, have been here for nearly 7 years now. I first got involved with BotM as a service user, in 2016. My daughter was quite young and they were offering sewing classes for mum’s where you could bring children along. I had unknowingly been suffering from postnatal depression and didn’t leave the house much at that time but I’ve always been quite creative and to be able to learn a new skill but not have to be apart from my daughter was a perfect mix for me.

After attending the class for around a year, I started a temporary Christmas job, once my role ended BotM asked if I would like to volunteer helping with the sewing class and this would help me to avoid a gap on my CV too. I started off volunteering for the sewing class, then helped out with events, gaining experience and skills then progressed to leading the Story Tots group. I’d occasionally provide support with front of house too. I then joined the BotM volunteer committee before being asked if I would like to become a Resident Trustee for the Charity Board.

Back on the Map is the most supportive place, not just for staff and service users but for volunteers too. From my personal experience, I knew that if I ever needed to have a chat I could pop in for a cuppa and just offload. Trust me when I say I went through a lot of cuppas! The training opportunities to develop and grow within BotM were fabulous when I was volunteering. I completed a food hygiene course, first aid for children and adults and a defibrillator course. The new volunteer pathway is now even more structured and helps take people from investing their time in the centre to helping make decisions to drive the charity forward and make a real difference to the community.

Throughout my time at BotM, I’ve always felt listened to, whether that has been as a service user, a volunteer, a part of the user committee or as a member of the Charity Board. The staff value the ideas and opinions of everyone, especially if it’s an idea that can help the centre run more efficiently or improve the local community! As for feeling a part of the community, I may be a Yorkshire lass at heart, but cut me open and it will all be purple and green! Hendon is most definitely my home and this community will forever be close to me.