Celebrating one year of supporting peer workers

We (The ExEl Theatre Company, founded in 2018 by members of the Royal Exchange Theatre Elders Company programme) write, produce and perform our own original material, going out into the community, providing entertainment and challenging stereotypes of ageing.

This year, 2024 we have put on a show called “Yesterday Today Tomorrow” in support of Age Without Limits and their See And Be Seen – Action Against Ageism campaign.

We are also scheduled to appear at the Littleborough Arts Festival and the Chorlton Arts Festival on the 23 and 24 May respectively.

These theatrical presentations will involve individuals’ unique stories of growing up / ageing over the past @ 75 years. It will compare and contrast the past and the present, with a nod to the future. Featuring original script in hand performances, the show will demonstrate the capabilities, experiences and expertise of the participants. It will challenge stereotypical ideas of “old age” and demonstrate that creativity and ageing are not mutually exclusive.

We have used the funding to hire premises, engage professional directorial and technical assistance, and on materials. We would welcome the opportunity to access further funding.

The funding has enabled us to organise and present much better shows than would otherwise be the case.

Riverside Writing Group (formerly Falinge Writing Group) meets weekly in the Riverside Central Library Rochdale on Thursday at 10am till 12noon. The members are over eighteen years old. It is situated adjacent to the Metro Terminal. Through writing, there is a private conduit where members can examine and consider their own well-being. It is a place where, through writing, and weekly social interaction they can create a pathway from disability into an ability to maintain a normal life at a rate and level that is suitable for them. Writing and connection to the group increases a sense of belonging and a consciousness of the heritage of the place in which they belong.

The Women’s Hearing Voices Group in Manchester is informal, friendly space to meet other women who hear, see or sense things that others don’t.

Hearing Voices Groups have been running in Manchester since 1990. They are citizen to citizen mutual support spaces that aim to be:

Peer led: The group is centred around the needs and aspirations of members. Decisions about the group are made in the group and all members are equal.

Respectful: Diversity of experiences and views are welcomed – making space for difference we can learn from each other’s wisdom and expertise.

Non-judgemental: Creating an accepting, confidential and empathic environment where we listen non-judgementally to each other.

Empowering: Meeting other women with similar experiences and feeling safe enough to talk about what they are going through can support members to find ways to move beyond stigmatisation and hopelessness that often come with hearing voices. In a peer support group people can experience sense of social belonging and gain self-confidence.

Flexible: the space is not solely focused on hearing voices or similar experiences so anyone can bring a topic to the space to talk about. There is also scope to explore other ways of coming together such as going for walks; go for meals; go to events; watch films.

The Peerfest funding goes towards our room hire costs and means we will have no worries about our venue for another year and can focus on building the group.

Rethink Mental Illness Manchester Group is a peer support group for anyone 18+ in the Greater Manchester area affected by mental illness, whether through lived experience or as a carer/family member. We hold weekly meetings to share our experiences in a safe space. The funding allows us to run a much needed additional monthly coffee meet-up in the city centre. Our group members live with very challenging experiences and have asked for additional activities outside of meetings. The coffee meet-ups are a relaxed, social activity to look forward to.