Inspiring centre helps give confidence boost

PRIDE in Oldham nomination for Inspire Women Oldham. Seated are, from left, Rowshonara Begum, Annie Arnold and Sally Bonnie

A GROUP which helps women gain confidence and move on after facing difficulties in their lives has been nominated for a Pride in Oldham award.

Inspire Women has members from a wide range of backgrounds across Oldham and has recently opened a women's centre at Medtia Chambers in Oldham town centre.

The group has been running for five years and encourages women to take part in a variety of courses designed to support them, improve their self esteem and skills, and reduce isolation.

Sally Bonnie, one of the founders, wanted to improve life chances and raise aspirations of women across the whole community, regardless of their circumstances.

Speaking about being nominated for Pride in Oldham, she said: "This is great news. Inspire Women does a fantastic job and it's great to be recognised for our work.

She added: "I benefited from the group's services in the past and wanted to help other women. The group has been developing over the past five years and really needed a home. In the summer we secured a £250,000 lottery grant to develop a women's centre in Oldham. "

Outlining the group's technique to helping women facing struggles and problems, Sally said: "In the traditional approach surrounding help services, a lot of women are defined or labelled too heavily on their 'need' or problem. For example, if a woman has a drink or drugs problem, they're referred to an alcohol or drugs centre. If they've got involved with crime, they'd be referred to an ex-offenders centre.

"However we don't believe this approach identifies what each woman's strengths are. So we work on the strengths of each woman to help them move on in their lives, raise their aspirations and tackle their isolation."