Hillingdon Bridge Project

Belina GRoW Community Interest Company has just started a new project in Hillingdon (Hillingdon Bridge Project) which is funded by the Heathrow Community Trust, Communities Fund.  Our Head of Research, Laura Dewar talked to Saeema Yusuf, who will be delivering the Project, about her approach and how the mothers will be supported over the next six months.

Tell me a bit about the Heathrow Community Trust Communities Fund

Heathrow Community Trust Communities Fund supports projects to help local people thrive in the areas surrounding Heathrow Airport.  This is a good match with Belina Grow CIC’s approach of supporting mothers in community settings in Hillingdon to move into training, employment or volunteering.

Saeema, what is your role in the project?

I am a senior employment adviser and I will be delivering sessions at local schools over the course of the project.  As well as the group sessions I am going to be offering one-to-one advice. I will be supporting at least thirty mothers over the course of the project.  I have already established contact with three schools in Hillingdon and have just had my first session with the mothers in Yeading School. The mothers that I have met are really keen to get started. Mothers who have a child at one of the three schools can attend the project as well as other local mothers in the area.  I also make sure that the timing of the sessions fits with the mothers so they are run in the morning after school drop-offs.

Who will you be supporting on the project?

There is a real variety of mothers who will sign to the project. In previous projects in Hillingdon I have supported mothers who are new to the country who may have never done paid work, mothers who have worked in the past and want support to return to work as well as mothers who are working but want guidance in terms of progressing. For this project there will be a lot of mothers who will need support to build their network, to better know what is around them, what courses there are and what flexible jobs are out there. Those mothers who are on Universal Credit are under pressure to move into work and we can help them with preparing and moving into a job that fits in with also caring for their children. Many of the mothers, usually around half, that we have supported in previous projects have English as a second language.  As well as being able to speak community languages myself I can call upon other members of the Belina Grow Team to offer language support.  I can also let the mothers know about ESOL courses to improve their English that can help them as a first step to prepare for work. 

How else will mothers be supported on the project?

The mothers will also have access to the GRoW App and our newsletter where they can engage with other mothers and find out about other online sessions that we run, like employability sessions or the ‘Preparing to Work in Schools’ sessions, as well as finding out about local jobs and our virtual coffee mornings.  I want mothers to feel that they are part of a community that offers mutual support and encouragement.

Do you have other connections that can help the mothers?

As already mentioned, mothers might need to improve their functional skills (like maths and English courses) as well as improving their job specific skills (like teaching assistant courses). I have really good connections with Adult Learn Hillingdon and West Met Skills to help find the best courses for the mothers.

What do you like most about your role?

Mothers need different support, and it is really great to see them flourish and become more confident. I really like to see the paths that the mothers take and the connections that they make within their community. I love it when mothers contact me and say, “I am really excited I have got a job!”