The Mayor of Ramsgate, Councillor Raushan Ara, made a donation of £500 to East Kent Mencap. This is one of her chosen charities during her term as the Mayor, and she has been a loyal supporter.
The donation of £500 is going towards the Community Confidence Project in Ramsgate, which is a project for our members who have been isolating during the pandemic, feeling afraid of the virus and anxious about leaving the house; in spite of some of the government restrictions slowly getting lifted. Many people with learning disabilities in the East Kent area have lost the confidence to go out, which is what the Community Confidence Project in Ramsgate aims to tackle.
This project will provide support to people with learning disabilities by educating them on how to protect themselves against COVID-19 (for example, wearing a mask if the individual is able to) and by assisting them to be reintroduced to local groups and businesses that are following the government’s guidelines. Measures to stay safe such as using hand sanitiser and social distancing will be explained using “easy read” materials.
A support worker will contact people with learning disabilities in the local area and explain what this service is and what the benefits will be to them. East Kent Mencap will also be offering free taster activities at the Day Resource including trips to local facilities such as the library, the leisure centre and the beach, as well as supermarkets and local shops, in order to gradually build confidence. The project will also work with with local partners such as the police, health professionals and local businesses to arrange visits and talks to familiarise people with their work and reassure them that it is safe to leave the house. The less confident people with learning disabilities will be buddied with more confident people with learning disabilities in order to offer peer support and to share their experiences about going out and about safely.
Demi Price, East Kent Mencap’s Community Fundraiser said, ‘The Mayor is a fantastic supporter of our work and we are so grateful for this donation to help people with a learning disability to feel confident to get out and about in Ramsgate again’.
