COMMUNITY
A SPIRIT of COMMUNITY T
he RAF Cosford Community House project was initiated by Jean Hartshorne, the Community Development
Officer, who, having shared the idea and gained support from the Contact House Committee, drummed up the vital support needed from within the community and from Modern Housing Solutions to put the big plan into action. Jean explains…
The community spirit demonstrated by the wives at RAF Cosford in a bid to refurbish one of the welfare Contact Houses was overwhelming. The aim was not only for the house to be refurbished for families to use but also to use the wives involvement in the work to have fun in a friendly environment, to meet new people and to learn new skills.
Following the Contact House committee’s agreement for the budget to be funded from the Contact House hirings income, the project was split into three sections – consultation, resource requisition and project delivery, one leading naturally to the next.
Decisions on the budgeting, interior colour schemes and tools for the job were followed by a trip to DIY stores to purchase wallpaper, paint and tools. The project delivery itself was to see maximum participation with the many tasks associated with the project being planned in fine detail before the jobs were volunteered, delegated and undertaken.
The interior of the house was covered from top to bottom in woodchip wallpaper but this
didn’t put the ladies off as they set about the trying task of steaming and scraping off copious amounts of the said paper.
The learning experience was a big part of the intention and covered were a wide range of painting and decorating skills, including preparing walls and woodwork, hanging wallpaper, the use of different paint for different jobs and a knowledge of primers, undercoat and gloss paints.
Ladies developed new skills in tiling and also took the project one step further and made curtains, table runners, napkins and even recovered the dining chairs in the same fabric as the curtains. Indeed, it was the finishing touches that really rewarded the ladies with a sense of achievement. The finished house was stunning.
Carron Bernice Sallis said: “I have gained so much out of this project. I have learned how to hang wallpaper using a plumb bob and am now so inspired that I will be pursuing a professional training course in painting and decorating.”
Tracy Newan said:
“I have learned how to cut tiles and grout which will come in handy as a skill to put into
practice in the future. It looked really hard but I was surprised how easy it was and I would love to do a project like this again.”
The project was completed in just two weeks.
Jean, who delivered much of the tuition and demonstrations in painting and decorating said: “This really was a fantastic project to work on, I am so proud of the achievements and the real community spirit from the wives who supported one another to really make a difference to their community. My thanks also go to Helen Thompson from Modern Housing Solutions who arranged for two professional decorators to help out for one day of the project.
“With motivation and enthusiasm at high levels, watch this space for more community development projects at RAF Cosford that really will make a difference to peoples lives, create positive lasting memories of fun and enjoyment.
Jean Hartshorne, CDO can be contacted on 01902 377021 or jean.hartshorne454@
mod.uk
44 Envoy Summer 2013
www.raf-ff.org.uk
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