By Vicky Hilton, Community Organiser
Kiverton Bungalow Users Group (KBUG) are a group of RMBC tenants who have been active for a long period of time, with around 20 regular members involved. They have a weekly lunch club, bingo, a knit and natter, arrange social trips and generally help local older people to come together socially.
A couple of months ago, the KBUG group were going through a few changes and struggling a little bit to keep things going. In May, I attended their group meeting and was informed that the groups chair and treasurer had sent in their resignation letters. This was a bit of a shock for the group as it was out of the blue and no reason given, so it left the group a bit down and unsure if they really wanted to carry on.
At the meeting, I helped them in voting in new members to take up the positions which the group voted on. I offered support particularly to the member who had taken up the treasurer roll, who was nervous about the responsibility. I reminded the group of the services Rotherham Federation offered regarding helping with their accounts, and that they would have our support through this period.
By the next meeting, the group seemed a little more settled, and with the members in their new positions we looked at where the group wanted to go. The treasurer seemed to have got on top of the accounts and was a lot happier & the group were now looking at ways in which they could raise some funds for the sustainability of the group going forward. I advised that if they were looking for funds, I could look at potential bids for them.
The group then decided that they would like to start putting on a Saturday night social once per month, which they started on 15th June. This was a real success, with all members bringing in food they had prepared. This led the group on to arrange a Faith supper on 20th July at the centre and booking a day trip to Bakewell on 5th August.