“This is the only thing that makes us feel part of the community. We don’t see no-one else. If this was taken, where would we go, who would accept us? No-one!”
Project user & volunteer, discussing the Teyluva Centre
The Teyluva Centre is a former Children’s Centre in St Day, and acts as a de facto community centre for the nearby Local Authority managed site as well as residents from other sites in Cornwall and those who live roadside (of which there are increasing numbers due to the lack of safe places to stop)t is regularly accessed by residents from the nearby Wheal Jewel site as well as other sites across Cornwall.It is used daily by ourselves and other agencies as a meeting place with residents as well as a venue for our drop in groups and courses. Many of the people we work with have had little formal education & have low levels of literacy & numeracy. They may lack the confidence to take up educational & creative opportunities, have children to look after, lack transport, or lack the support of their family in accessing available opportunities. We seek innovative ways to enable project users to access these services through 1-1 support, bespoke courses, drop in groups and outreach work offered by ourselves and through our partners.
We provide:
Weekly drop-in groups for individuals & families, with activities such as cookery & crafts, literacy, short courses & volunteering opportunities
Early Years support Gypsies and Travellers often face barriers to accessing Early Years provision for their children, with many under-fives being kept at home. This can be as a result of high mobility through frequent evictions; prejudice (both real and perceived); being unaware of what services are available locally, and because the parents generally have had no experience of Early Years provision themselves. Through our Playbus we provide outreach play and pre-school learning opportunities to children who may not otherwise be able to access mainstream provision, as well as accommodating babies and pre-school children. During these sessions we are often approached by adults asking for help with issues such as accessing health services, or getting their children into school. On the Playbus we carry a range of information from a wide variety of sources, enabling us to appropriately signpost adults to relevant agencies and sources of support.
A weekly Gypsy & Traveller Youth group the Gypsy & Traveller young people that we work with asked us to run a session that was just for them, away from site, and without younger children present
Monthly health drop in in partnership with the Health Visitor and regularly attended by a range of health professionals
A monthly Gypsy & Traveller women’s group A chance to meet up away from site, take part in activities, cook & eat together, with an annual Open Day organised by the group.
The Teyluva Midwives a bespoke midwifery service co-designed by parents from the Gypsy and Traveller community in response to poor health outcomes in pregnancy. https://travellerspace-cornwall.org/2019/12/24/award-winning-midwifery-project-in-2019/
A weekly mental health support group co designed with Travellers and experienced mental health workers
Support for Gypsies & Travellers already in the criminal justice system through visits & advocacy
Specialist individual casework through self referral or referrals through other agencies
A safe, supported space for meetings with Social Services, health professionals and other services
General information, advice and guidance, help with letters & form filling, access to foodbanks, supported signposting to other agencies.