Tendring Community Assets Full Final Report

33 Diddi Dance School has been operating across the district since 2015. The dance leader strongly believes that toddlers should be encouraged to get active and socialise so that their confidence increases and they have a great start in life. She has aspirations to open further classes and is hopeful to attract children with additional needs. One barrier to attending classes has been lack of money as many parents can’t afford it. She offered a bursary and was overwhelmed with many more children wanting to join. Sadly the bursary offer had to be withdrawn as it wasn’t viable. “I understand how difficult it is to join clubs and activities in the community and how often we cannot as needs are such that it is hard to participate, but I would really encourage any parents and carers who have a child under five with special needs to come along to one of the classes during the day. It will change lives. I understand what it’s like” The dance leader is the parent of a child with additional needs. If funding support could be secured for this, many more children with different abilities and different backgrounds would have greater access to dancing. 8.4 Older People 8.4.1 The lunch clubs across the district do provide nutritious low cost lunches (free in Walton on the Naze) and are very popular among older people. There are weekly lunch clubs in many locations, such as Brightlingsea, Harwich, Alresford, Jaywick Sands, Clacton and Walton on the Naze. A given number of people can attend each sitting, although providers report that some attendees attend sessions in different locations on a weekly basis, so it is difficult to calculate how many individuals benefit from attending. 8.4.2 There are many websites offering advice on a healthy eating and nutrition for older people. For example, Waitrose supermarket has developed recipes and food advice for people over 70yrs advising on a good diet as we age and The Royal Voluntary Service website contains a lot of information about diet and exercise for older people. However, whilst this may be of interest and value, there is no evidence that printed versions are available for people without Internet access, which our stakeholders repeatedly say is an issue for older people. 8.4.3 In addition some people experiencing family breakdown or bereavement can lose a partner or family member who took care of food preparation and they lose this practical support. A gentle intervention to build confidence could help to prevent someone from eating unhealthily or becoming malnourished. 8.5 Food Banks 8.5.1 The food banks across the district usually offer 3-4 day packages of food for families but observations suggest that some donations can be high in fat or sugar laden items and require little preparation. Anecdotal evidence from some of the food bank staff suggests that this is the type of food in demand and that attempts to introduce different (healthier) styles of food is not welcomed by most recipients and attempts to do so would result in wastage. Their supplies are largely dependent upon the type of food donated, which mostly has to be non perishable, although local supermarkets do donate fresh food that has passed its use by date but is still in good condition. 8.5.2 This mapping exercise did not encompass a comprehensive review of food bank activities, but this would appear to be an area for further exploration to see where healthier eating habits might be encouraged through the food banks to help people prepare healthier meals. For example, Walton on the Naze food bank trialled a scheme whereby a recipe card was prepared showing how simple ingredients from the pack could easily be used to prepare nutritious meals. Samples of the meals were prepared so people could see the likely results. The scheme didn't progress due to volunteer capacity but could be replicated