Date: 14 March & 28 March 2025
Time: 9:30 am – 2:30 pm
Location: Voluntary Action Leeds, Stringer House, 34 Lupton Street, LS10 2QW
The Self-Reliant Group (SRG) model is a tool, a vehicle, a peer group structure, and an option, which peer support workers, community development workers, volunteers, catalysts, connectors, builders, or sparks can add to their toolkit and use when they come across people who want something more (for themselves, their group or their community) – even if they don’t know what that is!
SRGs address:
- loneliness and isolation
- financial and digital literacy
- poverty
- mental health challenges
It’s about being part of something, building confidence, and doing something purposeful together: an asset-based peer group structure to help people do more with what they’ve got. It’s about developing a shared, creative and community mindset: some groups are more enterprising, others are more about friendship. Members commit to meeting weekly and saving (eg 10p or £1 per week into their own Group Fund – whatever they agree on). SRGs are self-made and self-determining: an SRG isn’t part of, or owned by, an organisation.
Inspired by the global Self-Reliant Group movement, which has over 20 million members (mainly
women), and by the value of community micro-finance, Trust Leeds is a charity which is building a network of Self-Reliant Groups in Leeds: facilitating people in communities to set up their own
SRGs, and supporting people who work in communities to use this model when appropriate, and
where people want to explore being part of their own group.
At the end of the two short days you will:
- Understand the Self-Reliant Group model and how it works.
- Be part of a global model and a network of SRG Facilitators and Groups which inspire each
other. - Feel confident to facilitate new SRGs yourself (with your own Handbook/Toolkit).
- Understand how you can access support from Trust Leeds to help you nurture SRGs and
benefit from the network underpinning this sustainable model.
For more information phone Liza Kellett on 07957 150018
To book, use the Voluntary Action Leeds training portal or email [email protected] with
your name, your organisation and contact details.
Places are limited so please only book if you can commit to both days, and book early.
