Power of conversation helping Birmingham women - some of whom have 'never been as far as city centre'

The SHARE Community Project offers wellbeing workshops and activities for isolated women

You can never underestimate the power of a good chat over tea - and for some women it's a lifeline. Sparkbrook's Women's Enterprise Hub hosts weekly get-togethers for women desperate to reach out for help.

Whether it's loneliness, poverty or mental illness, the chats with like-minded sisters help everyone feel a little less isolated. Known as the SHARE Community Project, the idea sprang from charity shops on Stratford Road where ladies wanted to socialise with the community.

Organisers Kheira Mohammed, 58, and Salima Abdou, 62, discovered a need for a social hub when they heard the harrowing stories. Women were often trapped in abusive marriages or not allowed to travel further than the end of their road.

Birmingham: A Child Poverty Emergency

Child poverty is soaring in Birmingham and without urgent change, will only get worse. Having worked with charities and community groups, BirminghamLive is campaigning for the following changes to start to turn the tide:

1. End the two-child benefit cap
2. Provide free school meals to every child in poverty
3. Create a city “aid bank” for baby and child essentials
4. Protect children’s and youth services
5. Create permanent, multi year Household Support Fund and give more Discretionary Housing grants
6. Set up child health and wellbeing hubs in our most deprived neighbourhoods
7. Appoint a Birmingham child poverty tsar
8. Provide free public travel for young people

You can see why in more detail here.

Read our full report Birmingham: A Child Poverty Emergency here.

What you can do to help.

The SHARE Community Project was born in 2012 offering a mental health break for vulnerable women stuck in cultural handcuffs. The Monday get-togethers, organised by charity ISRA UK, offer coffee mornings, wellbeing workshops, cooking classes and food bank referrals.

Kheira said: "Women who come to us are not too confident and would be lost without us. They need to socialise or ask for help so we signpost them to the best organisations.

"Covid had a big impact on their confidence and loneliness. Many of them, a lot Muslim, won't go further than their own area as they are not allowed and family will say 'Islam says you can't' but that's not true. Some women have never even been to the city centre."

Salima added: "Some are scared, when we had the charity shops one woman ran into our shop to hide from her abusive husband. We can only listen and guide them to other organisations."

Kheira continued: "There are language barriers too and they don't always want to be home alone with their babies. One family once came and wouldn't stop eating, I worried this was due to poverty or drug use."

When asked if the cost-of-living or rising energy prices had an impact, Kheira said: "Absolutely. I have had to refer so many women to debt management. They are in arrears and don't have enough for food and bills.

"Most of them work, they have to buy crap, processed food or takeaways for children as they are cheaper than healthy food. School uniform prices are atrocious and children will have coke and a packet of crisps for breakfast.

"By the time bills are paid there is not much left. How in this day and age in England is this happening?"

Kheira and Salima called for more incentives for working families, claiming many earned the same income even if they were on benefits. They also requested better childcare support.

Poverty is rampant across Birmingham with harrowing stories of families forced to go without heating or electricity. Disability has a devastating impact with charity Sense claiming disabled families are more likely to suffer fuel poverty.

Sara Nawaz, 57, has been coming to coffee mornings for 12 years as an escape from her health issues: She said: "It takes a lot of pressure off me as I have a lot of medical issues.

"I have fibromyalgia, arthritis, neck displacement and a fatty liver. I cannot stay at home all the time and use the food bank due to cost of living.

"I live alone and my children and family all live in Wales, I receive PIP and ESA but sometimes have trouble with electricity bills. Sometimes I have to borrow money from friends, some weeks I can afford groceries and some I can't.

"I love coming here, it has helped me a hell of a lot." Another woman, who did not wish to be named, said: "I was desperately looking for places to go and be with other people.

"I was lonely at home as my children are grown up and I suffer from severe depression. I found it hard to find professional help.

"I used to work as a machinist but stopped once I got married and had kids. It is not enough to stay at home and look after kids, being inside so much led to my mental illness. It is important for people to have something."