FROME’s mayor cllr Philip Campagna opened the latest Pod Scrapstore pop-up event at the Cheese and Grain on Monday 20th November.
Over 150 people from schools, nurseries, home-education groups and local community groups shopped, filling their bags with the wide selection of materials for arts, crafts and play.
“A queue had built outside the Cheese and Grain in eager anticipation of the wonders of Scrapstore with a sparkly Christmas feel,” says Becky Bird, co-charity manager.
“A team of 10 adults with additional needs were supported to run the event. They learned or practiced skills of customer service, managing the till and managing the stock.
“Some pupils from post-16 at Fairfield College attended for the first time and had a great time. Students were able to gain valuable work experience on the job. This boosted their confidence and enabled them to think about future work opportunities.
“The mayor said that he was ‘impressed how the young people involved engaged and were focussed on their tasks. They were so helpful and clearly enjoying what they were doing’.”
Pod Scrapstore now has its Green Doors at Unit 2 on Justice Lane under the Frome Museum that is open on Tuesday afternoons from 2pm to 4pm. It will also be open on Independent Market days from 10am to 2pm and by appointment outside of these times by contacting: scrapstore@thepodcharity.org.uk.
“It is hoped that the project will continue to grow and that within the next year, larger premises will be sought to make this wonderful community resource and training opportunity available more frequently,” says Becky.
If you would like to know more about the project, support fundraising to reach this goal, or volunteer your time and skills, please contact: becky@thepodcharity.org.uk.
