Ryde Women’s Hub is turning one!
The first Ryde Women’s Hub was held in July 2022 and has been running weekly (excluding school holidays) ever since.
Ryde Women’s Hub was launched to create a safe space for women in the Ryde area to meet and create new friendships.
The program is open to everyone, but particularly focuses on women who may be isolated or who are new to the country and don’t have local support networks.
It operates as a partnership between CABC in West Ryde and The Salvation Army Ryde, and was generously supported by City Of Ryde Council with a grant to set up the hub and purchase the sewing machines.
Every week at the hub, women also have the opportunity to learn a new arts and crafts skill or to use the sewing machines.
A total of 95 different women visited the hub in the first year.
Here’s a snapshot of the feedback of some of the women who attended this year:
- “I’m disabled physically. Can’t get out very much – it is stimulating & I’ve made a lot of friends.”
- “It is a great way to connect with others, and form new friendships.”
- “I’ve been having a lot of anxiety lately, and this (learning to sew) is very therapeutic.”
An example of this is the support provided to a lady on a visitor’s visa who found herself experiencing relationship breakdown with her family and at risk of homelessness while in Sydney. She commented in an email after returning to her home country “My love and warm wishes to all you lovely and caring ladies who helped me when I was really going through a rough patch and feeling miserable.”
All women are welcome to be involved in Ryde Women’s Hub! Women’s Hub operates every Wednesday during school terms from 12pm until 2pm at CABC, 1 Reserve St, West Ryde.
