Make Southwest
People: Improving people’s mental wellbeing
Make Southwest would like to purchase arts and crafts materials and fund year-round workshops for adults and children at our home base, Riverside Mill in Bovey.
About this cause
Make Southwest is an educational charity which promotes craft education at our home base, Riverside Mill in Bovey Tracey, as well as helping to fund craft projects in Devon schools. We are a membership organisation which supports and sells the work of local makers, as well as other skilled makers represented in exhibitions. We have a dedicated space for craft workshops where we run Saturday Club; weekly craft workshops for 13-16 year olds; programmes of family workshops for younger children; workshops and masterclasses for adults; and free creative activities as part of every exhibition in our gallery. We would use Co-op funding to continue supporting these programmes.
How this cause brings people in the community together
Meeting new people in a relaxed and friendly environment while learning how to make something is a positive experience. From woodcarving to weaving, and metal work to clay modelling, craft processes are interesting and rewarding and using your hands to make something useful or decorative is therapeutic: it allows you to let go of everyday worries and stress. It is also gentle and non-competitive, thus suitable for people of all ages. We would like to provide free materials for all our gallery activities and run a programme of free workshops.