Founded in 2003, Jennyruth Workshops aims to bring self-awareness, dignity and confidence to our ‘workers’ and to help develop their potential for participation and employment in the community.
Our team of 42 ‘workers’ are encouraged and supported to gain experience across all aspects of the business, from design and production through to marketing and sales. They make and paint wooden bird boxes, garden trugs, and toys; sew and print fabric decorations and gift bags; print wrapping paper and cards; … all of which are sold through local retailers and events, as well as online.
We aim to provide a varied timetable to offer new challenges, so we also run gardening and cookery sessions as well as activities to develop literacy, numeracy and online safety skills. Our ‘workers’ visit local groups and organisations to give talks about our work and run painting workshops and take visitors on tours of the workshop to highlight all that we do. These activities offer the ‘workers’ different learning opportunities and help raise our profile within the community.
The Shears Foundation’s generous support of Jennyruth Workshops has enabled us to expand the number of ‘workers’ we are able to host each day and the range of activities that on offer. They are always welcome and enthusiastic visitors and have been wonderful advocates for our organisation.
