What have we been up to in July?
Take a look at what Aspire have been doing in July:
Aspire started the month by sharing information as part of Alcohol Awareness Week. The theme for 2025 was ‘Alcohol and Work’. With longer hours, more stress, the blurring of lines between work and home, and too many workplace cultures that place booze rather than people at the centre of things, there are so many ways work and alcohol are linked. When work stresses start to get on top of us, we can find ourselves using alcohol as a way to try to cope. But the reality is drinking alcohol as a way to try to manage our stress and anxiety can worsen our symptoms and prevent us from performing well. A lack of motivation, increased irritability, and making more mistakes are some of the ways our drinking can affect us the next day. It can make it more difficult to complete tasks and may put pressure on our relationships with our colleagues, as well as our friendships, and families.Moving in and out of work whether planned or unplanned can also affect us and the way we drink - from unemployment to retirement and parental leave to caring responsibilities. These transitions in life can feel monumental and can sometimes leave us feeling unsettled, bored, excluded, and lonely. This can cause us to drink more alcohol than we’d like which can lead to additional challenges with our physical and mental health, relationships, finances and so much more.
We shared some resources about steps you or someone you know can make towards healthier habits (see below).
Find out more at: https://alcoholchange.org.uk
Our Breakfast Club had some lovely summery treats in July such as cream and jam scones and fresh fruit salad! Come along every Friday morning 9.30-11.30am for breakfast and a chat!
We had our Aspire summer Celebration Afternoon Tea at Chester-le-Street Cricket Club! It was a fantastic afternoon celebrating the amazing work of Aspire over the past year and the afternoon tea was delicious! Thank you to everyone who joined us!
Our amazing gardening group won the Chester-le-Street In Bloom award for ‘Blooming Fabulous Front’ making them winners for the second year in a row in this competition! Our women wee invited to Lumley Castle to be presented with their trophy and celebrate their achievement!
Our FAB group had their last group until after the summer break. It was a lovely afternoon sharing food together and having a good chat with each other! FAB will resume on the 16th September.
Our gardening group harvested their own crop of potatoes this month! Aspire’s garden is a gift that keeps on giving!
For more information about the work of Aspire or to get involved please contact: enquiries@aspire-northeast.co.uk or call 01913891504