The organisation promotes Somali and other BME families to lead healthier lifestyles. SAHAN Society Centre continues to champion the local Somali community on issues relating to the health care and well-being. The charity has seen a visible difference over the years in the confidence of its service users and their ability to access better healthcare advice and facilities. Members and service users are able to make informed decisions on such priorities. Over the years the SSC had been involved in projects including:
- Women-only water aerobics, swimming and gymnastics, with the view of reducing isolation, depression and improvements to health. The sessions ran weekly and had served a total of 50 members and services users.
- Healthy Eating workshops on how to prepare and eat healthier food in order to reduce diseases like obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. SAHAN received funding from Awards for All to deliver workshops on healthy eating habits and lifestyles.
- The workshops were delivered by professional dieticians for a period of 7 weeks. At the end of the workshops the service users were better able to understand and value the importance of preparing balanced diets for themselves and their families. Workshops on Mental Health and EBD (Emotional and Behavioral Disorder awareness) to ensure that members and service-users understand the importance of maintaining a sound mental and emotional system. Workshops on problem detections and signs are conducted monthly. Surgeries and training sessions on mental health issues are conducted by professionals and specialist organizations like Hillingdon MIND. Services Users are referred to agencies that are able to assist in those regards as and when required.
- The charity, in partnership with the Community Cancer Centre and the Hillingdon Asian Women’s Group have continued to train volunteers about issues relating to cancer awareness through various workshops over the space of 6 months for two years. At the end of the workshops, the volunteers were presented with certificates, became ‘ street champions‘, and delivered 4 workshops to its members and the wider Somali-speaking community in the Hillingdon Borough on awareness and best practice methods.
- Sahan Society Centre, in partnership with Hillingdon Hospital’s Maternity Wards, have conducted workshops on addressing ante-natal and post-natal issues within the growing BME population, in particular those of Somali-speaking backgrounds. The workshop was well received by the participants and the professionals and was seen a milestone event in the Hospital’s commitment to reach out to the vulnerable mothers unable to communicate and express their issues when facilities offered by the hospital. Sahan continues to work with the hospital to raise awareness on such issues. The hospitals are willing to train our volunteers on midwifery related services to assist those in need in our community.
- Hillingdon Council’s children development centre, in partnership with Sahan Society Centre, have conducted workshops to address the growing number of children with special educational need who belong to Somali- speaking families based in the south of Hillingdon area. The workshops involved awareness issues where parents would need to understand the level of their child’s educational progress and well being. This included understanding certain trigger point in their children’s behaviour and emotional/mental well being and how they are able to access assessment and support services. Again, this was well received by the community who belong to a background where such issues are not generally discussed and seen as taboo. Barriers were broken and families are understanding of their children’s and emotional and mental well-being and accepting of their children’s educational status as a result. As a result of the workshops we now assist and support families based in localities neighbouring Hayes but based within the Hounslow and Ealing Boroughs.