SAFE is a community business centre
based in the old school.
And it's got 13 social enterprises there.
We own the Lock & Key community pub
which was a derelict pub.
All the profits that are generated
through the festivals, events,
through the pub, all of that goes
straight back in to the charity,
to be reinvested, to support local
people, to do more great things.
The group we're involved in is a Tuesday
afternoon sing around in the pub.
And we've sang today at the Country
Festival, and we started the
Country Festival off last year.
We started it off and
that's a dream come true.
The keynotes are a bunch of ragtag
and bobtail musicians.
We all love ukuleles, we all love to get
together and have fun, sing and play.
Singing Our Socks Off is a community
choir that I started 18 years ago.
We've supported charities
if they have an event.
We've supported them at Christmas.
We organise group litter picks.
We organise litter picks with children.
We do the education of the young people.
We also work with Mencap, and
bring people with learning
disabilities out into the community.
And we've also now got a reading club.
We do a coffee club as well.
We litter pick within the community.
We clean up grot spots.
We do planting of flowers, just to make
the area look a bit better, to create
a cleaner, greener, brighter Bootle.
Halley's Hub is a pre loved
shop selling anything from
clothes to household items.
And everything in the
shop is for a pound.
We do free uniform, free
pre love baby clothes, the
food pantry, the food waste.
We offer monthly sessions for kids
and families in the community to see
wildlife on the canal and enjoy the
sports facilities that are available.
I really feel it gives me purpose
and it gives me a feeling of pride.
It's built life friendships.
I myself have felt at times lost,
and with the facilities here and
the people here, I feel I'm a
better person for doing this.
It gets me out.
It's a bit of exercise.
Seeing litter doesn't do
my mental health any good.
Picking up that litter
improves my mental health.
Sometimes it's my reason for getting
up in the morning, is to see the sun
and to get out, take my litter pick
with me and by the time I come back
I feel so much happier in myself.
There's a lot of my members who,
going on in their home life.
People who've lost their
partners who come to the choir.
And for them to be able to meet
new friends, do an activity
they want to do and new skills.
It's part of their life.
Last year we were awarded Merseyside
Women of the Year, and that
was voted for by the community,
which we were very proud of.
When you feel you've no control over
your life, it's hopeless, isn't it?
But if you feel you're connected
with people and you can kind of
influence the space that you live in
and make a positive impact, well then
it's a beautiful thing, isn't it?
What the Canoe Club gives us is
an opportunity to let people see
nature, to see that there's more
than just buildings and brickwork
around Bootle, that there is so much
nature around here, that they see
there's other opportunities, not just
your standard brick jobs out there.
If the lock and key wasn't here,
and Safe Regeneration wasn't
here, there'd be nothing here.
There'd be nothing going
on in the community.
It provides such a range of
opportunities for different ages.
There's a great sense of community,
we're all friends, we all really
enjoy developing together.
It's like a second home.
And everybody, they're
just like one big family.
We're just so lucky to have found this
place, which lots of people who've
come along have said, I would never
have dreamed of singing or playing
an instrument, but because the pub
makes everybody feel so close together
they said, oh, we'll spread the word
and we'll start this here or there.
I think that gives people a sense
of pride if they can see that their
environment is being cared for.
We're also very conscious of how
litter affects our waterways.
And we know that if litter gets into
our waterways, it ends up in our sea.
And we hope that by getting at
the children at a young age, that
by the time they are in secondary
school and are adults, they
understand the importance of looking
after their environment as well.
It's therapeutic for us,
but it's also really nice
to see the smiles on children's
faces and young adults when they
can do something that their parents
maybe couldn't afford before.