Latest / Sukany4: The Walk and Talk Podcast / Sam Massey - Parsons Woods - Former Flight Attendant, Youth Worker, Founder of Woman Up

Transcript

Sam Massey - Parsons Woods - Former Flight Attendant, Youth Worker, Founder of Woman Up · Sukany4: The Walk and Talk Podcast

• 0:19
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Sakania the podcast, where great conversations happen on great walks.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Sakania and you're listening to episode four of season three.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_01: My guest Sam Massey is taking us on a walk from the village of Colbeck through Parsons Woods along the River Colbeck.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_01: It's part of the Cumbria Way route.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_01: And to be honest, it was a bit slippery.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_01: We, or rather, I had near falls, my phone decided to fly out of my hand, and it was all worth it for those gorgeous views and colours.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_01: Sam Massey is the co-founder of Woman Up UK and someone who spent over 20 years in youth and community work across Cumbria.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_01: Sam's story is just wonderful.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_01: She left school at 15 and became a Virgin Atlantic flight attendant at 19 and realized that maybe she wasn't the problem, maybe the system was.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: During our walk, we talked so many things that made you sit up and think.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: Like the mentor who sat on a street with someone at Rock Bottom and bought them chips.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: While youth workers occupy this unique, non-authoritarian space in young people's lives.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: How Sam's creating inclusive spaces where difficult conversations can actually happen.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_01: And this phrase that's been living in my head rent-free from the moment Sam spoke it.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_01: You can't hate up close.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_01: Whether you work with young people, care about education, or have ever felt like you don't fit the mould, this conversation has something for you.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_01: Before we get into it, I want to shout out our music partner for this season, a band called Persimmon, a talented local group.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: Their jazzy sound is the perfect backdrop for our lake district adventures.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: So definitely please do check them out after this episode on YouTube or Instagram.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: Right then, grab your boots or settle it into your sofa or do those dreadful cleaning jobs and let's walk.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: Hi sir! Hello, hello to see you.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, and you how are you?
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: I'm alright, thank you.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_01: I'm pleased to say it's not raining here.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_01: Actually, it's just stopped, hasn't it?
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: It was raining on the way.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_01: It was raining all the way here.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_01: I was driving up thinking, oh my god, and then I felt like I was in the middle of a horror movie because my fat nav took me down some really narrow streets.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_01: You know, when you're driving and you're sweating and you're thinking, please God, don't send any cars the other way.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_01: Because I literally have no idea where I'm gonna go.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: Someone's gonna have to reverse all the way back.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: But we made it, but we made it and it's dry.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's beautiful.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: So I have a confession to make Sam.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_01: I was thinking, I've been here before.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_01: I know, I know.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: And it was only like a month ago when I did the Cumbria Way.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: So we stopped in Convert.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: The Cumbria Way comes right through.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_01: Went to that pub.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: So I walked past the pub and I thought I've been here before.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: So this is part of the Cumbria Way.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I did it, I did it the year of my 40th.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Did you?
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, with a with a group of um friends, and it was in incredible.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Did you do it?
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: We did it over, I think is it five days?
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we did it over the five days, but it was very sort of um, like you say, it was a real bonding thing.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: It is, isn't it?
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: Lovely.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_01: That's what I love about these walks, is you just like you drop in and out of different groups, and you it's just so great.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_01: And you have your sandwiches, yes.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_01: And the pub.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: And the pub.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_01: Although I was always in the like slower groups, so we never got a pub step stop.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Keep going.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_00: So this is part of the part of the Cumbria way, but hopefully we'll loop you back and show you something a bit different as well.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: No, that's cool.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: Where you've not been.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I'm I'm one of these people that watches a movie towards the end, I'll be like, oh, I've seen it before.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_01: So I wouldn't worry about it.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: So nice to see you and spend time with you.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I've been looking forward to it.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, me too.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: So we met at Woman Up Carlisle last October 2024.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_01: When I had my debut um spoken word moment, which was very exciting.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_01: That was amazing.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: You did brilliantly.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, thank you.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_01: I really enjoyed it actually.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_01: I've like I've always told myself I'm not really a public speaking person, uh-huh.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: But this kind of speaks to don't listen to what you tell yourself.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: But don't you think it depends on the audience as well?
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: Because that does the audience you know, holds you in that kind of environment.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um they were very giving, they were so lovely.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_01: It was a great event.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: So, do you um do you organise it?
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so the the event that we're talking about was the International Women's Day open mic uh event that we've run every year in the last oh I don't know, three years maybe.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, and we work in conjunction with um Carlisle International Women's Group.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um so it's kind of a bit of a partnership.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: We work we really like to work collaboratively with different organisations, uh-huh.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so yeah, so we put it on as it kind of gives us a bit of a group coming together.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: And so let's let's rewind Sam.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_01: Who are you?
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: Who is Sam?
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: So you're born and brought up in Cumbria?
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so I was not born here.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: My parents moved up here when I was little from uh sort of the south of uh Kenton Essex.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: Oh okay.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: So I was born down there, um uh but obviously have lived yeah um up here since then, done a bit of moving around, lived in London for a bit, travelled a bit, yeah, um, and then came back home to sort of settle, I suppose.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, as so many people do, yeah, definitely.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: And where did you travel to?
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um so thanks.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: I um I'm really fortunate that um my parents love travelling and very much encourage it.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: Oh and so I've been I've been really lucky.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_00: Travel is so important for opening the mind and seeing like how other people live and really appreciating uh different aspects of life.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: I think I think everyone should get the opportunity.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_00: I wish that everyone could get the opportunity because it's really changed my outlook on things.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um but my sort of most significant uh period of travel, I suppose, was um when I was like in my twenties and we got like a round the world ticket and we went off to like uh this is with my now husband.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_00: Oh so that's so nice! And we did so bad, um and uh yeah we did um we did sort of uh you know Pacific Islands, we did Australia, New Zealand, but we also did uh Thailand, spent quite a lot of time in Northern Thailand, yeah, uh South Africa, Lesotho, um and really kind of did it with an ethical mindset even back then.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, even back then when it wasn't cool to do that, we kind of were very much about the responsible travel and we would stay with like local people and yeah and not do the party thing, you know.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, quite geeky about it, but um it was incredible and it definitely shaped my outlook.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's it's such a shame that um I mean it's fine if people want to do the party thing, but I would encourage people to go back and do the non-party thing as well because it's such a different experience.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, absolutely everyone each each you know to each their own, to each their own, exactly.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: And actually, um I should tell you that we've in this summer holidays, yeah, we've just taken our children to the same parts of northern Thailand that we went to 20 years ago.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna cry.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: I love that, that's so nice.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: We visited all the same places to see kind of you know how it is.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: Do you see a lot of changes?
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um in some ways, yes, in some ways not.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, but brilliant for that, they've never been anywhere kind of quite like it, so just to kind of yes.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: And did um did you go back to your host families at all?
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: Uh we went back to one place that we'd stayed, stayed at, um, where we'd done some volunteer work.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's an incredible woman that set up uh like an elephant sanctuary, but she also supports like the local um community through employment and schools and all that kind of thing.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_00: We went back and found her again.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, cool.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: And her like 10 elephant sanctuary is now like a hundred elephants big and she's always something like 500 people.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: So we actually found her, she was on site and she sort of welcomed us and that was me.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: That was really nice.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_01: Because given how many people she must meet every day, and then you get people like us who turn up going, Oh hi, I saw you tiny years ago, do you remember me?
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_01: And you should there's not a chance she would have remembered us, but I did that in Mexico.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_01: The guy was like, Who?
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_01: What?
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_01: But she was very sweet about it.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, that's nice.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_01: She was obviously more charming than this guy.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_01: He just looked to me like, I'm trying to sell tickets here.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_01: Can you go away?
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_00: Leave me alone.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, oh that's so lovely.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: So how did it what was your feedback, the feedback from your kids?
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, they um so like uh 12, 15, and 16.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, mm-hmm.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: So 15 and 16 appreciated it, but not very vocally.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but my my daughter who's 12 is very, you know, she's very kind of um, very expressive about her about life and um so she yeah, so they they all loved it and they definitely got a lot from it, and they were amazing um at just sort of trying the local foods and talking to local people and what a great experience to give your children.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: I know, really lucky.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and for your kids to look back on it and think I did that with my parents, yeah, like that's really nice.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, hopefully, hopefully they'll look back and think that.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so have you always lived in Colbeck?
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um so we I don't live in Colbeck, I live just outside Colbeck.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and pretty much, apart from sort of moving away for different um jobs and things, yeah, um, we've pretty much lived in the same sort of area, yeah.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um can see why it is beautiful.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: It's really pretty.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it is so this is the Cumbria way, it is beautiful.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_01: So we go through Parsons Park.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_01: Parsons Park along the river.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, you can just hear it, it's just so wonderful.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: And it's actually so nice that it's rained.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's like it's fuller.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, the water's fuller.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_01: As I was driving through Umberside, like Windermere was so full.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you could see the water like close, not not on the road, but close to road height, which is quite nice.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it's so beautiful.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: There's a really beautiful waterfall which will be so full, like you said, just across from where we parked.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_00: So if we get time, I'll take you to that.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_01: I know the thing about waterfalls.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_01: Me too.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's something about water.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: I love a river.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's so calming.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I love it.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so um so I guess you did all your schooling in this area.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, I I did.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: I went to school in the area, really struggled with school, did not enjoy school.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um what do you think it was?
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: I think that um I was a probably a bit of a middle uh middly child, didn't need extra support, but nor was I a genius.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: So I was very much sort of lost in the middle, yeah.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: Which I think you know, growing up in the sort of 90s, it was very standard.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think that again, growing up in the 90s, very like um there was a lot of pressure, there was a lot of kind of um I don't know, I was very sensitive to um other people's opinions and kind of um really struggled socially if things weren't kind of going my way, and it got to a point where I just didn't stopped going to school basically.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: Oh gosh, yeah.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_00: So I've got a lot of um I've got a lot of kind of um empathy, I suppose, for young people who are going through uh struggles.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and is that is that your main line of work working with young people?
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: So I my um my background after I um I went I did go back to university and absolutely loved university, but I I kind of left school at 15 and didn't go back until I got on a uh uh undergraduate course um in psychology.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: Oh amazing.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, and that kind of sort of shifted everything.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_01: And and how did you do that then for anyone listening who might be in a similar position and thinking about further education but left school early?
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_01: What was that journey like for you?
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: It was really interesting actually, um, and I do reflect on it quite a bit because it was a bit of a crossroads in in life.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um so I um was 19 and I got a job with Virgin Atlantic as a flight attendant.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my goodness, amazing! I did not know that sound.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_01: Did you think you were gonna get away with this conversation and not bring that up?
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_00: Well it yeah, it's yeah, it's a really funny one.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: I don't like I reflect on all these things so much.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um, yeah, I was 19, so I was the youngest you could be to apply.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um got the job, but you have to live within an hour and a half of the of Gat of Gatwick and Heathrow.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: So it meant me having to move down to London.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I see, okay.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: There was a very intense eight-week initial training course, which was sort of exam every day.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know, and it was very kind of high intensity.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: People didn't pass the exams, they were asked, you know, they were told they had to have to try again next year, kind of thing.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um I just seemed to be doing really well, like without being like it was a real moment where I was like, oh my god, I could I can actually do this.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: Other people are struggling, and I seem to just be able to do it.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I can do it because I really didn't have that confidence in myself at all.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, because school had been such a struggle.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I just um I was actually with my now husband, uh-huh um who was doing his masters in London.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, okay.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: So he moved, we hadn't known each other that long, but he moved down with me when I got this job.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um and he was doing his masters, and we kind of I don't know, the idea of going back to study became a thing, and and I kind of yeah, realised in that in that um in that period of time that if I can do this course that everyone seems to find so tricky.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe, just maybe.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's not a you thing in terms of the studying, yeah.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I remember having my interview uh at the university and the senior lecturer saying, We haven't done A levels, and we'll give you a go, but this is gonna be really tricky.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_01: That's really interesting, isn't it?
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_01: Because usually, like I would be the same, I would look at these courses and be, well, I don't did you finish your GCSEs then?
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: I did, but like just scraped through them, really.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so that's really interesting.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_01: I would have disqualified myself without even having the conversation.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_00: So good for you.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I certainly did for a few years.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_00: It was that it was definitely that sort of process that made me reassess what I was capable of.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um thanks, thanks Richard Branson.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly that.
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_00: There you go.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: Well, thanks you for putting yourself forward.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, and then that kind of led me very um quite soon afterwards into uh youth work, youth and community work, and that's my kind of being my the foundation of everything that I've done for 20 years, really.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um so what um course did you do?
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_00: Did you say psychology?
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: I did psychology and then I went on to do my postgrad in like youth and community uh work.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um and what attracted you to that?
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_00: I think I worked um I worked at a youth club in Wigton, which is I don't know if you know Wigton, but it's kind of um what I know about Wigton is the Roman road that goes up and down like a roller coaster, which I drove for the I drove it for the first time in darkness in winter going to the Green Hill Hotel.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, the Green Hill Hotel is on the uh on the outskirts, you're correct.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, what is this?
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_01: Where am I?
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: It was quite an adventure, but actually kind of fun when you get that you know lurching stomach feeling.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: But yes, I know Wigton-ish.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Wigton has um it's quite a socially deprived town, quite isolated at the time and probably still there was lots of sort of antisocial behaviour and um lots of like social issues, really.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so the youth centre was really like pivotal, you know, it was really important in the town because it was um we would work with young people to address some of those issues or to give them somewhere to kind of have conversations that were a bit more positive than what they were getting elsewhere.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I I was actually I worked there for 10 years.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: Um I started because it was just a part-time job that fit in with everything else.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and as is so often the case, I met an incredible mentor, uh huh.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: Woman who really showed me the power of youth work and community work.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_01: Who what was that light bulb moment then?
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_01: Uh was it a single one or was it a combination?
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_00: She's since passed away.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: Oh.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I spoke after um after like quite soon after her death and told the story um of her um being in the youth club.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_00: Some of the young people coming in um to tell us that um somebody they knew, you know, by name, was uh outside lying on the street.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um and you know, there's a general sort of undertone of people mocking or people like um and anyway, she went out, she went out and sat on the street with him, bought him a portion of chips, put her arm around him, you know.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: She was just that person who um no judgment, she was there for for him, whatever, you know, unconditional kind of support network, um, even when he was rock bottom.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_00: And I just and I think that was kind of that really stuck with me, that uh where so many people would shy away, yeah.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: She was there uh in his moment of kind of desperation.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's such a difference to put yourself out there, doesn't it?
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_01: And it's not an easy thing to do, and to to witness someone doing it is definitely against somebody who's so well respected, you know.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_00: She was um you know, she'd done her PhD and she worked at the university, and you know, somebody so well respected in in her field, um, and yet she was so much of the people and the people that she yeah sort of uh advocated for.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_01: So basically she didn't need to do any of it, she could have stayed in the paperwork.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: But that kind of I think that kind of um there's just little light bulb moments in life that really um sort of send you on your way.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_00: And and I th I I do remember having a conversation with her, her name was Linda, uh huh.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_00: Um about leaving youth work and her saying youth work needs you, don't leave.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: Don't leave your work and and and really sort of um you know really kind of uh hammering it home how important this line of work was for so many people and yeah you know at that moment I could have jumped ship but really but didn't so yeah and it's the kind of work that actively changes people's lives right you can change the course of someone's life for just like even something as small as a kind gesture of a bag of chips absolutely yeah um and it's one of thank you I hope you're thanks it's one of the when it's it's such a difficult thing to define oh are you okay jumped my phone oh how did that happen oh my god it's all kicking off it's all happening yeah oh my god how did that happen no we're still recording oh thank god we was like I don't know how that happened thanks menopause everything is the fault of menopause absolutely I don't know what happened but sorry back to you drama over drama over um oh I can't have it I've lost my trail of thought I know I'm so sorry the drama I just had to get some attention it was all all too hot it was too much that we were saying well you know you the work could actually genuinely impact someone's life in such a positive way there's so many young people that uh it's I think what I was saying was it's really hard to define youth work because it's not you know if you say you're a teacher it's very sort of clear what you are but youth work is still you know it's it can be a bit ambiguous but it's one of the only roles in lots of young people's life that isn't um an authority figure yeah and for so many young people that I've come across over the years that's um so critical like so important that um that they're the the adult that they're talking to and building a relationship with and respect and trust with is not a parent who has you know a position of power not a police officer not a social worker yeah you know a youth youth worker comes from a completely different um value base and and and sort of uh uh point of view where it's uh you know we are respectful of each other um however we are not in a position of power yeah and I think that in itself holds so much power yeah you know the young people that would come to my projects came voluntarily nobody told them to come you know they weren't they didn't have to come because of school they didn't have to come because the social worker or the police had you know made it a yeah a condition they they came because they wanted to be there and that's powerful in itself.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_01: That is yeah and it changes the way you engage then doesn't it?
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely and and and the way that it can um you know it would open doors so I worked with an incredible group of young people in Wigton who um were really conscious that their uh perception from the public that lived in Wigton was that they were out they were up to no good right um and they decided that what they could do to change that is to put on a community event that they would host everybody.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah and it meant them having to go and speak to the town council about their plans.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: Oh wow and the town council going that's very unrealistic yeah but they were sort of uh suppressed they were told that it probably wouldn't happen because of this this and this um and that just made them more determined though it made them more determined and it made them because I now know them as young adults yes it means that they know how to um make their voice heard if they need to they know that they can um don't accept the first note exactly yeah they can go to the town council and say well actually this is I'm a citizen and this is what I think that's phenomenal anyway I I love youth work for that yeah and I feel like you know the more I talk to different people we really need to change our curriculum in school don't we?
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_01: It's so antiquated.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: It's terrible it doesn't set you up with skills for life not at all like how do you buy a house how do you rent a house how do you you know basic functional things I'm sure you need the academic stuff as well yeah but you need like a lesson in life yeah what is a council yes absolutely that and um and critical thinking skills which are kind of bleached out of young people as they move through the um the curriculum yeah um and you just I just think critical thinking it is applied to so many you know it's such a a core skill for for life yeah in terms of challenging what we see it on our algorithms or you know or like the beauty standards of today let's question that don't take it at face value or whatever it is and I just don't think that young people are given the opportunity to practice those and I think that's a really good point especially in this world of social media and fast fashion and influences and this sort of seduction of don't um you know in in quotation marks don't get a proper job yeah like you can have a lifestyle job yeah but actually you know some of that is very transient it might last five minutes and then what are you left with when you actually just need foundational skills yeah yeah absolutely absolutely that absolutely that fascinating um I feel um compelled to tell you about a conversation I had with my daughter last night um she's um I've just been I've always been very very uh open with her and and and although she's only 12 she's very kind of any work that I do she comes along she hears the sort of opinions of so many different people she's got a really sort of broad understanding of the world and yeah she told me that yesterday she had a lesson at school with her e year eight um you know pupils um around the um the flags that are that we're seeing everywhere in in our local towns and cities yeah um and um I drove over a flagged roundabout I know it just makes it makes my stomach turn so it's absolutely horrifying yeah um and she she basically said that the teacher was trying to initiate a a debate about it and to sort of look at it and um and she's so you know she's we've got friends who have been through um the asylum process okay you know who are c who are close friends who she sees as part of our family yeah um and finds it really hard to understand why this you know why this um why people are seeing uh things in such a skewed way yeah um but she said it was only her and one other person that had that view she said really everybody else in the class yeah um you know had had had the sort of uh the the far right kind of uh mentality yeah and she said I finished at the end of the lesson I said if you want to know any more and if you want to understand better you need to go and watch a girl from um Mogadishu I don't know if you've seen the film no I have I'm going to and um and she like just left it there but I was like God I'm so proud of you so proud of you for standing up and that takes so much courage yeah but so you okay I am I just um yeah it's so sad isn't it it is it's horrible it's it's just heart wrenching to think that the things that our parents faced have come full circle yeah and actually it didn't take a lot for the cookie to crumble in a relatively short space of time.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_01: It's really really sad really sad and there's so much miseducation out there.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh and so much there's just so much violence and anger and aggression it's frightening so much sort of like you say misinformation and and kind of um I don't know I think you only have to sort of look at something that is anti-immigration wants and your algorithms and everything that you're fed yes um you know chimes to that kind of rhetoric.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah um it's really dangerous.
• 31:34
  SPEAKER_01: It is it's really dangerous it's not regulated enough but there is a bit of glimmer of hope that people like your child exist and are willing to stand up and have that child.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_00: I think that because she they say you can't hate up close and because she's been um you know because she's sort of exposed to friends who are from all walks of life yeah and are quite open about sharing their experiences and stories I think there needs to be more of that you know I like that you can't hate up close so actually if you get to know the reality yeah yeah it becomes harder.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely oh I really like that yeah and in the same way you know we've got trans friends or like non-binary friends and it's the same yeah once you understand somebody and realise that they are a beautiful human whatever exactly whatever the rest doesn't matter that's personal.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah yeah I mean it it's really difficult because there's there's a genuine misunderstanding of British history.
• 32:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah this is where we're meant to be going but it's it looks a bit slippy.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: Would you is happier going straight on a trend we can turn back we've seen what I've done on flat ground Sam I mean that takes a special kind of talent I mean we can head back this way and and I can take you to the waterfall or you think we need a little bit further let's do it.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_01: This way and then start looping back.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_01: Perfect perfect perfect oh ooh ooh are you okay none of this is unusual can I just say I mean I'm fine with it as long as to the drama and luckily I have very strong muscles catch me I'll catch you if I can you have like save yourself Sam actually when we did the Cumbria Way this was the same was it?
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_01: It was just as slidey and slippy yeah it's a bit of a funny uh terrain.
• 33:49
  SPEAKER_01: But you know we move forward Sam we move forward it's all part of the adventure and if I have muddy trousers at the end of this I'll just have to drive home in my pants I'm sure that wouldn't be for the first time oh it's all squelchy can hear the river down there.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_01: You can yeah can't you it's really uh powerful so back to what we were saying yeah miseducation about British history so for example if I made a comment about um the flags for example uh and I was challenging an opinion regarding patriotism versus um the right to seek asylum being entirely legal versus the number of people who seek asylum versus we shouldn't be surprised because Britain colonised and pillaged and stole and built its wealth on the shoulders of other nations it doesn't go well.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_01: No because it's not an accepted part of history.
• 35:02
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely but it's a fact but it's a fact and yeah and the fact that it isn't um a recognized part of history is a huge you know a huge issue that needs addressing isn't it yeah so does that's is that something that's coming up in your youth work at all?
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_00: We've recently met with um you some of the youth work providers in Carlisle uh um who've who basically we're we're going to be working with to be to deliver some um like girls only which always means non-binary okay you know we we're always sort of inclusive um yeah it's a good clarification right yes yeah yeah um everything we do uh we class as inclusive uh feminism if you want to call it feminism because feminism's been hijacked in yeah horrible way but we are very much inclusive um and that's you know part of our um you know our bedrock really yeah um so yes so working with uh youth uh work providers in Carlisle to offer um a girls only uh space because um they're seeing a real um they're seeing a real um decline in young women coming along and when they question it it's often to do with safety or feeling overwhelmed by the kind of masculine kind of vibes and yeah it is very high male energy yeah um so but in those discussions we have been bringing up uh things like um this sort of far right rhetoric that is creeping into everything and and how important it is just to have safe spaces for young people to you know be able to have those conversations even if they even if they don't know that they want those conversations it's about having a different opinion to that that they might be hearing elsewhere right it's about having kind of trusted adults who they can ask questions of that will will get a non-judgmental kind of response yeah um and all of that quite basic but for some young people they just don't have the there is no you know all they're getting is a one-sided yeah um account of the world or a very sort of limited understanding of the world yeah um it's a very scary place to be that absolutely that yeah um and it can lead to some worrying decisions yeah and we've already spoken about those light bulb moments in life and you just never know how some of those conversations can lead to you know somebody shifting their view of the world and yeah seeing things in a bit more you know in a different light.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah so we are about to um to set up some it'll be like woman up youth work across Carlisle in conjunction with places like Carlisle Youth Zone.
• 38:09
  SPEAKER_01: Oh okay um yeah so that'll be yeah that's great that's quite exciting really yeah that sounds awesome and just just creating these spaces is so important so it's great that you're doing that.
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah it's it's really yeah it's really great.
• 38:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah so how do you kind of some of this work is pretty heavy how do you balance yourself to not carry it and be a better resource to help people that's I'm not very good at that.
• 38:38
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 38:39
  SPEAKER_00: I mean I'm good at looking after myself I definitely have got very I'm very lucky that I've got lots of outlets for you know I I love walking obviously and this is stunning by the way we haven't talked enough about it yeah it's beautiful with the slipping and sliding there are some really nice views beautiful and all the uh the leaves are changing aren't they oh it's just the best time I love this time of year so much that's high pike up there in the crowd oh stunning just stunning onwards yeah onwards a bit further it's like cross country skiing I mean I didn't tell you that but yeah it is think of it well at least I don't need to do my cardio because I'm sweating enough through stress that's not good no I'm just saying it in jest it's fine it's totally fine beautiful it is fancy having a bit of the Cumbria Way on your doorstep I know it's so lovely yeah so you try and take time out and go for a while yes I do I am like I say I am very lucky that way I I work um I work with different third sector organisations so um I've got a colleague who does a lot of women's walks out west Cumbria so I work with her usually one day a week and we we take groups of women for walks oh well um oh of course I know this because you invited me to one yeah and I couldn't make it yeah yeah um so I'm really fortunate that that sort of fits into my working week yeah um and I just love I love a bit of yoga I love a bit of wild swimming yeah just all of those things that I know everybody does now but I just um that's a little piece of me so um but I do find it hard um I find if I've got a day free I tend to fill it with checking in on some of my groups and we've just got some funding actually which I'm really over the moon about but um there's a group of um asylum seeking women and children locally to where I live who I sort of check in on every week um but this will allow us to run a project with them to sort of develop more of a project which means I can give more time and sort of work with them to develop something that's really gonna help benefit them you know yeah so that's really exciting so when you get something like that walk me through the process like how do you develop something like that because this is completely alien to me.
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_00: Okay um okay well I met my dear friend Mina who we both know yeah three four years ago have we known each other and she really kind of introduced me to as somebody who'd been through the asylum system how difficult it was the kind of challenges that came up the particularly for women yeah because it tended to be um women even if they'd arrived in the country with a family it tended to be the women that would be at home not out at work yeah children at school uh so very sort of isolating and the more that they didn't sort of have to use English then the more that they felt you know the you know the levels of isolation kind of increase as their family can integrate and they can't.
• 42:14
  SPEAKER_00: So we set up a project Mina and I to uh support women who were in that sort of situation yeah and soon after we set it up the Ukraine crisis happened right suddenly had like an influx of other women into Carlisle that we kind of you know tried to reach out to and support in different ways and then the two hotels opened as well so then in a very short succession we had we then had 90 women in the one of the hotels in Carlisle who we we again tried to sort of put projects together to support.
• 42:46
  SPEAKER_00: Right and I think because of that kind of that process and all that sort of learning that happened during that time yeah I you kind of quite quickly get sort of integrated into different organisations that are trying to do the same thing and people pull together and and so when these the women I'm talking about that I'm currently supporting arrived uh so they've sort of moved from different parts of the country where there's no network you know there's nothing at all it's really isolated.
• 43:16
  SPEAKER_00: Penrith and Eden Refugee Network reached out and asked if I would check in on them and welcome them and as a result of that you very quickly build relationships and sort of trust with that group who really don't see many other people.
• 43:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah they don't have the means you know they're really it's a real yeah it's a real insight into the levels of desperation to to sort of settle here.
• 43:43
  SPEAKER_00: Although the project is to you know support them in accessing local services you very quickly get embroiled in helping them with you know a whole host of other things you know you know and that's kind of yeah that's Part of that's part of it, but that's what makes it a really sort of uh rewarding um thing to do.
• 44:07
  SPEAKER_01: I totally get that.
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_01: Well that sounds sounds great that you've got the funding.
• 44:11
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sure it's really hard to to get to that stage.
• 44:15
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, yeah, it is, but um yeah, that's a positive thing.
• 44:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 44:21
  SPEAKER_01: And now we're in woodland.
• 44:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we've done it all.
• 44:24
  SPEAKER_00: Oh goodness, it's amazing.
• 44:25
  SPEAKER_00: This is yeah, this path's a little bit less muddy.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_01: This one's crunchy and it's stunning, it's really not.
• 44:35
  SPEAKER_00: How lucky are we?
• 44:37
  SPEAKER_00: I know, and not I shouldn't say it, but there has not been a drop of rain, has there?
• 44:41
  SPEAKER_00: No.
• 44:42
  SPEAKER_00: So what's next then, Sam?
• 44:45
  SPEAKER_00: Um I knew there'd be something.
• 44:48
  SPEAKER_00: It feels like we've had sort of a quieter year last year with one thing and another, and I've quite recently met with our woman up trustees.
• 44:58
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, and there's a real sort of uh a plan to push things forward in the coming year.
• 45:05
  SPEAKER_00: We've got some amazing sort of supporters and volunteers and just incredible people who want to make things happen.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_00: So we're just yeah, we're just at a point now where we are developing a program for next year and making sure it meets the needs of people who, you know, people who really need it.
• 45:23
  SPEAKER_00: It feels like it's needed more than ever at the moment.
• 45:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and what kind of things are we thinking?
• 45:28
  SPEAKER_00: So we predominantly we were set up as like an events organisation because the Woman Up event, which was kind of like staged a bit like a conference, yeah, but it was a platform for lots of different voices to talk about issues that are important to them.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_00: Very inclusive, like I've already said, very much we would always have a handful of men that would turn up and they would get as much out of it, if not more, than the women in the room.
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's great.
• 45:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, but there was always a bit of a hunger and an appetite for like we don't want this just once a year, we want to we want to do you know, we we want the opportunity to get together and discuss these things more often.
• 46:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 46:06
  SPEAKER_00: So the program basically enables that, and that that includes working with young women, it includes us putting on events like the International Women's Day uh Open Mic, which we where we met last year, yeah, and sort of conference style events um and such like throughout the year just to enable people space to learn.
• 46:28
  SPEAKER_00: It's about education and it's about you know everything we've spoken about in terms of misinformation and a non-judgmental space to kind of see things from uh through lived experience and yeah and that kind of thing.
• 46:43
  SPEAKER_00: However, we do loads of collaborative stuff, so we work with the Carlisle International Women's Group to do like a monthly sort of coffee morning gathering, yeah, which again is just a welcoming space for people who are maybe a bit lonely or isolated, and then we've got the the the the youth work project and um and the women's project that I've just uh told you about that we've got funding for.
• 47:06
  SPEAKER_00: There's lots of lots of things going on, but it all comes under the umbrella of of uh sort of youth and community work that supports supports women and families.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_01: So question Yes How do you reach the people so the work you do attracts the people who know it's needed?
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 47:25
  SPEAKER_01: How do you reach the people who don't understand why it's needed?
• 47:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 47:29
  SPEAKER_01: Or do you not focus on that?
• 47:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, that's a really good, that's a really good question.
• 47:35
  SPEAKER_00: I guess one of the first things that comes to mind is we've run for the last couple of years period workshops.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_00: Where we go into primary schools and we work with an entire year six class.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 47:51
  SPEAKER_00: For like a and run a workshop like a it's about an hour and a half workshop solely on talking about periods.
• 47:57
  SPEAKER_00: This has been like it sounds something, it sounds so sort of basic and and and you know, but uh it has it platforms lots of opportunities to explore shame, to explore uh gender, to explore kind of issues that highlight the inequitable relationships between men and women.
• 48:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know, the whole the the one and a half hour session allows for all of those conversations to happen with boys and girls who are you know a cross section of boys and girls in that class.
• 48:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, nobody, you know, everybody's there, it's not like just those have turned up who want to, it's it's the entire class.
• 48:36
  SPEAKER_00: So you're reaching or you know, everybody in the room.
• 48:39
  SPEAKER_00: It's not a sign up for it's uh everyone, does it?
• 48:42
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, and also quite importantly, the teachers sit in and listen to it as well.
• 48:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I think quite often the teachers will look at us and go, Well, I didn't know that, and you know, you know, there's an awful lot of so and what happens then is we can tell them about our sessions, for example, the youth work sessions that we're doing, or we have we usually have a a programme with um Tulle House Museum in Carlisle.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so we can direct people if they want to know more or if they're interested, or if they just want um a nice sort of welcoming place to hang out on, you know, at the weekend or whatever.
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we kind of have that opportunity to kind of signpost people into that.
• 49:22
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 49:23
  SPEAKER_00: So that's one way that we're sort of able to reach more than just the handful that maybe would seek it out.
• 49:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 49:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we would love to do more of that kind of work.
• 49:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's extraordinary how many uh young people we talk to really have very limited information about something as basic as period.
• 49:44
  SPEAKER_00: Right, you know, periods and and girls that have daren't tell their uh family that they've started their period because they're they don't they they think it'll be a burden on like the finances of the family and all kinds of things have come out of those period workshops.
• 50:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um which really highlight um there's such a load that children carry.
• 50:05
  SPEAKER_00: I know, yeah, I know.
• 50:08
  SPEAKER_00: So that's yes, that's a really nice model, but we would really like to be able to sort of extend that to work in secondary schools, but there's such a sort of fear culture around so many issues, like we were talking about earlier, the issues that are really polarising people at the moment.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_00: Everyone's fearful to to you know to tackle, you know.
• 50:29
  SPEAKER_00: Certainly cannot go into school and talk about sort of gender per se because there's policies in place in schools that dissuade that from happening, and right, which again is another another uh another reason why people get misinformation rather than an opportunity to explore things fully.
• 50:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well that's great, isn't it?
• 50:50
  SPEAKER_01: Because oftentimes with these things, it's the people who really could benefit from that conversation aren't there and it's how to get themselves.
• 50:58
  SPEAKER_00: That's so true.
• 50:59
  SPEAKER_00: That's the biggest challenge.
• 51:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's also the most rewarding thing when we've we've had um one of our woman up events in recent years we did in collaboration with the university, um, and it was woman up justice.
• 51:13
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 51:14
  SPEAKER_00: So we looked at the justice system through the eyes of women, um, and we had some amazing speakers um right across the board.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, an incredible woman who'd um whose daughter was horrifically murdered by her ex-boyfriend who had stalked her.
• 51:30
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my god.
• 51:30
  SPEAKER_00: And she speaks in schools and talks.
• 51:33
  SPEAKER_00: But then, like her, you know, another story from a woman who was was in the justice system and you know had her two children when she was in prison, and um, you know, anyway, from all kinds of different points of view.
• 51:46
  SPEAKER_00: But we very much, I suppose, through like a bit of a youth work and a community work um avenue, encouraged people to come along who would never normally go to a conference.
• 51:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know, so there was lots of the young people that I was working with at the time that came had never set foot in the university before.
• 52:04
  SPEAKER_00: Well that's overwhelming in itself.
• 52:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, but came and because it's not a conference, it is very kind of you know in in interesting and enjoyable, and it's not meant it's meant to be quite light-hearted.
• 52:16
  SPEAKER_00: I know it not all the topics are, but we definitely try and make it as uh interactive and you know, welcoming as possible.
• 52:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 52:24
  SPEAKER_00: So I think having people there that have never kind of uh encountered anything like that was incredible, makes it really really it definitely um nods to your question about reaching people who maybe would never, you know, never know that they needed to be reached.
• 52:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 52:40
  SPEAKER_00: That's the key.
• 52:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they don't know they need to be reached.
• 52:43
  SPEAKER_01: That's a really nice way to put it.
• 52:45
  SPEAKER_01: So I know you were talking about if we aired this in autumn, there were a few things happening in autumn, so I'm not sure this is gonna be aired in autumn 2025.
• 52:57
  SPEAKER_01: But if it is, what are the things that you're doing?
• 53:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um okay, well, we are um we have a viewing of um Frida, the film.
• 53:10
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, oh my god, that's amazing.
• 53:12
  SPEAKER_00: At Tully House, which is a bit of a collaborative um woman up event, yeah, and that's in conjunction with their new colours exhibition that's just been launched there.
• 53:22
  SPEAKER_00: So um that's amazing because undoubtedly people will come with flowers in their hair and and we have sort of a discussion afterwards and a monobrow.
• 53:33
  SPEAKER_00: And a monobrow.
• 53:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 53:35
  SPEAKER_00: So um, so that's really exciting.
• 53:37
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, we're just really fortunate to sort of collaborate with so many different people.
• 53:41
  SPEAKER_00: So we work with Quer Cumbria and we have things like a walk around Derwent Water coming up, which is open to everybody, but it's a very just welcoming space um to get out and meet new people, and like what we mentioned before about you know, if you don't understand somebody and the way that they live, it's an opportunity to come along and just meet people and have an opportunity to kind of broaden your friendship group, I suppose.
• 54:09
  SPEAKER_00: We have uh so our uh girls group at Calais Zone is due to launch in November.
• 54:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um wow.
• 54:18
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, so that's all coming up in this autumn.
• 54:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
• 54:23
  SPEAKER_00: And the idea is that once we've got a group of of uh young women that are attending, we can sort of really see what their interests are to kind of develop some campaigning work or something that's a bit meatier.
• 54:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 54:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um so yes, that's really exciting as well.
• 54:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so how do people find you?
• 54:41
  SPEAKER_00: Anybody and everybody can get in touch.
• 54:43
  SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
• 54:44
  SPEAKER_00: The easiest way is uh via social media.
• 54:47
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 54:47
  SPEAKER_00: So we are UK Woman Up, uh-huh, even though really we're just Cumbria Woman Up.
• 54:52
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 54:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 54:54
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, if you search UK Woman Up, you will find us.
• 54:57
  SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
• 54:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so you can reach out on social media and you can find out what's going on on there also.
• 55:03
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 55:04
  SPEAKER_00: And I just really urge anybody who wants to meet people in a non-judgmental way to get involved.
• 55:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, fabulous.
• 55:12
  SPEAKER_00: Come along.
• 55:13
  SPEAKER_00: And what are your social media handles, is it?
• 55:15
  SPEAKER_01: It's just at UK Woman Up.
• 55:17
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 55:18
  SPEAKER_01: At UK Woman Up for everything.
• 55:21
  SPEAKER_01: Well, Sam, that's been amazing.
• 55:22
  SPEAKER_01: I've enjoyed very much slipping and sliding with you.
• 55:26
  SPEAKER_01: Oh no.
• 55:27
  SPEAKER_00: We're back to the slippy slidey bit.
• 55:29
  SPEAKER_00: We are, yeah.
• 55:30
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 55:31
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, it's been so lovely.
• 55:33
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for having me.
• 55:35
  SPEAKER_01: You are very welcome.
• 55:37
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for walking through Parsons Woods with us today.
• 55:41
  SPEAKER_01: I'm still thinking about Linda sitting on that street, chips, no judgment, and just being there for someone.
• 55:48
  SPEAKER_01: That's the kind of person Sam has become in her work, and I feel we should all aspire to be when someone needs us.
• 55:55
  SPEAKER_01: I hope Sam's journey gave you something to think about, whether that's about mentorship, unconditional support, and how powerful that is, or how we can all get close enough to truly see each other's humanity.
• 56:11
  SPEAKER_01: If you enjoyed this episode, here's what I'd love you to do.
• 56:16
  SPEAKER_01: Head over to circania.com.
• 56:19
  SPEAKER_01: That's sukiny4.com.
• 56:25
  SPEAKER_01: There you'll find the full write-up of this conversation with Sam, including links to WomanUp UK.
• 56:32
  SPEAKER_01: You can find them at WomanUp UK on social media and all the resources we mentioned today.
• 56:39
  SPEAKER_01: While you're there, check out previous episodes and see where we've walked.
• 56:44
  SPEAKER_01: Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts so you don't miss future conversations, and please share this episode with someone specific, maybe a teacher, a youth worker, a parent navigating difficult conversations, or someone who just needs a reminder that the system failing doesn't mean they failed.
• 57:03
  SPEAKER_01: If you've got thoughts on this episode or suggestions for where I should walk next, drop me a message through the website.
• 57:10
  SPEAKER_01: Now, before I go, I want to leave you with some questions.
• 57:13
  SPEAKER_01: You don't have to answer them out loud, just sit with them and see what you come up with.
• 57:20
  SPEAKER_01: Who in your life could use some unconditional support right now with no judgment, no fixing, just you being there?
• 57:30
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's as simple as sitting with them like Linda did.
• 57:35
  SPEAKER_01: When was the last time you questioned what you were told was true?
• 57:40
  SPEAKER_01: Are there stories you've accepted without really examining them?
• 57:44
  SPEAKER_01: What would it look like to practice that critical thinking Sam talked about?
• 57:50
  SPEAKER_01: What light bulb moment changed the course of your life?
• 57:54
  SPEAKER_01: Who was your Linda?
• 57:56
  SPEAKER_01: And have you told them what they meant to you?
• 58:00
  SPEAKER_01: And finally, and possibly most importantly, whose Linda could you be?
• 58:06
  SPEAKER_01: Who's watching you, learning from you, drawing courage from the way you show up in the world?
• 58:13
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's how we change the world.
• 58:15
  SPEAKER_01: One conversation, one connection, one act of unconditional support at a time, by getting close enough to truly see each other.
• 58:26
  SPEAKER_01: Remember, you can't hate closer up, and sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is just show up and sit with someone.
• 58:36
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Sakania, and I'll see you on the next walk.