about us
OUR PRIMARY AIM
The primary aim of NKS is to alleviate deprivation and isolation experienced by South Asian women and their families living in Edinburgh and to promote positive health and well-being among them. Our role is to make South Asian women active citizens living in Scottish society by engaging them in various activities at NKS and by supporting them to access mainly mainstream services of interest to them in Edinburgh. We believe that South Asian communities are disadvantaged and marginalised that leads to social exclusion. NKS aims to provide a range of services that would help to work towards social inclusion of South Asian women and children.
The project would strive to raise women’s confidence to allow them to integrate into the wider society. NKS works on the principle of holistic approach to health and welfare where users socio-economic and health issues are addressed to improve their quality of life. A Community Development approach is used and users are encouraged to participate in all aspects of the running of the organisation.
the social welfare problems
of South Asian families
The demand for one to one family support work has never gone down
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This is to support women on a one to one basis to access health services in Edinburgh. The project has been providing the service since the inception of NKS. Over the years it has been felt that there is a pressing need for the service as women from the South Asian communities may find it difficult and daunting to use health services without support from the support workers. This happens due to barriers such as language, culture and lack of appropriate information.
This is crucial to NKS work overall. It provides a great deal of support to women who are very isolated and lack confidence for various reasons. It gives NKS an opportunity to raise awareness, assess women’s needs and encourage them to come out and engage in community activities. This service provision has been the foundation of all NKS work. Through the befriending service trust and relationships are built with NKS users. The befriending service at NKS is provided to women who are either referred to NKS by professionals or are self-referrals.
This post was created in 1994 with help from the local Councillor. Creating a separate post to deal with the social welfare problems of South Asian families helped in several ways. The communities benefit from the specialised service. The demand for one to one family support work has never gone down. The number of cases dealt with every year has gone up and the gap between supply and demand is widening.
Currently, there are 8 groups running under NKS’ umbrella and all of the groups are mainly engaged in discussion sessions or activities on a voluntary basis. There are also health promotion sessions in groups. The groups and activities in group setting are provided for all age groups – from young people to elderly lunch clubs. There is emphasis on healthier lifestyle programmes and adult education i.e. English classes, computer classes etc. Training and courses are provided too.
FURTHER GROUP WORK AT NKS
English as a Second Language (ESL) Classes:
• Women-only ESL classes run at NKS, thanks to Edinburgh College, on Mondays and Tuesdays from 12.30 pm till 2.30 pm. Interviews are conducted on Tuesdays, after the class. Please note that the ESL classes run with the school terms.
Bangladeshi Women’s Support Group:
• This group runs at NKS on Mondays from 11.00 am till 1.00 pm. The group decides what activities they would like to do. Activities include: health sessions, sewing, complementary therapies, cookery, outings, social functions etc.
Sakhi (friend) Women’s Group:
• This group runs on Wednesdays between 11.00 am and 1.00 pm at NKS. The group decides what activities they want to do. Activities include: health sessions, sewing, complementary therapies, healthy cooking, outings, social functions etc.
Mother and Toddler Group:
• This group (run in conjunction with Sure Start) runs on Thursdays from 10.00 am until 12 noon at NKS. Please note that this group runs with the school terms. Activities include: health sessions, yoga, arts and crafts, sewing, healthy cooking, callanetics, outings and social functions etc.
Older Women’s Group:
• One group runs on Mondays (for Bangladeshi women) and one on Fridays (for Indian and Pakistani women) from 10.30 am until 1.00 pm at NKS. Activities include: gentle exercise, complementary therapies, lunch club, discussion/health sessions, outings, social functions etc.
Saturday Women’s Group:
• This group runs once a month, on Saturdays, between 1.00 pm and 5.00 pm at NKS. Activities include: health/discussion sessions, cookery, music and art appreciation, outings, social functions etc.
Please contact NKS for more details as sessions may be cancelled or venues changed.
Childcare at NKS
NKS provides childcare to pre-school children in the NKS Nursery which is open five days a week from 8.00 am to 5.45 pm.
On an average there are 12 to 14 children registered to attend every day.
NKS After School/Homework Club (ASHC)
The primary aim of the ASHC is to support and nurture each child’s individuality and personality development by catering to their individual needs. The ASHC aims to provide learning support to those disadvantaged children who have very little help at home due to the low literacy level of parents/guardians. The ASHC is registered with the Care Inspectorate and will be open at the following times: Mondays and Thursdays – 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm and Fridays from 12.45 pm to 3.45 pm. Taekwondo takes place on Wednesdays from 5.00 pm to 6.00 pm.
NKS Self-management Health Project
The vision of the project will be to empower people living with long-term health conditions and their families to be better equipped to improve their life circumstances. The overall aim of the project will be to enable people with long-term health conditions to be able to lead life with little support, and for the families to cope better as carers. The project is funded for three years by the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland.