Problems of loneliness and isolation are often associated with older people.

But one social enterprise in Harrogate says the issue is just as likely to affect young mothers – and it is trying to put an end to the problem.

MyLifePool set up the Working Mums Network several years ago, but it stopped meeting during the covid pandemic.

Now, the group is being re-established to offer dinners, nights out, and events with speakers and social time, to enable like-minded mums to form stronger bonds.

Founder Vic Smith-Dunn said:

“Many working mums struggle with feeling disconnected from their peers and their community and motherhood is a significant trigger for loneliness. At myLifePool we understand that being a working mum can be an isolating experience, especially during these challenging times.

“That’s why we created a community where mums can connect, share experiences, and have fun together.”

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One local mum recently posted on Facebook saying how lonely she was, prompting a flurry of responses offering support – including Vic.

She said she has been putting together new events over the last few weeks to combat loneliness and support people through rising fuel costs. They include the Warm Wednesdays social sessions, as well as a Lego club for primary school children and their parents.

While opportunities for families to get together during the day are popular, Vic said working parents often miss out and can be lonely even when they are busy.

She said:

“We often think that it’s retired people living alone who are in danger of becoming socially isolated, but new parents and working parents are just as vulnerable.

“It’s like the old saying goes, it’s possible to be lonely in a crowded room.

“This kind of thing is everything I’m so passionate about: people just need the opportunity and a gentle introduction to widen their social circle, which makes the world of difference to people’s mental health and, in turn, their physical health.”

The Working Mums Network will meet at Oatlands Community Centre next Wednesday, March 8, from 7pm to 9pm.

It will run in partnership with Parent Smart Learning, offering life hacks to help working parents to save time and make home life easier. A short presentation will be followed by time for socialising.

Tickets are free to myLifePool members, or £4 for non-members, who can get a month’s free trial to attend the event. To book a place, click here.

For Vic Smith-Dunn, life is all about connections.

She’s a sociable person who likes to make links between people with something in common – even if that thing is they don’t know anyone else in the room.

Vic’s own connections have been particularly significant in guiding her to where she is now.

Her grandparents were wardens at the former Oatlands Methodist Church in south Harrogate and she is one of the people tasked safeguarding the same building.

Now known as Oatlands Community Centre, it also housed a pre-school for many years, which Vic’s daughters attended. Vic became a trustee of the pre-school after it bought the building around a decade ago.

Last autumn, the pre-school closed under the growing weight of expectations and regulations, which the small charity’s trustees were unable to meet. However, Vic wanted to ensure the building remained in use and the mortgage could still be paid.

“We decided the way forward and to safeguard the community space was to focus on delivering on our constitution in different ways.

“It said it had to be a service for families with pre-school children. One of the main aims is to work with community groups and social enterprises.”

Coincidentally, Vic had set up a social enterprise a few years before, called MyLifePool. It aimed to bring the community together in a simple, affordable way, creating social groups and events as well as supporting businesses.

For £1 a week, members access discounts from dozens of local partner businesses, from coffee shops to hairdressers, and can get discounted rates to attend a programme of family activities, nights out and more.

There are weekly stay-and-play sessions for children, including dedicated times for neurodiverse children. Drinks and snacks are provided, including fresh fruit from local business and MyLifePool partners KD Fruiterers.

While the membership fee is low, the demand has been extremely high, allowing the trustees to keep paying the mortgage on the community centre. Hall hire for children’s parties and other events has also contributed significantly.

Vic grew up and still lives in the Oatlands area, part of her reason for wanting to build up community activities and networks. She also recognises that the support which used to be on offer elsewhere is no longer as readily available.

“When my eldest daughter was a baby, I saw my health visitor every week.

“She realised I had postnatal depression. If it hadn’t been for her and my GP, I don’t know what might have happened.

“I worry about people in the same position now who aren’t having that regular contact – who is supporting them?”

Social media

Even with the support she had, her depression and loneliness prompted Vic to set up Ready Steady Mums, a free walking group for parents of children up to one, which still meets every Friday at St Mark’s Church.

Her experience of the value it offered to attendees stimulated her interest in doing more in the community – leading her to set up MyLifePool some years later.

“I had seen how social media was becoming really damaging to social interaction.

“People were so busy putting up posts showing themselves living their best lives that they were terrified to actually meet anyone, because you can’t be at your best all the time.

“Then it becomes even more difficult to walk into a room full of strangers.”

In recent years, she has drawn on her own experiences once again to set up a new group dedicated to women going through the menopause. From social meet-ups to informative talks from experts, the group has hit the ground running and already has dozens of attendees at each event.

MeNoPause was launched as one of MyLifePool’s events, but is open to anyone in the community.

Vic Smith-Dunn is the welcoming face of MyLifePool and Oatlands Community Centre

Similarly, there is a working mums’ group, offering mums the chance to socialise over drinks but still get home at a sensible time to be up for the school run the next day. It’s organised by one of the ‘lifepoolers’ who, with support from Vic, set up the kind of group she wanted and discovered there were many others who felt the same.

Vic says her role is always to connect people and give them the confidence to get involved.

MyLifePool has become so successful that Vic has been approached to expand the model into York and, if that works, beyond.

Wherever it goes next, Vic is clear about its purpose.

“I’m all about funding community stuff. It’s about finding ways for communities to become self-sustaining.

“We have to find innovative ways for that to happen.”

A new Harrogate menopause support group is set to hold a bigger event next week following the huge success of its launch.

Set up by Vic Smith-Dunn through her social enterprise MyLifePool, the group met for the first time at Oatlands Community Centre last month.

Due to demand, the next event, entitled Menopause Matters, will have an increased capacity of 150 and will take place at the Crowne Plaza hotel at 7.30pm on Tuesday, July 5.

It will feature a talk by Dr Sarah Hattam, a local GP and founder of wellbeing and performance consultancy Concilio Health.

She will cover the physiological aspects of menopause, along with ways to help stay healthy and understand more about hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and other options that are available. She will also be sharing how to get the most out of a GP appointment.

Ms Smith-Dunn said:

“At the launch we gathered lots of feedback. We discovered people were struggling to understand what exactly was happening to them, and what their options were, along with wanting to understand more about HRT. I was really keen to address this issue.

“Sarah is kindly donating her time. This means that profits from ticket sales can be donated to local charity Just B, which runs a helpline that is accessible to women who may be struggling through this change.

“Sadly, at our launch event we had to turn so many people away as the venue was too small. Thankfully for this event the Crowne Plaza, on King’s Road, has offered the use of a much larger space so we can accommodate more people.”

Read more:

• New group launches for Harrogate women with menopause
• Harrogate woman sets up Lupus support group after 40-year battle

Ms Smith-Dunn explained that as well as providing “good quality information”, the events also offered an opportunity to socialise.

She added:

“So many women going through the menopausal period are also ‘empty nesters’, which brings its own challenges.

“Friendship and peer support is so important for our mental well-being and having an opportunity to spend an evening with like-minded people is so valuable.”

Tickets costing £4 are available to book here.

For more information about the group, visit the MeNoPause website.

A new group set up to support women going through menopause has attracted almost 100 members after its first meeting.

Set up by Vic Smith-Dunn through her social enterprise MyLifePool, the group met for the first time on Monday evening at Oatlands Community Centre.

As well as hearing from nutritionist Linda Le Floch of Quality Health Foods, the evening offered members the chance to ask questions anonymously — which produced some surprising results.

Ms Smith-Dunn said:

“We ran a questionnaire asking what kind of topics people would like covering at future events.

“The responses ranged from the best types of exercise for bone health to skin care and fashion advice. However, one of the biggest demands was for advice on how to improve libido.”

Read more:

• New group launches for Harrogate women with menopause
• Harrogate woman sets up Lupus support group after 40-year battle

Ms Smith-Dunn was able to share some tips about supplements which can help, but the group discussed how much it comes down to mindset and self-confidence.

She added:

“I would love to make contact with local businesses or professionals who may have information or products to share that may support and empower our growing tribe of women, who are determined to grab back their lives along with their libido to truly make the most of living through this hormonal change rather than just pushing through.”

For more information about the group, visit the MeNoPause website.

A proposal to set up a group for women dealing with symptoms of the menopause has received an “overwhelming” response from the community.

Vic Smith-Dunn, who runs Harrogate-based social enterprise MyLifePool, posted the idea on the group’s Facebook page this week.

Within just a couple of hours she had numerous comments from people saying it was desperately needed. With a date for its first meeting arranged, more than 25 people signed up straight away.

Vic said:

“When you go to your GP, they haven’t necessarily been given a full in-depth education about perimenopause. Being able to say, ‘is this a possibility?’ and ‘maybe I could do this or that?’ can be helpful, but where do you find the information in the first place?

“The idea of the group is to share information – it’s about women supporting women.”

The inspiration for the group came from Vic’s own experience of perimenopause, which she said left her worried about her health. However, speaking to other women going through the same thing gave her reassurance that hormonal changes were to blame for her symptoms, including loss of memory and depression.

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When the group first meets on May 25, biochemist and nutritionist Linda Le Floch from Quality Health Foods in the Westminster Arcade will give some tips on ways to manage symptoms.

There will also be opportunities for women to submit questions in advance or ask them on the night, and to share their own stories and advice about dealing with the impact of menopause.

The way the group operates will be guided by its members, who will be able to meet for coffee, nights out and other events as frequently as they wish.

Vic also hopes to put on a larger event in future, including information for husbands and partners supporting women through menopause. She said:

“My husband did a whole load of research and got to understand the hormone imbalance so he was able to explain to me what was going on. I just wasn’t able to do that at the time.

“Without that understanding, so many marriages break down because men don’t understand what their wives are going through – the women don’t always understand it themselves.”

To book a place at the event on May 25, click here.