Here is a selection of our projects, fundraising and fun in the last two years
Pamper Day for International Women’s Day 2026
We run on tea and tenacity, and nowhere is that expressed more fully than our annual Pamper Day!
Held in celebration of International Women’s Day at Trevi’s Sunflower Women’s Centre, this special event brings together ladies from Sunflower, Women’s Refuge and Shekinah for a day focused on wellbeing, personal care and connection.
The Sunflower Centre is a safe and nurturing hub where every woman is welcomed with warmth, dignity and hope. Many of our guests have lived through trauma, abuse, or isolation, and some are navigating addiction, mental health challenges or the justice system.
Working in partnership with GHQ Training who provide our fantastic hairdressers and beauticians, we offer a full day of pampering.
Haircuts, head massages, cuts & blow-dries
Massages, manicures, pedicures & foot spas
Tasty lunch & a bottomless supply of tea and bickies
Clothing rails with donated garments to pick something new
Our goal is simple: to help women feel relaxed, cared for and confident. For some, this may be the first personal care experience in years; for others, it provides the confidence to take positive steps forward.
One participant shared “They did my hair and were patient and understanding of my neurodiversity and anxiety. I haven’t had my hair cut for 11 years, but now my new worker will come to the hairdressers with me.”
Another said “I had a fantastic time, the people were brilliant, they made me look and feel beautiful. Looking forward to next time!”
It’s always a joy to see the difference a day like this can make. Moments of care and connection have a ripple effect, empowering women long after the pampering ends. [03/26]
#PlymouthSorops#InternationalWomensDay#PamperDay#WomenSupportingWomen#SunflowerWomensCentre#ConfidenceThroughCare#EmpowerWomen
Orange Cafe in Plymstock
Orange symbolises a brighter future free of violence. On the 25th of each month we hold an ‘Orange Cafe’, sharing resources and handing out orange ribbons to symbolise our stand against domestic violence.
In January, we talked to dozens of diners and shoppers, shared leaflets and helpline cards, and gave away a couple of hundred orange ribbons to women, men and teenagers. Several women joined us indoors to sit for a while and share their experiences of domestic violence.
Thank you to Divino Lounge Plymstock who made us so very welcome, with a dedicated space that allowed us to have private conversations away from other tables. And thank you to the people of Plymstock for wearing your ribbons to show your support. [01/26]
Enjoy our Winter 2025-6 newsletter
Here is a round-up of what we have been up to in the last few months…
Sherry and mince pies
A very enjoyable social and fundraising event raised £145 which will be put towards filling the Mother’s Day gift bags for women in the Refuge. The event was a joint effort with the two Margaret’s providing the venue and refreshments. [12/25]
Harewood House fund raising
Welcome visitors to the club stand at Harewood House on a miserably wet day in December were two local councillors, Terry Beer and Patrick Nicholson, and local MP Rebecca Smith. Over £200 was raised at the event, much of this thanks to the beautiful glass decorations donated by Susanne. [12/25]
Christmas gifts for Ukrainian children
A 6-strong team of our members filled 50 Christmas boxes for children in Ukraine. Many other members also contributed to the initiative by wrapping the shoe boxes in festive paper and donating items. Each box contained a Christmas card, toys, games, crayons, colouring books and sweets. The boxes were taken to a central pick up point for PUMA (Plymouth Ukraine Medical Aid) who will deliver the boxes before Christmas.
Lorraine co-ordinated the shoe box initiative for the Plymouth Soroptimist club. She said: “It was a great team effort and we all enjoyed the morning packing the boxes. It was wonderful to think that we will give some pleasure to children who are suffering in this war-torn country.”
Club members have also been making regular donations to Plymouth Ukraine Medical Aid (PUMA) including crutches, mountain bike, sleeping bags, warm clothes etc. [11/25]
Orange cafés
Orange symbolises a brighter future free of violence and is the colour used for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Children.
On the 25th of most months throughout the year we hold an ‘orange café’ in various locations in our area. Members supported the orange cafés in October at the Watermark Café Ivybridge and Tesco Lee Mill in November. They received a very warm welcome from the staff at both venues. The teams listened to some heart-breaking and harrowing stories from women who visited the stands. [11/25]
Care leavers care crates
Another batch of care crates have been collected by Social Services for delivery to youngsters leaving the care system and setting up in their own homes.
President’s lunch
A lovely lunch was enjoyed by 30 members, Soroptimists from other clubs and friends in September at the Two Bridges Hotel on Dartmoor. The unusual and delightful after lunch entertainment was provided by The Lamerton Association of Handbell Ringers. An astonishing 56kg of food was collected for North Plymouth Foodbank. [09/25]
Hygiene care crates for 36 Plymouth families
A team of Plymouth Soroptimists shopped and packed 36 ‘hygiene care boxes’ for families living in temporary accommodation in Plymouth.
Soroptimists obtained a grant of £1,050 from Plymouth Astor Trust to purchase sturdy plastic storage boxes and fill them with 40 personal hygiene items for a family including shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, soap, sanitary towels and flannels. The boxes also contain kitchen roll, bleach spray, anti mould spray and handwash.
This initiative saw the Soroptimist club working with Odils Learning Foundation, who hosted the packing day at their Stonehouse premises. Odils made the hygiene boxes available to families in need, including their own service users as well as families being supported by Plymouth Access to Housing (PATH) and Devon & Cornwall Refugee Service (DCRS).
Plymouth Soroptimist President Ann said “This was a real team effort and it has been lovely to bring this to fruition after discussing the idea with Odils earlier this year. We believe there are at least 200 households in Plymouth living in temporary accommodation, and many simply cannot afford the toiletries and cleaning products that most of us take for granted. We’re really grateful to Plymouth Astor Trust for the grant, which has enabled Soroptimists to support some of these vulnerable families in our community.” [09/25]
Success at Plympton Lamb Feast
An incredibly successful day at Plympton’s annual Lamb Feast saw around £1300 raised by Plymouth Soroptimists*. All the money raised will go to local charities that support women and children.
With over 60 wonderful raffle prizes and a host of tombola prizes there were enough of both to attract many visitors to the stand throughout the day. Children particularly loved the tombola with most of the prizes aimed at them. Adults were attracted by the many star raffle prizes, although the giant teddy bear was coveted by many of the children!
Sue Miller was the lead organiser for the Plymouth Soroptimist club and she worked tirelessly getting raffle prizes from local businesses. She said: “We couldn’t have raised this fantastic amount of money to benefit the local charities we support without the incredible generosity of all the local businesses who so kindly donated the wonderful prizes. We are of course also extremely grateful to the many people who bought raffle and tombola tickets. It takes a lot of time and effort to get everything ready but a great team of club members pitched in to help make this event a success.” [06/25]
Raising our profile at the Chamber of Commerce
Our club was the Devon Chamber of Commerce charity of the month at the ‘City Conversation’s’ breakfast meeting in May. Club President Ann met business leaders from across the area spreading the word about what we do to support vulnerable people in Plymouth. [05/25]
Plympton May Fair fundraising
A team of four members had a busy but successful day at Harewood House selling books, glass ornaments (made by a member) and other donated items. Over £100 was raised which helps us to continue supporting women and girls in our area. [05/25]
Gift bags and Easter eggs
Plymouth Soroptimists combined a fundraising and social coffee morning with packing gift bags for women in Plymouth’s Refuge. The 11 vulnerable women in the refuge will receive bags containing chocolates, toiletries, jewellery and small gifts.
The coffee morning raised over £100 which members agreed should be used to buy Easter eggs for children in Ukraine. [03/25]
Pamper Day to mark International Women’s Day 2025 (IWD)
We treated 58 vulnerable women to a day of pampering at the Sunflower Women’s Centre. The women all access the services provided at Sunflower and/or the women’s refuge in Plymouth.
The pamper day is now an annual event for these resilient women who may not have the means to experience the luxury of self-care due to their challenging circumstances. A team of beauticians from GHQ Training, Camelons along with Soroptimists volunteered their services to provide treatments including hairdressing, manicures, pedicures, massages and facials. The women attending were also invited to order period pants and join hundreds of other local women who have been given six pairs of period pants funded from a £10,000 lottery grant and donations from Soroptimists.
The women had the opportunity to have their hair washed and blow dried as well as manicures and pedicures courtesy of a team of hairdressers and beauticians from GHQ, a local beauty training firm who volunteered their services. A nine-strong team of our members assisted the beauticians throughout the day and also provided tea and coffee along with a packed lunch.
Local businesses provided sandwiches, crisps, fruit and biscuits so everyone attending had a packed lunch. A team of Soroptimists worked tirelessly throughout the day providing a constant flow of teas, coffees and biscuits. The women were also delighted to be able to choose outfits from clothes donated by our members.
Soroptimist Sue Miller, the overall lead on this event, said: “We believe that every woman deserves to feel valued and cherished, regardless of their situation. Our pamper day aims to uplift spirits, boost confidence, and remind these incredible women of their worth. We couldn’t do this without a brilliant 15-strong team of hairdressers and manicurists from GHQ, along with facials courtesy of Greenhouse Spa. Soroptimists also pitched in giving foot spas and manicures to over 40 women who came. Sue continues: “It’s always so gratifying to get fantastic positive feedback from the women who really enjoy the day. Everyone involved in helping at the event also thoroughly enjoys the day which is so uplifting for all concerned.” [03/25]
International Women’s Day 2025
Four members attended an event in Plymouth to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD). It was an inspirational day with 15 speakers covering women’s empowerment. There were opportunities for networking which resulted in enquiries from potential members who showed an interest in joining our club.
President Elect Ann gave an excellent presentation on one of recent very successful projects, “Pants to Period Poverty” which Ann spearheaded having secured a lottery grant of £10,000. Hundreds of disadvantaged women in Plymouth benefitted from this initiative as they were given period pants which saved them money and encouraged a sustainable approach to period management. Ann also did an excellent job of promoting our club by highlighting other initiatives we have supported locally and internationally.
We also marked IWD by holding our now annual and much looked forward to pamper day. [03/25]
Period Pants project nearing completion
We have almost reached the end of an extremely successful project to provide almost 2,000 pairs of period pants to 330 women in Plymouth. Two charts below summarise the reach of the project.
Our club was also represented showcasing this project at an international event entitled “Environmenstural – reducing plastics in period products!” It was set up by the National Council of Women Great Britain in conjunction with the Women’s Environmental Network. The informative presentation that project lead Ann Keelen produced was used at this event and will be repeated at a regional SI event in March 2025.
