A NEW 'tribe' is being established in East Lancashire which should help support women who want to set up their own sideline - but might lack support.

Deborah Bulcock, who lives near Colne and runs Vitale Health, is behind the first 'Girl Tribe Gang' to be launched in the area.

Forty 'tribes', which have the aim of with a mission to promoting entrepreneurism and combatting isolation and loneliness for female go-getters, are currently flourishing across the UK and there are plans for more as 2019 progresses.

Deborah said: "This is a really exciting venture for me and one I’m honoured to be involved in. I'm looking forward to finding like-minded women in my community, women who are working from their kitchen table or home office doing work that works for them and bringing everyone together

|" It's all about creating a community of like-minded women, a level playing field and an eco-system of support and encouragement among women who totally get what it feels like to be on your own in business or aspiring to one day quit the 9-5."

She is planning their first get-together at Tubbs of Colne, in Albert Road, on February 4.

The concept was established by psychotherapist and mother-of-four Catherine Asta Labbett to help the "huge hidden workforce of women working from their kitchen tables".

She said: "There is a whole generation of women who are taking risks and following their dreams and we are a hidden workforce.

"We are a workforce that connects predominantly on social media, but we need more 'real life' connection and to be connecting with the right people, who are going through similar things."

She launched her own business, Bringing Sparkle Back, in May 2017, with start-up capital of just £200. But she quickly felt isolated, as she looked to make her way, and formed the first of the tribes in her home town, Ilkley.

Girl Tribe Gang later commissioned its own research, among members and their 20,000 plus Instagram following, which they say was to understand the causes of stress among the 'hidden' female home workforce.

Hundreds of women responded, with almost 40 per cent saying that they have felt isolated and lonely in the last 12 months while trying to make headway with their own ventures.

Catherine added: "We share knowledge, skills and support each other and it's a community we all hugely value. I'm sure there are lots of women in Colne and surrounding areas who would benefit from the same thing. I'm so excited to see who Deborah discovers."

AWARD WINNING FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR AND ASPIRING ENTREPRENEUR

COLLECTIVE ‘GIRL TRIBE GANG’ ARRIVES IN COLNE

A Lancashire woman is adding a new string to her bow, alongside her existing business, as she takes on the role of ‘Tribe Boss’ and launches the COLNE TRIBE of a booming award winning female collective, which has been featured on BBC Business, CNN and Forbes.

Girl Tribe Gang is a national community of women who work for themselves, are spinning a side hustle, or who aspire to quit the 9-5, with a mission to reduce isolation and loneliness and to support and nurture entrepreneurism, by connecting like-minded women in their local communities.

It was founded by ex NHS Strategist, turned Female Focused Psychotherapist and Mum of 4, Catherine Asta Labbett, after she experienced loneliness and isolation, when she launched her business Bringing Sparkle Back. Catherine couldn’t find her Tribe, so she created it, launching in her home town in Ilkley, West Yorkshire in May 2017, with just £200.

Since then, Girl Tribe Gang has seen phenomenal growth right across the UK, with now 40 Tribes (and growing) across the UK, and over 1500 members. Their first European Tribes are launching in early 2019. The Tribes meet up in stylish venues every month, in the heart of local communities. Girl Tribe Gang has already established partnerships with a number of organizations to help their cause, and are feeding into the Government’s work on tackling loneliness – described as ‘The biggest public health challenge of our time’ and have big plans for more partnerships and collaborations in 2019.

They are passionate about starting a conversation about stress and mental health amongst what founder and psychotherapist Catherine Asta Labbett, describes as a ‘huge hidden workforce of women working from their kitchen tables’. Catherine, whose career started out in Government policy, is passionate about championing this workforce and reducing feelings of loneliness and isolation among women who work for themselves.

Girl Tribe Gang commissioned their own research with their members and 20K Instagram Tribe, in support of the 20th Anniversary of National Stress Awareness Week in November 2018 and to kick off their first GTGLIVE18 event in Manchester on 3rd November, to understand the causes of stress and what that stress looks and feels like amongst this huge hidden workforce of women. Hundreds of women responded, with almost 40% saying that they have felt isolated and lonely in the last 12 months.

Girl Tribe Gang are on a mission in 2019 to reduce the loneliness and isolation of 1000s of women and to champion the health and wellbeing of this fast growing workforce of women.

DEBORAH BULCOCK who lives near Colne, set up her own coaching and consulting business, following 20+ years leading change programmes and operational areas in the Financial Services sector. She’s an experienced business leader, coach and mentor, and is also a qualified Nutritional Therapist. Deborah is passionate about creating connections, relationships and friendships amongst like-minded people.

DEBORAH will now lead the COLNE TRIBE of Girl Tribe Gang, whilst coordinating with founder, Catherine Asta Labbett. Girl Tribe Gang advertises providing an alternative to traditional corporate networking with “no suits, no corporate nonsense, no breakfast meetings, no sticky name labels, no eating in front of strangers, no board tables, no awkward introductions, and no death by power point presentations”.

Deborah said: “This is a really exciting venture for me and one I’m honoured to be involved in. I’m looking forward to finding like-minded women in my community, women who are working from their kitchen table or home office doing work that works for them and bringing everyone together. It’s all about creating a community of like-minded women, a level playing field and an eco-system of support and encouragement amongst women who totally get what it feels like to be on your own in business or aspiring to one day quit the 9-5.”

Deborah of Vitale Health is inviting others to join her at her meet up on 4th February at Tubbs of Colne to connect all those local women who work for themselves or who have aspirations to quit the 9-5. Deborah is on a mission to inspire other women to set up their own business and to help reduce some of that isolation women who work for themselves experience.

Anyone interested can book a guest ticket to attend the launch via www.girltribegang.co.uk/tribes/colne

Catherine said: “Girl Tribe Gang is enjoying roaring success and is growing at a phenomenal rate with TRIBES already established in Yorkshire, Scotland, North East, Cumbria, North West, Lancashire, Derbyshire, West Midlands, London, Buckinghamshire, Surrey, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Berkshire, South West, Sussex, Devon, and Cornwall. Our TRIBE has brought together many women who were at the height of their corporate careers, but who craved more freedom and flexibility and wanted to quit the 9-5. I’ve found so many women out there who have achieved so much and have so much experience to share, but who felt they needed support when going alone.

On our team of TRIBE BOSSES, we have an ex Retail Head Buyer, a Corporate Accountant, Director of Communications, Probation Officer, HR Director, Foreign Office Executive (to name just a few) and I was a strategist at a senior level in the NHS– we have all quit the corporate world to set up our own business.

We share knowledge, skills and support each other and it’s a community that we all hugely value. I’m sure there are lots of women in Colne and the surrounding areas who would benefit from the same thing, and I’m so excited to see who Deborah discovers!”

Catherine added: “There is a whole generation of women who are taking risks and following their dreams and we are a hidden workforce. We are a workforce that connects predominantly on social media, but we need more ‘real life’ connection and to be connecting with the right people who are going through similar things.”

-ends-

Notes to Editor

Catherine, 39, is a female focused Psychotherapist, with a regular slot as the expert Psychotherapist on the award-winning Stephanie Hirst show on BBC Radio Leeds and a regular guest contributor in publications such as Women’s Health Magazine, Grazia and others. She started her own business 3.5 years ago – Bringing Sparkle Back www.bringingsparkleback.co.uk - whilst she was working as a Strategist in the NHS. After experiencing the isolation and loneliness of working independently ‘Girl Tribe Gang’ was born.

Through Catherine’s experience with the women she sees in her clinic, she says that she’s “found that even the most successful business women have confidence issues, suffer from imposter syndrome and generally lack self-belief. So, we’ve stripped back all the things that create unnecessary barriers to connecting.