More than recovery: Rek41's role in the community
Rek41 has the same approach for every person who comes through its doors.
Whether someone has a substance dependency or not, ensuring a safe space is the utmost priority.
Rek41, on Market Street in Birkenhead, is Wirral’s sober meeting place. The venue offers a soft approach, focused on building relationships with customers.
Staff are intervention trained but will only act if someone is visibly distressed. Instead, the emphasis is on customers feeling comfortable enough to discuss any problems.
To further its work, Rek41 was awarded a £191,941 grant through Wirral Council's Public Health programme earlier this year.
The funds are to help ensure the development and expansion of a community venue, providing a safe space for those in recovery from addiction. It is part of the council’s collective work of addictions prevention, harm reduction and treatment, along with ongoing recovery support.
With Wirral marking Alcohol Awareness Week (6-12 July), Rob Cumine – who founded Rek41 – believes the venue acts as a bridge between recovery and everyday life.
However, it is not solely for those with alcohol and drug dependencies. Many regular visitors have no history of addiction and use Rek41 as a welcoming place to socialise.
The main crux is trying to bridge that gap between people through the more clinical side of recovery and back into everyday life.
That is a big step and it is scary for a lot of people because they are always worried they might drink and relapse to substance abuse and sometimes their mental health and anxiety cannot cope with that.
The space at Rek 41 is shared with the Journey Men’s project, which for several years has supported men who feel emotionally troubled, alone and vulnerable.
We have an open-door policy. We don’t ask questions about anyone when they come through the door and let them know they’re safe. If you are an addicted alcoholic and come in here, no one is going to ask you why.
A relationship is built and it’s important, especially when we talk about mental health and how they approach their issues. We want to get to know who exactly the person is and when they do want to talk, they know they can.
While we are mainly here for addiction, we do a lot in the community to try to integrate people better. We have people who come in and have no issues and it creates that conversation.
Rek41 welcomes around 90 people per day and hosts various activities throughout the week, including a quiz night, talent show and bingo. It has also been highly popular for England matches during the World Cup.
Earlier this year, a Rek41 team entered the Birkenhead Pool League and has enjoyed a successful maiden season.
The opposition pool teams have been brilliant with us. I’ve been amazed by how understanding and supportive other teams have been.
During our home matches, we’ve had opposition players come to us to discuss their alcohol intake because they didn’t feel comfortable telling anyone else. It works both ways.
It gets us into pubs and allows us to show people it’s OK not to drink and that they can talk to us. There’s a human touch.
Along with the pool team, we put on the likes of talent shows, which are really successful. You’ve got people who have never performed karaoke sober, but you can’t get them off.
Most people think they need to be drunk before getting up and singing - it’s about getting over the fear.
So what was Rob’s reason for starting Rek41? Having stopped drinking alcohol through personal choice, he felt there was a lack of venues for people who wanted to be sober but still socialise.
I didn’t have a problem with drinking but stopped because I have ADHD. I used to live near pubs and on a Friday night, I could hear the music and I was tempted despite not having a problem. It made me think: what do people with dependencies do?
Support services were shutting at 5pm and over the weekend. Those are the times that relapses, domestic violence, anti-social behaviour rates and A&E numbers spike because people with dependencies can be frustrated or there’s nothing to do.
Rek41 wasn’t too busy for the first two or three years - it was hard. But you have to stick to your values and Wirral Council’s Public Health team bought into what I could see. Slowly but surely, we built it up and worked hard to get to where we are today.
One regular customer at Rek41 is James. After leaving the Army, he went through a difficult period in his life and struggled with alcohol. He says Rek41 has helped him rebuild his life.
I was in an angry sort of place. I got to 40 and knew I needed to do something. Rob has shown me how to live again.
There are mainly people who have gone through recovery and Rek41 is a place to come. It’s basically a pub that doesn’t serve alcohol. Everyone is friendly and you get to know people. It is like a family.
It’s absolutely amazing. Thanks to Rob and all the staff, past and present, because without them, I don’t know where I would be because I was in a bad place.
At Rek, your time never comes to an end, unlike other services. You can walk in anytime you want and if you’re in a dark or lonely place, there are friendly faces.
