The Science of Sisterhood Peckham

Sisterhood isn’t a soft extra; it’s a science, a structure, and a survival strategy. Hey, Sis. is on a mission to build a sisterhood ecosystem in Peckham, shaped by our ongoing research project, The Science of Sisterhood. This ecosystem is a living network of women and girls of the global majority who support each other, share resources, and strengthen community health and wellbeing.

Since 2019, we’ve worked with more than 900 women and girls, and through that journey, we’ve seen how sisterhood has been the driving force for change in our community. We knew we had to understand how it works and share it.

After eight months of initial research at the Science Gallery London, with support from researchers at King’s College London, we found that sisterhood creates improvements in women’s health, wellbeing, and socio-economic outcomes. This looks like longer life spans, increased financial mobility and reduced symptoms in chronic health conditions. 

Now, Shelby Bootle, our founder and director, born and raised here in Peckham, is bringing that research home to the places, stories, and sisterhoods that shaped her.

Over the next year, we’ll run bi-weekly Sisterhood Sessions at Peckham Levels, supported by Active Communities Network. These sessions bring women and girls together to connect, co-create, and experience joy. Expect creativity, storytelling and wellness activities, leading to honest conversations about what it means to show up for each other. Each session will feed into our wider research, exploring how sisterhood shapes mental health, belonging, and liberation.

Alongside the sessions, our team will map the local ecosystem, joining the dots between services, advocates, and spaces that support women and girls in Peckham. The goal is to make it easier for us to find what we need, when we need it, and to build a stronger web of care across our community.

We will create a sisterhood archive and gallery, an online home for our stories, research, creative outputs and impact. This will be a space where people can explore the deeper impact of sisterhood in action.

Ultimately, we aim to be the structure that connects, supports, and signposts women and girls from all of the priority communities to make sure every woman, whatever her background or circumstance, can access the care and connection she deserves.

Here’s how the £50,000 grant will be used:

• £20,000 for a Project Lead / Researcher to oversee research, partnerships, and delivery.
• £15,000 to employ and train a woman from Peckham as a paid community researcher, gaining skills and experience.
• £15,000 to build the sisterhood archive and gallery and our impact infrastructure.

Through this investment, we’ll deliver a dynamic, evidence-based approach to improving mental health and wellbeing in Peckham that actively involves local women.

This is the beginning of a long-term resource that will continue to evolve for the benefit of women and girls in Peckham for generations to come.