Another month passes with no shortage of activity at SPACE, completing more than 20 events for our children and young people along with our community engagement team taking their outreach efforts to the local community. October also saw the launch of ‘Introduction to Roller Skating’ – all in the midst of a busy half-term!
Here are the highlights:
Our young bakers heated up the kitchen with the first online cooking events of the month, just as the October chill began to set in. Meanwhile, our mini master builders stayed cozy inside and took part in our virtual Lego club, where they crafted an array of impressive Lego models.
Things began to get spooky around SPACE as we got into the Howl-o-ween spirit with a Spooktacular Halloween Craft Workshop and Children’s Online Art – Spooky Season. Prepared to be spooked with these fa-boo-lous picture frames.
Things slowed down as families ventured outdoors for a Wellbeing Walk in the Woods, soaking up nature’s goodness and enjoying a chat with other families in their position.
Over at Strawberry Fields Care Farm our young farmers enjoyed interacting with a range of animals. They learnt how to feed, walk and groom the rare breed goats, as well as spending time with alpacas, chickens, and horses during the therapeutic farming session.
Back indoors, our young animal enthusiasts enjoyed a virtual zoo experience with our house-hold ranger, Stu! Endless fun was had at Lego Club creating an animal of choice with mini bricks, and playing mini table hockey, football and basketball (all made from Lego!) whilst catching up with peers.
Despite the rainy weather, our monthly SPACE to Drive sessions saw a fantastic turnout. Enthusiastic drivers took the wheel to improve their driving skills and boost their confidence.
Our children and young people weren’t put off by the cold and damp weather over at the pond either. Spirits remained high throughout our SPACE Introduction to Fishing session. They were thrilled with sightings of rudd, roach, perch, and some big bream, and were eager to get their hands on the rods themselves.
A number of new families attended the session – our experienced instructors provided them with guidance on how to cast a line, bait a hook, and reel in their catch. Everyone was excited to catch their first fish and the wider group had a fin-tastic time.
Ready, set, paint! Our young Picassos had a blast at Potstop, diving into a colourful world of pottery painting. It was the perfect activity to cure any boredom during the half-term.
It was lovely to see everyone relaxing and catching up whilst welcoming new children and young people to the group. Time to uncover what they got up to…
Art-rageously creative graffiti work was produced by our youngsters at SPACE to Graffiti. Bursting with ideas and vision – our young SPACErs sprayed their way through 90 minutes of graffiti fun, creating amazing Halloween-themed pieces with their paint cans.
The slopes at Gosling Sports Park were alive with the sound of joyous laughter and contagious giggles as our children and young people held on tight to their doughnuts.
Not a single unhappy face was spotted during the thrilling hours of doughnutting thanks to our friends over at Herts Disability Sports Foundation – over 120 children and young people attended a session over the half-term. The groups had an absolute blast and was heart-warming to see our youngsters spark new friendships and hold hands as they slid down the slopes towards the end of the session.
Our first ‘Introduction to Roller Skating’ session was a hit! Our youngsters glided around Elm Court Youth and Community Centre and had a blast learning new skating skills, building their confidence on wheels and met several new families attending the activity.
Now you’re all caught up with our events, let’s bring you up to speed with our Community Engagement team. The team have been busy buzzing around Hertfordshire collecting kind donations from local supporters, running information sessions on SPACE, attending SEND stay and play sessions and preparing our well-loved allotment for winter.
During community sessions, they bring along resources and equipment from our Lending Space to showcase the range of offerings and assistance available. It’s a fantastic way to open conversations with parents and staff to tell them about what SPACE does and how we can help.
The month began at a Foster Group before heading off to Woodhall Farm Adventure Playground in Hemel Hempstead to join the Family Centre for their SEND stay and play session. Other sessions attended include a coffee morning at Christchurch School and Woodfield School, and Broxbourne Borough’s first Volunteer Fair at Laura Trott where they met Broxbourne Mayor, Paul Seeby.
Our Community SPACE allotment has been bustling with activity lately. Amwell Rotary recently paid a visit and pledged a donation to our SPACE to Grow project, which included a generous gift of much-needed tools. Additionally, a fang-tastic Halloween session was hosted, and enjoyed by many. Finally, the team met with VolkerFitzpatrick at the allotments to discuss the construction of a compostable toilet. Watch this space!
Lending SPACE remains at the centre of our community, enabling families to interact with each other and express themselves freely. In October, we welcomed 386 parents, carers and their young people through our doors. They had the chance to explore our resources, test out equipment, and chat with others going through similar experiences. Children and young people had a great time playing together and made it their mission to empty every toy box in sight!
Parents, carers, and professionals had access to fourteen different workshops aiming to increase their understanding of neurodiversity, its strengths and challenges, as well as equip them with valuable knowledge and strategies to provide support.
979 members of our community signed up to a workshop in October! To explore our monthly workshops, please visit the ‘SPACE Hertfordshire’ Eventbrite.
A number of families tapped into our QBCheck ADHD Screening service and attended speech and language drop-in consultations in the half-term – you can view these services here.
Lastly, we would like to extend our thanks to the Rotary Club of St Albans Verulamium for choosing SPACE as their chosen charity of the night. Dancers kicked up their boots and danced the night way, all proceeds from tickets sales have kindly been donated to SPACE.
November is packed with events, and Christmas is just around the corner… Be the first to know what monthly events and activities are taking place for our neurodivergent children and young people by visiting the SPACE Hertfordshire Facebook page and subscribe to Eventbrite.
