Crowcombe youths asked for views on playing with £34,000

YOUNGSTERS in Crowcombe are being asked how they would like to see a £34,000 cash bonanza spent on improving play space in the village.
West Somerset Council, in partnership with children’s charity Barnardo’s South West and Crowcombe Parish Council, has won £34,000 Playbuilder funding from the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
Children and young people of all ages are invited to a mini play day and consultation event on Saturday, January 17, at Crowcombe Village Hall.
There is a morning session from 10 am to 12 noon and an afternoon session from 1 pm to 3 pm for children to sample free activities, and have their say on how the play space should be developed.
District council community portfolio holder Councillor Neil Parbrook said: “This is an excellent chance for young people to try out a range of free activities including building dens, ball games, hoops, team fun, and a whole lot of messy but fun outdoor activities.
“We want them to enjoy their environment and their play space, and to let us know how we can spend the money in ways which will inspire them to even more adventurous play.
“A big difference can be made with £34,000 as to how children spend their time, and anything that encourages outdoor games and traditional play is welcome.
“It encourages children to socialise and overcome challenges and provides a healthier and happier start in life.
“We hope lots of people will come along and enjoy the activities on offer, as well as come up with some suggestions on how to make the most of this great opportunity to develop local play space.”
Barnardo’s South West children’s services manager Michael Hammond said: “This funding gives children and communities an opportunity to redesign their local play space to make it a space that children find exciting and challenging, and that communities feel ownership off.
“Children playing happily outdoors can be a sign of a very healthy community.”
All activities are free, but people are reminded to wear old clothes.
Children aged under eight years must be accompanied by an adult.
More information is available by calling Louise Kennedy on 01984 618344 or emailing info@woodlandplaycentre.com.

CLOWNS gets Lottery grant for play scheme, but Playbus still under threat

NEWS of a £164,295 National Lottery award to West Somerset children’s charity CLOWNS has been tempered by continuing worries over the viability of some of its other services.
CLOWNS has achieved a track record over many years of delivering quality, affordable and fun outreach provision and support to families across West Somerset and Exmoor.
It now provides more than 1,500 different sessions every year, with a total of more than 9,000 attendances, visiting 24 different village and town locations.
The windfall from the Big Lottery Fund will allow it to expand its former Tumbling Toddlers scheme which was primarily aimed at young children, to engage with the whole family in fun activities.
Entire families will be encouraged to be more active and learn about healthy eating.
An outreach support van will travel to villages to offer isolated families an opportunity to join in weekly physical activity sessions in their local village halls, schools, or children’s centres.
Parents, grandparents, carers, and children aged up to four years will share the themed sessions, which aim to educate in areas of healthy living and eating as well as early literacy and numeracy.
CLOWNS co-ordinator Kathy Morton said: “We are so pleased that we have the funding for this important part of our work.
“It will make a huge difference to the lives of some of our most isolated families across the area, and we are now busy preparing for this new work.”
However, Mrs Morton warned the charity was still worried about all the other funding it needed to be able to carry on with all the other parts of its work.
She said the Lottery good news had been followed by some bad news when another funding application was turned down.
Mrs Morton said: “We still need to get funding for the costs of running the Playbus.
“We should be taking delivery of our new double decker bus very shortly, but we are still short of at least £35,000 of the total running cost for the whole year’s budget.
“We will now try other avenues of support, but it all takes a lot of time and effort. We would all prefer to be out delivering all our sessions.”
CLOWNS chairman Jan Ross, told The Post: “We have several strands of provision, including our well-known double decker Playbus, outreach support van, toy library, scrap store, and holiday play schemes.”
Mrs Ross said recent consultations carried out by West Somerset Council showed people were concerned about the lack of facilities and activities for children and families at ‘reasonable’ prices.
A local area agreement had set a target under to increase the proportion of adults who did at least three 30-minute sessions of moderate or strenuous physical activity a week.
Mrs Ross said CLOWNS would work with health and physical activity manager Tracey Milton and her team from Somerset Primary Care Trust to carry out appropriate fun diagnostic tests at the beginning of the programmes, with regular monitoring of progress of individuals during the project.
Somerset Activity and Sports Partnership would also work in partnership with the new project.
Big Lottery Fund regional head Mark Cotton said: “This award will help families interact and enjoy learning in fun and stimulating surroundings.
“Some areas of the county are very isolated, making some facilities much less accessible so I am certain these projects will bring a great deal to families and communities as a whole.”
CLOWNS welcomes visitors, and would be pleased to meet anybody interested in its work. More information can be obtained or appointments made by telephoning 01643 707190.

Lottery grant means play facilities for rural children

A £200,000 National Lottery windfall means play areas and mobile rural play facilities can be developed for children in West Somerset.
The district council has secured the cash for its play strategy from the Big Lottery’s Children’s Play Programme.
A similar £208,682 grant went to Taunton Deane Borough Council, while Sedgemoor District Council was awarded £230,000.
West Somerset portfolio holder for children and young people, Councillor Eddie May, said: “We are delighted at the successful bid because of the huge benefits play facilities bring to children’s enjoyment, well-being, and health.
“This is the culmination of a lot of hard work from officers and partners, and we are really pleased at the positive outcome.
“This money has not been secured for the council, but for our children’s futures.
“With our play strategy, we will be able to encourage and support communities and individuals to improve their quality of life by identifying and providing better opportunities, particularly for children.”
Three projects in the council’s play strategy will benefit from the grant, including the appointment of ‘play rangers’ which will be delivered in partnership with Taunton Deane and Sedgemoor.
The councils will employ a team of play rangers to oversee the development of play facilities.
A second project is the development of Cross Farm Park, in Alcombe, to offer better play facilities for children, which will be delivered in partnership with Minehead Town Council.
Most of the district’s rural areas will also benefit from the boost which will be provided for mobile play facilities.
Leisure, culture, and recreation portfolio holder Councillor Neil Parbrook said: “This is a welcome boost for children’s facilities in the area.
“Play is a vital part of children’s development and this will help provide them with a stimulating environment to grow up in.”
The Lottery grant provides funding for the projects for the next three years.
District council’s community specialist for children, young people, and culture, Janice Malarkey, said: “I am delighted with the result of the Lottery application. We are looking forward to working with the play partnership to successfully deliver these projects, which will greatly benefit children and young people in West Somerset.
“We would like to thank the play partnership, Play England, and Barnardos for their hard work and support during the production of the play strategy, which can be found on the West Somerset Council website.”
Taunton Deane leisure executive Councillor Richard Lees said: “I am delighted that we have obtained this amount of money and in partnership can now plan to provide a play structure for young people.
“Play is so important in creating imaginative minds, and being physically active in a controlled environment, allowing children to be themselves and enjoy their childhood.”
Wiveliscombe, Milverton, and Norton Fitzwarren will all be among the villages to benefit from the project.
For more information on the play partnership in West Somerset, log onto www.westsomersetonline.gov.uk or contact Janice Malarkey on 01984 635238 or email Janice on jmalarkey@westsomerset.gov.uk.

• Pictured at Cross Farm Park, Alcombe, are (left to right) West Somerset Strategic Partnership chairman Loretta Whetlor, Minehead Town Council clerk Sue Sanders, CLOWNS chairman Jan Ross, district council community specialist for children Janice Malarkey, and leisure portfolio holder Councillor Neil Parbrook. Photo submitted.


• Mind in Taunton and West Somerset has received a £1,070 grant from the National Lottery’s Awards For All scheme.
  The money will be put toward an IT work area in the Peace of Mind day project, allowing service users access to online resources and word-processing and printing facilities.
  One-to-one training will also be available for those who are less computer literate.