Hertfordshire children set to have a HAPpy winter!
Hertfordshire Country Council is delivering the DfE Holiday Activity and Food Programme running over the Winter which is named Happy and once again schools have been emailing out to eligible families (families in receipt of benefits related to Free School Meals), including their unique code and booking link.
We have coordinated a huge number of free places across the whole county which will provide enriching activities, physical activities, and a healthy meal. All children and young people between 5-16 eligible for benefits-related Free School Meals (FSM) will be able to access this for free and families will have been sent a booking code and link by their schools.
We have recently agreed with the DfE to deliver 15% of places towards vulnerable families who may not meet the FSM criteria and I wanted to send you some information your teams may find useful. We have a specific code to be used with vulnerable families, so we are able to report on numbers to the DfE.
If you or your team works closely with vulnerable children/families and can help with promotion of the programme, please email us: Happy@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
We want to make sure every child who is eligible is provided with the opportunity to attend.
www.sportinherts.org.uk/happy/booking
Fit, Fed & Read this winter school holiday
Fit , Fed & Read is also running during this winter's school holiday ! We will be running camps between the 20th December to the 30th (dates vary per site) . Fit, Fed & Read is a fun packed day of sport, movement, arts and crafts, and mindfulness activities. Every child also receives a tasty two course, cooked meal each day of camp! For winter, children will have the opportunity to create seasonal cards, go nuts with glue and glitter, decorate biscuits and design their own tie dye socks! Each camp location will also be visited by extra activities (location specific).
Bookings opened on the 6th December through Playwaze, and eligible families would have been sent a unique HAPpy Booking Code from their school and can book via https://sportinherts.org.uk/happy/booking/
Young People's Survey 2021
The HCC Services for Young People (SfYP), Young People's Survey 2021 is now available for young people to share their views. The survey is an opportunity for young people aged 11-17, and up to the age of 25 for those with special educational needs to have their voices heard and follows on from our previous countywide survey conducted in 2019.
Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families County Councillor Teresa Heritage said:
“We know that young people have been heavily impacted by the Covid19 pandemic. We want to hear from young people themselves about their concerns so that we are able to support them in future. Hearing young people’s views will help us to plan for the year ahead.”
Young people have been heavily impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and this survey will help determine if the concerns and priorities for young people have changed since the start of 2019; and further inform and develop our own service priorities as well as the priorities developed with our partners through the Youth Strategy Partnership Group.
Both surveys are open until the 17th December 2021 and can be accessed through the links below:
Posters can be downloaded here:-
Healthier Together - chance for YP to be part of a focus group
The Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS Children's and Young People's transformation programme is developing a strategy to improve services in health and social care in our area and we want to hear from young people and parents/carers in our area.
We want to know what concerns young people and families, hear about their experiences and find out what makes a difference to the health of children and young people locally. We will be hosting focus groups in the early part of 2022 and would like to enlist your help in spreading the word.
To sign up to be a part of one of our focus groups please complete this form We need your help! :: Hertfordshire and West Essex Healthier Together (hwehealthiertogether.nhs.uk)
The free Hertfordshire ’50 Things To Do Before You’re Five’ app
An exciting new initiative that supports children’s learning at home and in their Early Years setting.
“50 Things To Do Before You’re Five” is a menu of activities for early years settings and families with young children, contained within a FREE app, giving great suggestions for how to have fun and learn at the same time.
Inspired by parents and carers, each activity has been developed by Early Years experts and language specialists to create a fabulous resource for families and a range of early years settings to use.
Launched to schools, education partners and PVI settings at an online event on Wednesday 13th October 2021 hosted by Herts for Learning and featuring Andrea Layzell, the creator of ‘50 Things To Do Before You’re Five’. Emma Wild, Project lead and Early Years Advisor at Herts for Learning, was delighted at the feedback from the event, saying:
“It was brilliant to see so much interest from schools and settings throughout Hertfordshire at the launch event. We’ve had a surge in app downloads and are really excited to get children experiencing new things around the county.”
The “50 Things” app is free to download by visiting hertfordshire.50thingstodo.org or through the AppStore or GooglePlay store, and then select “Hertfordshire” from the list of regions/cities.
Once downloaded, the app offers a list of 50 FREE, or low-cost activities (under £20 for a family of four) that early years settings, schools and parents can experience with their child/children in or around Hertfordshire.
Hertfordshire County Council commissioned the Herts for Learning Early Years team to ensure all activities within the app include links to local services and places to visit, such as the many parks, woodlands, and waterways in Hertfordshire as well as the libraries, museums, and historical sites. The activities have been designed to support families and focus on developing important early language skills. This no-cost resource can be used to complement the EYFS curriculum and home learning.
“We think this app is fantastic. The suggested activities are incredibly rich and varied, and by engaging our parents in exploring the activities it will have a real impact on our pupils and their readiness to learn. The activities are very inclusive and will particularly benefit our disadvantaged and SEND pupils.
We have communicated information about the app to our parents (right up to Year 2 as we can see how older children could benefit too!) but also look forward to using some of the ideas in our setting as well. We have already received feedback from 'wow moments' over half term where parents have used the app as a basis for family fun.” Rebecca Wild, Deputy Headteacher and Inclusion Leader, Ashwell Primary School.
The app also offers the ability to build a digital memory bank of a child's special moments. Ideas include indoor, outdoor, seasonal, home-based, and out-and-about activities, that are not only fun but will get young children off to a flying start with their learning and language development which will support their transition into school.
“Development of children’s language is critical to closing attainment gaps and maximising opportunities for children to learn and thrive. Across Hertfordshire, schools and settings are working hard to close gaps and reduce inequalities, more so now than ever. This app will provide another tool for them to use when helping support parents with learning at home to continue the work they’re doing with their children in school.” Mireille MacRaild, Education Services Director – Early years, Herts for Learning.
For further information or images, please contact Emma Wild by emailing Emma.Wild@hertsforlearning.co.uk or visit hertfordshire.50thingstodo.org
Parenting Together Programme continues to offer support
Whilst many people are looking forward to the holiday period, we are also aware that many families in conflict find this time of year particularly difficult.
The Parenting Together Programme continues to support parents who are finding their stresses and issues are impacting their relationship and their children.
Since we launched in 2019 over 400 Frontline Practitioners have referred to the Programme where currently 709 parents have gone on to complete an intervention to support their families.
We accept parents who are separated or together, as well as individual referrals if the partner/ ex-partner is reluctant to be involved. Our main exemptions are those in current or very recent domestic abuse situations or in a current court case.
Feel free to have a look through our website, which includes information on the interventions offered and our online referral forms:
www.parentingtogethersupportprogramme.org.uk
The Parenting Together Team can be reached by email parentingtogether@hertfordshire.gov.uk or by phone on 01992 555172
Grants and Funding
Our Development team pull together a list of grants from National and Local grant providers. This will hopefully prove a useful resource for the whole partnership whilst working with families. This list relies on all our services' knowledge and awareness of grants and funding opportunities and is by no means conclusive.
Please visit the providers websites for up-to-date information and criteria.
You can visit the Grants page on our Families First Portal and it has recently been updated with the following two funding opportunities:-
- Government’s £4 million Suicide Prevention Grant Fund, specifically set up to support the suicide prevention voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector. Further information on the fund can be found at www.gov.uk/government/publications/suicide-prevention-fund-2021-to-2022. Closes on Thursday 6th January 2022
- Your Best Friend Fund Opens for Projects Addressing Toxic Relationships in Young People : Funding for not-for-profit groups across England and Wales supporting young people to better understand the signs of healthy and unhealthy relationships. The first deadline for large grants is 18 February 2022 while applications for small grants can be submitted anytime.
As this list relies on all our partners knowledge and awareness of grants and funding opportunities, please email us familiesfirst.support@hertfordshire.gov.uk should you wish to add a provider or remove/update any of the listings below.