Nottingham Play Forum’s Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 21^st February from 9.45am at Playworks, Alfred Street North, Nottingham, NG3 1AE and you’re welcome to come along.

Please download the flyer for more details

The agenda will include:

• Presentation of annual report and accounts

• Appointment of auditors

• Election of Trustees/Directors

• Presentations from the Playworks team on:

• The launch of the new volunteer project

• Improvements to the Scrapstore

• Update on development work

• New training and plans for the future

Lunch and networking will follow.

As usual we will be offering the first five group members that attend a free goody bag, and the first five individual members a voucher for a free basket of scrap.

We look forward to seeing you there. To find out more please call us on 0115 958 9199 or email info@playworks.org.uk

Playworks has received amazing support from our members over the past year and we really appreciate this.

Every parent wants their child to have a happy, healthy childhood but providing play opportunities for children can be hard work for families struggling with the rising cost of food, transport and household bills for example.

According to The Campaign to End Child Poverty, more than one in three children in Nottingham are growing up in poverty.

To help, we’re offering to help parents who want to set up their own community play projects.

Playworks has been supporting children’s play in Nottingham for over 30 years and we’ve already helped to set up play projects in communities around the city.

One of these projects is Kidz United, an after-school club in the Meadows that provides play activities and support for local children, particularly children from asylum-seeking families in Nottingham.

Helen Coppins from Kidz United says: 

“Kidz United has been running since 2010, after local parents decided to set up a project offering play and support to children in the Meadows. Playworks has been involved from the start and has helped us to make our ideas a reality. 

For instance, Playworks has provided free training for our volunteers and low-cost craft materials as well as an abundance of ideas. They’ve also helped us to research funding options and to complete funding application forms. 

Today, Kidz United runs between two and three sessions a week, providing play and support to around 80-100 children, with a workforce of over 20 volunteers. Playworks continues to support our project and has been an invaluable resource to us.”

Playworks can help new projects to start up or provide support to develop existing ones. 

For example, we provide free training for play project staff and volunteers so that they can learn practical and useful skills around play including arts and crafts, therapeutic play, first aid, group development and safeguarding children.

We can also provide projects with trained, CRB-checked volunteers.

As you probably know, we run a Scrapstore too offering affordable recycled arts and crafts materials and an Art Shop. Play projects like Kidz United can buy a basketful of recycled arts and crafts materials for just £1, enabling them to run creative activities for children without having to worry about the cost.

If you’re interested in starting a community play project for children, young people or families – or you already run one and would like more support, please contact:

Laura Summers at Playworks on 0115 958 9199 or email laura.summers@playworks.org.uk 

Click here to read the press release in full

What kind of training would you like in the future?

Please help us to deliver the training that you need by taking a few minutes to complete our training audit. Your views really will make a difference. 

You can email your completed survey to info@playworks.org.uk or if you prefer the post, please send it to Playworks, Alfred Street North, St Ann’s, Nottingham, NG3 1AE.

Download our Training Audit
Download our Training Audit – Course List

Here at Playworks we’re always aiming to improve and develop our services in line with what you really want – and need.

To help us plan for the future we’d be really grateful if you could fill in and return our Annual User Survey. It will only take a few minutes to complete and your answers really will help us to help you.

You could even win a FREE Annual Membership – simply by returning your form!

Download Playworks’ Annual User Survey

You can email your completed survey to info@playworks.org.uk or if you prefer the post, please send it to Playworks, Alfred Street North, St Ann’s, Nottingham, NG3 1AE.

Many thanks for your help.

Nottingham’s Year of Reading is drawing to a close this week with a grand finale on Friday 10th February at the Nottingham Theatre Royal.

The evening will begin with an event from 4pm to 5pm where Liz Asher will be talking about how Playworks has been involved in the Year of Reading. For example, we’ve run story-telling workshops for professionals, volunteers and parents – with the aim of bringing stories to life and showing people how books can spark a whole range of fun, imaginative play activities.

You are very welcome to come along – click here for more details and to download an invite

From 5pm to 8pm there’ll be lots of reading-related activities going on including the chance to pick up free books!

Find out more about the event
Find out more about our story-telling workshops

Are you a group or organisation that provides activities for children, young people or families?
Worried about funding for 2012?
Want to know who can support you?

Come along to our Play Action Network meeting tomorrow, 9th February, from 9.45am to 1pm to find out what funding and support is available. The meeting will be held at Playworks, Alfred Street North, Nottingham, NG3 1AE.

Nottingham City Council will be talking about the funding they have available for community and voluntary sector groups whilst NCVS (Nottingham Community and Voluntary Service) will be talking about the support they can give you. 

Plus of course, you can find out how Playworks can help you – including what training you’d like for staff and volunteers.

The event is free and lunch is provided.

We hope to see you there and if you’d like to get in touch to find out more please call Laura Summers on 0115 958 9199.

Please download the flyer for more details

We were delighted to welcome Chris Leslie, MP for Nottingham East, at our Scrapstore Open Day on Saturday 4th February. Chris came along to find out more about Playworks and to meet local families.

Here’s what Chris said about his visit in his weekly newsletter:

“It was a real pleasure to visit the local voluntary group Playworks Nottingham in St Ann’s on Saturday to join their monthly open day for local people and other children’s groups. As well as helping inspire new ideas and training for children’s play volunteers, they have a ‘Scrapstore’ packed with coloured paper, cardboard, ribbons and almost everything you can imagine useful for children to use in crafts and making; a real Aladdin’s cave treasure trove and only £10 per year to join. The painting and drawing was a real hit with the kids (see picture below)!”

Many thanks to Chris for his support.

Play Action Network

Funding and Support for the Voluntary Sector

 9^th February 2012 at Playworks, 9.45-1pm

Are you a group or organisation that provides activities for children, young people or families? Worried about funding for 2012? Want to know who can support you?  This PAN will update the sector on funding streams available in city as well as news from organisations that can support your work.

Presenting on the day:

• Nottingham City Council: Patricia Gilby updating on the funding available for VCS groups
• NCVS: Updating on the support they can offer
• Playworks: Current services offered and a discussion around training requirements.

Lunch provided. Please Note: There is restricted parking around our site.

To book or for more information, call Playworks on 0115 958 9199 or email: info@playworks.org.uk

Don’t forget our next Scrapstore Open Day for families is on 4th February from 10am – 1pm including free arts and crafts activities for children and grown-ups, free refreshments and a visit from our local MP Chris Leslie!

All with a Valentine’s Day theme!

Look forward to seeing you there!

We had a very positive article in Monday’s Nottingham Evening Post about our new scheme to train people as volunteer playworkers.

The project will give anyone who’s interested in becoming a playworker the skills, qualifications and experience they need – free of charge.

As a volunteer, you’ll get real hands-on work experience, running real play activities for children across Nottingham.

The aim of the project is to help people train as playworkers and also to provide a ‘volunteer force’ of playworkers who can run play activities for children in communities throughout the city or help other play organisations – at a time when many are struggling due to the funding cuts.

If you’d like to find out more please feel free to call Wendy Russell, our Volunteer Co-ordinator on 0115 958 9199.

Please click here to read the story in full