Welcome to the first HOPE Centre newsletter of 2016. This newsletter will keep you up-to-date with the major activities and news from the HOPE Centre on a regular basis. If you’d like to receive the newsletter as an email when it comes out, you can subscribe to this and other HOPE information emails from the home page of our web site.
HOPE welcomes a new CEO – Sarah Eardley
HOPE Centre for Children, Families and the Community are delighted to welcome Sarah Eardley as their new Chief Executive Officer. Sarah has worked for nearly 15 years in the Third Sector and for the last six years has specialised in women’s services at Asha Women’s Centre in Worcester.
Her early career in publishing was followed by a period abroad in Spain for several years. Upon her return to England she worked as a Pan European Project Manager on product and packaging launches for Nestle in Surrey and later as Supply Chain Manager at Kraft Foods in Cheltenham.
After starting a family, Sarah changed career and moved to the Voluntary Sector. This career has been the most rewarding for her and she is committed to services that benefit not only families and individuals but also communities, their infrastructure and future. For this reason she is absolutely thrilled to be working for HOPE, as she explains:
It’s been clear to me from the very beginning that HOPE is a unique offering in the local community. I’ve been impressed at the breadth of services and experience offered here as well as the passion and commitment from the staff and volunteers. I feel very privileged to work alongside such dedicated people, and I’m looking forward to building upon the work and ethos created by Sheenagh Davis and the Board of Trustees by ensuring the good work at HOPE continues.
Alongside her management and leadership skills, Sarah brings knowledge and experience of the Third Sector and has been involved with working with families and children, criminal justice teams and women’s services. We are very pleased to welcome her to HOPE and wish her every success.
Janet Pearce-Higgins
Chair of the Board of Trustees
HOPE Centre for Children, Families and the Community
Early Years Education
Christmas in Early Years
We all thoroughly enjoyed our Christmas parties, presentations and celebrations this year. Each of our rooms enjoyed their own way of marking this special time of year. The babies and toddlers held a sing and story session with their parents and carers, and the pre-school children performed a nativity play. All the children had some party food and a visit from Father Christmas.
The pre-school children went along to Longlands Care Farm and acted out the Nativity with real animals in a barn. They learnt about caring for the cows and sheep, what they eat and were able to hold some new little chicks, recently born.
We had musicians playing Christmas carols and all went home with a goody bag – a magical way to start the Christmas holidays.
Woodland School
We make sure all our children have at least one six week block at our woodlands school during their time in the preschool.
It’s a real opportunity for the children to engage in activities that they lead, with supportive adults always ready to watch for those “teachable moments” where new skills can be developed.
They have space to move with confidence as they run through the leaves or hide under the tangled branches. They begin to understand about the roots that spread out from the trees and how this keeps the tree upright.
Being in the woods also provides an opportunity for the quieter children to develop their confidence and lead the play.
In the photo, one child shows another how to build bridges using the sticks he has found. He learns about how far he can bend a stick before it snaps; the ground being soft, so that the stick can be pushed in; and about sharing his expertise with his friend.
Oscar’s re-branded!
You may have noticed that Oscar’s is no longer Oscar’s Coffee House, but Oscar’s Café.
After a lot of thought and discussion, we decided that calling Oscar’s a café is a much better reflection of the atmosphere and of the way that people use the space – our café is a place where people meet, socialise and enjoy great food and drinks in a bright and comfortable surroundings with fabulous views.
Oscar’s Café is now on Facebook too, so you can follow us there and keep up with all our new menus and promotions. Oscar’s is running a buy one get one free offer on hot drinks until the end of February 2016 – pick up a voucher at HOPE reception.
Then come by and enjoy the friendly atmosphere and great food.
News from Supporting Families
In 2015 there have been a number of changes within the family support team: Kim Snookes-Hathaway has left the team to pursue her weight loss business; and Jo Evans is leaving to concentrate on her University Course. As a result, the family support team will be recruiting in the future.
In 2016 we are aiming to increase our outreach work and reach a larger audience and engage with more families. We’re looking to increase our work with local families and will work to see that groups continue to be well used.
The bumps and babies group is very well attended as is the Wednesday sensory group, sadly Soft Play and Stay and Play are not as in demand and numbers might dictate changing the days these run.
HOPE needs even more learners
Would you like to learn how to get more out of your laptop, tablet or smartphone? Or are you a parent who needs to improve their Maths, English or parenting skills? Are you trying to find a job or need to create a great CV to improve your chances of employment? There are courses and clubs that run regularly at HOPE and you can join in or get onto our waiting lists now.
Are you looking to get more fit after having a baby, or do you need to lose those Christmas pounds and get ready for the beaches this summer? Perhaps you’d just like to feel a little healthier. Independent tutors use the wonderful facilities at HOPE to offer Weight Watchers, Lighter Life and Cambridge diet plans, alongside Pilates and a variety of exercise classes. Other tutors have offered Nordic Walking, Walking for Health and Beginners Jogging. Please pop in or contact us for more details.
Coming soon – ‘Men in the Kitchen’ cookery courses for aspiring cooks. Starting with basic cookery techniques these classes offer the chance to learn ‘real cooking’ with healthy ingredients and, even better, you get to take your food home.
Did you receive a new laptop, tablet or smartphone for Christmas? Are you confused by the new layout in Windows 10? Are you are a complete beginner or just want help to customize Windows 10 to suit you? We could have the course for you.
Are you interested in nail art, massage techniques, skin care and make up? Would you like to learn basic sewing skills and how to operate a sewing machine? Or do you sew a bit but want to know how to make your own clothes or soft furnishings? Perhaps you’d like to learn a new craft like needle felting, cake decorating, ribbon embroidery or tie-dying.
We can offer courses in all these subjects and more. All we need is for you to let us know what you would like to learn. As soon as we have sufficient numbers to fill a class we will get started.
We’d really like to hear from you so please contact us by 5th February and you could be learning something new before Easter.
Telephone Mandy on 01885 488495 or email mwilliams@hopefamilycentre.co.uk.
Next Time
Look for the next HOPE Centre newsletter in the spring, when we’ll bring you more news about what’s been happening at HOPE and what we’re looking forward to.
