Play Well is an inclusive ‘end of day’ term time play club for primary aged children with SEND and their siblings living or attending a school within two miles of our centre (B29 7DE).
Places are subsidised thanks to support from the National Lottery.
Only £10 per child (age 5+) for up to 2 hours free-flow developmental play (no parent/carer required to stay). Sessions run 3.15-5.15pm, Mon-Fri (termtime only). Great for working parents. Transport from a few special schools already bring children straight to the Play Centre, or you can drop off your child.
Fees must be paid fortnightly in advance preferably by Standing Order on the 15th of the month. Places will be limited so early booking is essential.
At Parks For Play we believe that play is central to children’s physical, mental, social, and emotional health and wellbeing and that these things come about when play is supported as a process involving challenge, exploration, making ‘mistakes’, testing things out and being creative.
Play Well after school sessions will be delivered by a team from charity Parks for Play, which was created by and for families with disabled children and play experts. They have a wealth of experience and approaches when it comes to engaging children in meaningful ways. They’ve been doing it for over 20 years!
Parks For Play have for many years invested in staff training and observation skills as well as external research. If a child is not thriving as a result of this we know that Play Well can help your child with:
Through the processes of play, children will interact with others, develop, break and re-develop friendships, navigate conflict and grow in respect and understanding of human diversity. Parks for Play understands and values ‘social’ as something expressed in a myriad of ways (for example, not always one person to another or including speech or direct contact). Children’s unique expressions are always celebrated at Parks for Play.
Playing enables an encountering with less tangible things – moments of wonder, dreaming, imagination, surprise, curiosity and questioning. These experiences push children’s drive to find out more about the world and their place in it. They are ‘wow’ moments, exciting, absorbing, full of sensation, speculation and hope. Play enables children to test out and gain an understanding of concepts like justice, democracy and power.
Playing allows children to work through strong emotions and to develop a repertoire of responses and problem-solving skills, supporting them in areas such as emotional regulation and improving their ability to cope with anxiety and stress.
When children play in self-directed ways, ‘deep learning’ comes about because children are engaging with multiple aspects of their being; cognitive, but also sensory, emotional awareness, movement and balance and body-awareness that in turn prompt lasting memories. Playing develops the structures of the brain and builds skills such as creativity and problem-solving.
Active play contributes to children’s health, their development of fine and gross motor skills and their confidence in their abilities. We know that being active can be particularly important when children have had a hard day of masking.
Playing supports a sense of belonging that occurs when children are genuinely valued in all their unique and diverse expressivities.
Email: team@parksforplay.org
