New Funding Helps Guarantee Summer of Fun For Kids in Beechdale

Children living in Beechdale who faced having their activity club cancelled for the duration of the summer holidays, due to a lack of funding, have had their summer brightened thanks to Beechdale Community Housing Association (BCHA) and their maintenance partner Morrison.

The Place 2 Be activity club, which is held on Monday evening at the Beechdale Lifelong Learning and Library Centre, faced closure during the summer holidays due to a funding shortage which meant Frank F. Harrison Community Association which runs the club could only afford to do so during term times. When Morrison and BCHA heard about the plight of the club, they were only too happy provide the funding to ensure it could remain open during the six week summer holiday.

The activity club is attended by around 25 children aged between 8 and 12 and provides them with an opportunity to enjoy fun learning activities together in a safe out-of-school environment. The club is staffed by professional ‘play-workers' who have been trained and safety checked by the Frank F. Harrison Community Association, and is overseen by the Youth and Play Coordinator of the Association.

Andy Cornaby, Managing Director, Morrison said: "The Place 2 Be club provides an important community facility for the local children and we are delighted that we could play a part in keeping it open for the summer holidays. Supporting communities is at the heart of Morrison and this is just one of the activities we hope to be involved in Beechdale through our partnership with BCHA."

Richard Fitzhenry, Property Asset Manager, BCHA, said: "Ensuring the future community sustainability of Beechdale is a key corporate goal and our joint sponsorship of this project, with our repairs partner Morrison, ensures that the children of tenants and residents can enjoy a whole range of physical and creative activities throughout the summer in a safe and supervised environment."

Bruce Bennett, Development Manager, Frank F. Harrison Community Association, commented: "We consider social play activities for children to be very important, especially for children who are at, or around, the age when they are changing from junior to senior school. Over recent years we have found it very difficult to find funding for play work. Therefore we are very pleased and encouraged by the support of BCHA and their maintenance partner Morrison, who also recognise the importance of The Place 2 Be."