National Play Day huge success for Oswestry families
Over 70 families took part in an action packed day of activities to mark National Play Day in Oswestry last week.
Cllr Vince Clark and local families celebrating National Play Day at The Centre in Oswestry
The fun-filled day took place on Tuesday 1st August at The Centre, Oak Street and was organised by Oswestry’s “Family Matters” hub a new project set up by Shropshire Councils Community Enablement and Children’s Centre Early Help teams. The event was supported by Oswestry Library’s ‘Messy Monday’s’ voluntary group and the Qube who hosted a wide range of entertainment for children throughout the day.
Families were spoilt for choice with activities such as craft workshops, messy play, dressing up, creative play and many more group activities.
The day was also an opportunity to raise awareness of the new Family Matters service which provides a wide range of advice and support for Oswestry families on matters such as benefits and housing support as well as parenting advice and support.
Councillor Vince Hunt, Oswestry Town Mayor who attended the event said;
“It was great to see so many families enjoying themselves at the session and I’d like to thank everybody involved for making it such a successful event.
“Family Matters is such a wonderful service for Oswestry. I hope those who have used the service also encourage their friends and families to use it as it is an important and beneficial resource for the local community. It was lovely to host the National Play Day which gave us a great opportunity to reach even more families and raise awareness. So often people feel a stigma in asking for help, I hope that Family Matters will change this attitude and allow people to ask for advice, support and help before it gets to crisis.”
Oswestry Family Matters hub is open every Tuesday from 9am to 1pm at The Centre, Oak Street and has been set up to support families with 0-19 year olds (24 with a learning disability). People are able to book in advance or just turn up on the day. The Family Matters team also work closely with voluntary and community groups to widen the offer available to families.
Councillor Joyce Barrow, Shropshire Council Cabinet Member for Communities added;
“Family Matters is a key piece of the Resilient Communities work, Oswestry is really coming forward with innovative ideas and provision that seeks to support the needs of its residents. I am so happy to see such a positive relationship between Shropshire Council and Community Organisations flourishing. Providing residents with help, support and advice prior to crisis is so important to maintaining strong and stable home life for children. Having 70 families attend the National Play Day event was also fantastic, raising the awareness to all of those families of the support available to them should a time come for them to need it.”
To find out more about Oswestry’s Family Matters hub email oswestryearlyhelphub@shropshire.gov.uk
Further information
Oswestry’s ‘Family Matters’ hub is part of the Resilient Communities work stream under development by Shropshire Councils Community Enablement Team and Shropshire Council’s Children’s Centre Early Help Team.
The programme aims to increase the availability of community based early advice, information and guidance provision, and by having a very different conversation about what a person needs and how their needs can be met within their local community, while reducing demand on expensive specialised services.
For more information about Shropshire Council’s Resilient Community programme, visit https://www.shropshirechoices.org.uk/resilientcommunities
