News

Building a team of playworkers for the whole town

Playwork is a fun, dynamic approach to facilitating children’s play and supporting their individual needs. Before we talk about the training let’s take a  look back to set the scene.   The Abergavenny Community Trust is the charity which operates Abergavenny Community Centre – it promotes sustainable behaviour, encourages participation and social inclusion, supports families in their various forms and facilitates educational, social, welfare, leisure and recreational activities to enable people to mix.  

The Abergavenny Community Centre (occupying the former Infant School above Merthyr Road) is a community space which functions chiefly by bringing people together to do everyday things that keep more of us active and involved in communal life for longer.   There’s a small part time staff team supported by committed volunteers who come regularly to help at Friday coffee morning, lunches, gardening, toddlers group, dementia friendship cafe, singing, chair yoga, knitting club and monthly Sunday afternoon teas. Running in tandem, the Trust has been growing and developing its ‘Supporting Families‘ work too. 

The Centre is known for the offer of meaningful and practical activities which aim to broaden and enrich childhood experiences. Currently, 120 families make up the combined half term, summer holiday, ‘hands-on cooking’ and community kids’ registers – with 102 children (3-16yrs) participating in outdoor learning & play, art club and ‘cooking for life’ activities last summer.  Demand is growing for these activities and while we know families would welcome more –  and we would like to offer more – our capacity has limitations and we can’t do it alone.  The Centre tries to ease this gap by identifying and working with trusted partners, individuals and groups, like the Abergavenny Origami Club who share our values and has the ability to draw on a network of individuals who willingly give time by sharing their craft, in a timeless tradition.  Thirty children and family members came along to their Autumn session.   

As the saying goes ‘it takes a whole village to raise a child’ so after publicly testing the desire for building a team of local playworkers as a resource for the whole town, we were committed.  Funding can be a stumbling block to getting ideas off the ground but in this case we are pleased to announce that between Abergavenny Town Council, Abergavenny Rotary Club and private donors we have sourced a training provider and the date is set.  The Trust is grateful to these generous funders, and we are reminded that we live in a spirited, connected place where goodwill can  thrive.   

If you have an interest in working in the childcare or / and community sectors please accept this invitation and apply.  The skills, experience and qualification gained will be yours to take away, and while this local investment is made more widely in the interests of safeguarding children and families the only request is that successful applicants give some time and energy to helping Abergavenny Community Centre.  We look forward to receiving your application. Thank you.  Marion Pearse