Summer of Fun!

We’ve had an incredibly busy summer with our families, providing a range of opportunities for them to experience new things, a chance to learn and to build friendships and confidence.

Thanks to the support of the team at Chichester Harbour Conservancy, our families enjoyed a Solar Boat Trip, spotting the range of incredible wildlife and checking them off on their quiz sheet. For some children it was the first time they’d seen a real boat let alone go on one!

We were also able to take our families on two trips to the Harbour Tot’s educational workshop, they were able to experience nature close up and learn about the natural world around them. Along with our traditional family picnics which we held in Chichester and Midhurst, we were also welcomed by Chichester Forest School for a morning of Wild Play. Getting up close with nature, building things out of twigs, running, jumping and climbing!

What’s new?

Our next Volunteer Preparation course started in the first week of September where we have welcomed 8 new volunteers who will undertake 7 weeks of training. The volunteers are trained by our Manager, Lois Rowlands, with thought provoking, interactive and enjoyable sessions: one volunteer described it as ‘life-changing’. The training encourages the volunteers to think deeply about other people’s situations and the helping relationship they’re about to embark upon. Our dedicated volunteers are the lifeblood of Home-Start Chichester & District, and we are so thankful to them.

We were delighted to reinstate our Baby Group in Chichester, a dedicated family session for first time parents and those with a child under 1 years old. We know how stressful those early months can be and the specific needs of new babies, the group provides a chance for building confidence and friendships as well as focused chat around baby development.

With autumn on the horizon we are preparing for our ‘Annual Review—Together with Families’ event on 9th October where we’ll join with partners, funders, local authorities and our volunteers to look back at our work over the previous year and make plans for the future or Home-Start Chichester & District. If you haven’t yet received your invite but would like to attend then please get in touch, we welcome the chance to share our story with as many people as possible; email sue@home-startchichester.org.uk for full details.

We look forward to sharing our Annual Review report and our next newsletter with you later in the year. In the meantime, thank you to all our supporters, we couldn’t help vulnerable families in Chichester District to thrive without you.