Children's Centre opens to work in rural communities

Herefordshire Council is celebrating the official opening of a new children's centre this month which delivers its services from the heart of the county's rural communities.

The Golden Valley Children's Centre is different to most children's centres as it doesn't have a purpose build building to run its services from. As the area is very large and contains many distinct local communities, smaller venues such as community halls and church buildings will be used to run services from as an alternative.

To celebrate the official opening of the centre, an open day will be held on September 24th so that families and carers can learn about the services the Golden Valley Children's Centre can offer in their local community.

The open day has been arranged for the same day as Kingstone High and Kingstone and Thruxton Primary schools have their open days: the children's centre team will be opening the doors of the portacabin based on Kingstone's schools' grounds and providing lots of useful information for families together with child friendly activities.

The day begins at 10am with children's art, craft and cooking activities, followed by story time at 11am and a music workshop at 12 noon. Cabinet member for children and young people, Councillor Jenny Hyde will officially open the centre at 1pm and will judge the children's fancy dress competition at the same time. Face painting and Moon Carrot entertainment will also be around all day

Councillor Hyde, said: "Transport is often a big challenge for people living in the Golden Valley and can make it difficult to access services so taking services into the rural communities makes sense.

"Managing a young family can be an isolating experience and living in a small village with little or no transport can leave new parents with very little support. By thinking creatively, working with our partners and taking children's centres outside the main towns, we can help families in rural areas access the essential services they need."

There will be two sessions, one from 10am-3pm and a twilight information session from 5-7pm for those families who are unable to attend during the daytime.
Carole Harris Children's centre manager will also be available to answer any questions between 7pm and 9pm when she will join Kingstone High school in the main hall where information will be displayed by several services and organisations.