SPARKLE (SOUTH WALES)
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Mission Statement
The relief of poverty, sickness and distress among children in particular by the provision of facilities, equipment and services and the relief of siblings, parents and carers of such children who are in necessitous circumstances through the provision of advice, information and advocacy and the provision in the interests of social welfare of facilities for recreational and leisure time occupation with the object of improving the conditions of life of the aforementioned.
About This Cause
Sparkle is the official charity of the Serennu Children's Centre in Newport, Nevill Hall Children’s Centre in Abergavenny, and Caerphilly Children's Centre. The guiding principle for Sparkle is to ensure that children and young people with disabilities and/or developmental difficulties and their families are fully supported and able to participate in valued childhood experiences, with access to the same range of opportunities, life experiences, activities and community services as any child and their family. Life isn’t easy for some of our children, young people or their families, The Sparkle Team want to ensure the best possible facilities and support are in place this is why the Sparkle Appeal raises money throughout the year to fund the unique services, trained staff and state-of-the-art equipment. Sparkle was the driving force behind Serennu Children’s Centre, a fully-integrated centre where health, social care, family support and leisure are co-located, with state-of-the-art facilities including hydrotherapy pool, MediCinema, sensory room, accessible playground and rebound centre. In the past few years, Sparkle has expanded across Gwent to become the charity partner of Nevill Hall and Caerphilly Children’s Centres. From the centres and community venues in the catchment areas, we offer specialist leisure provision for children and young people, aged 0-18, with disabilities and/or developmental difficulties, as well as holistic support for their families. SPECIALIST LEISURE - Leisure activities and clubs in the community are often not equipped to support those with complex needs, meaning our young people are more at risk of being isolated and missing out on valuable childhood experiences. Sparkle takes the time to assess each individual’s specific needs to ensure we are providing suitable experiences and activities for each child. Our leisure clubs include a variety of activities, such as sensory experiences, arts and crafts, games which encourage socialisation, and activities like cooking for skills development. The children and young people we support have profound needs due to their disabilities and/or developmental difficulties. Many of our children require 1:1 or even 2:1 support, are non-verbal or have significant communication difficulties, and/or have medical conditions which require constant monitoring, medication and specialist equipment. Therefore, it is imperative our clubs are fully staffed with specially trained Leisure Support Workers who are able to provide the support our children and young people need to be able to engage in leisure activities. We run a variety of leisure activities for 0–17-year-olds, including play and youth clubs afterschool and on weekends, and swimming lessons. We also offer family activities, such as a stay-and-play toddler group, family swim sessions and screenings in our MediCinema at Serennu. Run jointly with Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, we deliver a fortnightly club for children with the most complex healthcare needs. FAMILY LIAISON - We developed a unique Family Liaison Service to act as a first point of contact at the children’s centres and offer a range of support, for example help to identify and apply for financial assistance, and provide resources and advice to assist with issues such as anxiety, sleep and managing challenging behaviour. Family Liaison Officers organise and deliver workshops for parents and carers, and host support groups and fun events for the whole family. They are passionate about supporting the families of children and young people with disabilities and/or developmental difficulties. IMPACT - There are currently over 200 children and young people with disabilities and/or developmental difficulties registered for our weekly leisure clubs and holiday activities in Newport, Torfaen, Monmouthshire, Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly. We have seen a significant increase in the number of children requiring one-to-one and two-to-one support following the pandemic, meaning we have required a higher staff to child ratio in many of our clubs. We have also been able to bring our family activities and swimming lessons back up to full capacity following the pandemic. Over 500 families are registered for these fun activities, tailored to meet the needs of families with children with complex needs. We are currently running three MediCinema screenings a week and there are 50 seats in the cinema, meaning approximately 650 individuals are able to access this provision every month, and approximately 36 families can access a family swim session in our hydrotherapy pool each month. For many families, these experiences are the only times they get to spend time together as a family without fear of judgement, where they know their child will be safe and others in the pool or cinema will be understanding to any difficulties their child experiences. We also offer a ‘stay and play’ group for children aged 0-4 with or undergoing a diagnosis of a disability or developmental difficulty, and their parents/carers. Little Stars is regularly attended by approximately 8 families, providing the children with a safe space to play and develop and reducing social isolation for parents and carers. Our Family Liaison Officers support over 1,200 families via weekly information bulletins, monthly newsletters, and personalised support over the phone, email or in person. They host monthly coffee mornings where families in similar situations can interact and share ideas and moral support, as well as supporting the running of support groups and information workshops at the centres. These include the ADHD+ and T:21 Dragons support groups and workshops from SNAP Cymru and the National Youth Advocacy Service. We rely on fundraising and grant funding to enable us to continue to support Gwent children and young people with complex needs, and their families. They would greatly appreciate your support - thank you.