Springboard's latest newsletter: Nov 08; June 09 Feb 2010

January 2010:

Springboard's hard working volunteers were treated to a post Christmas lunch to thank them for their valued time and commitment. Clevedon volunteers chose a Chinese restaurant and Weston an Italian one. Both lunches were very lovely occasions and it was great to see so many staff and volunteers getting together and enjoying themselves socially.

January/March 2010:
Springboard Weston was inspected by Ofsted in Janaury and was found to be Outstanding. This is a great achivement to add to our Outstanding result for our Clevedon Centre. The full report makes very interesting reading:

"Partnership with parents and carers is outstanding and has been maintained since the last inspection. Key workers work closely with the families. Parents and carers are comfortable to discuss concerns both formally and informally. Regular meetings enable parents to discuss how well their child is doing and their next step in their child’s learning and development".

The Inspector highlighted:

• staff are very skilled at understanding the often complex needs of each child. They have excellent knowledge of each child in their care which supports their individual needs extremely well
• Relationships are excellent and a key strength. Children respond extremely well to the high standard of behaviour expected by adults.
• Children thoroughly enjoy their time and make significant gains in their learning and development. They demonstrate excellent progress from their starting points.
  

  Springboard Chair of Trustees, Sarah Iles, commenting on the Weston Ofsted inspection result says:

  “I know that we are all delighted to see Springboard achieve the double! It is a fantastic resource for families and children in North Somerset. It is so very well deserved as without exception the staff have worked tirelessly and with enormous amounts of enthusiasm over the course of many years to develop Springboard as the professional organisation it is today”

Full copies of the report are available and can be downloaded here.

 

Parent Partnership Week - 30 Nov - 4 Dec 09:

This week is all about gathering feedback from parents/carers of children who attend Springboard and giving them information, the chance to see what we do in more detail and to have some fun with the children in return. Lots of activities and events are planned and many involve food! Keep an eye out for the notice-boards and flyers which will be coming out soon.

October 09:

In memory of Jock Loudon. For those of us who remember Jock, husband of Kath,
who is one of our ex-Springboard parents and a great Friends supporter. You may
wish to see a memorial plaque which was unveiled in the garden at our Clevedon Centre,
on 22nd October 2009. It commemorates the generous donations made by Jock’s
family and friends, which is helping to fund the garden project at Clevedon.
Our sincerest thanks go to Kath and family

April - June 2009 Supported Employment Pilot Project update:
The Supported Employment Project is going very well. Abi and Tracey have settled into a good routine of two sessions in the playroom and one focusing on the NVQ. During this time Abi has been supported by two Brandon Trust support workers Sally and Steve, who have been the key people in helping her to travel independently from Weston to Clevedon. Brandon Trust Senior Education Officer, Natasha, has also been supporting Tracey and Abi through the NVQ and giving Springboard invaluable advice and guidance.Grace and the monday and wednesday team at Springboard have also made Abi and Tracey very welcome and are very encouraging and supportive.

Over the last few months Abi and Tracey have formed a very successful partnership with Abi making great steps forward in her confidence and knowledge. With terrific support from Tracey and advice and guidance from Natasha and Grace, Abi is nearing the end of her NVQ. Abi is working so hard to complete all of her portfolio by mid July when it will be sent for assessment. Thanks to the funding from Futurebuilders, Springboard are able to offer Abi the opportunity of continuing to work in the playroom from September, but with a transfer to Springboard Weston.

 

March 2009-Springboard Clevedon Ofsted inspection - Outstanding!

That was the verdict of an Ofsted inspector following her recent visit to Clevedon. The inspection covered areas of our pre-school provision such as leadership, management, quality, standards and overall effectiveness. All areas were adjudged to be outstanding. Look at copy of the full report here.

 

On hearing the news Sarah Iles, Chair of the Trustees, said: “Springboard is a fantastic resource for families and children in North Somerset and we are delighted to see it recognised in this way. It is so very well deserved. Without exception the staff have worked tirelessly and with enormous amounts of enthusiasm over the course of many years to develop Springboard as the professional organisation it is today”.

The inspector further noted that:

• The group provides outstanding care, learning and development
• The staff have exceptional knowledge of children and their families
• The children are extremely happy, confident and well supported
• Each child's uniqueness is valued and respected
• High regard is given to multi agency cooperation and communication with parents and carers is exceptional
• Organisation of the learning environment and planned experiences is inspirational
• Outcomes for children's welfare, learning and development are exceptional
  

January 2009:
Springboard's Supported Employment Pilot Project is off the ground at last! After several months of delay the project, to employ and support a person with learning disabilities as a Childcare Trainee, has started. Abi is the trainee and Tracey is her Employment Support Worker/mentor. Abi will be working on a NVQ Level One childcare course and getting lots of first hand experience of working with children.

The project has been possible due to funding provided by Futurebuilders England as part of a capacity building grant to Springboard.

28 Jan 09 - Wooden Spoon Playroom Extension Opening:
The well known rugby charity, Wooden Spoon, kindly donated almost £20,000 to Springboard to fund an essential equipment indoor and outdoor store at our Clevedon centre. It was officially opened by Stuart Hetherington from the Bristol branch of Wooden Spoon , together with David and Sue Whitfield from the Long Ashton Golf Club. They were all instrumental in raising funds for the building work, and we are most grateful to them. As you can see several of the children enjoyed the opening ceremony too!

 

 

22 April 2008
Springboard's Clevedon Centre main extension is finished at last! The builders and architects and have done a fantastic job and the Centre is looking great, as you can see from the photo.

Grace Room - this is a small meeting/activity room for hire, it holds about 10-12 people and has kitchen facilities and an accessible toilet nearby. If you are interested in a booking or coming in for a look, please contact our Clevedon office 01275 341113 or
email info@springboardweb.org.uk

 

 

Clevedon Extension news:

Since this building was completed in 1993, Springboard has grown as an organisation and we now have 22 staff working from our Clevedon Centre. Although many of the staff are not here all at once, we are desperate for more space for them, our volunteers and for parents. Parents need space to meet with our staff and other professionals, or to have a support group meeting and somewhere for reviews and so on. Our planned facilities include a resources/meeting room which can be used for family support, including involvment of other agencies and parents; training, such as parent workshops; more storage for resources and for the playroom; more upstairs office space and two more toilets. We will also have a new entrance and entry system.

So far we have raised ALMOST all of the funding we need to complete the project, but we're not quite there yet!! A major source of funds in the form of a loan and grants is Futurebuilders England. Their support has enabled the project to take a huge step forward and has helped us in attracting other funds.
Building work started in October 07 and completion by April 08. Despite the
recent heavy rain, the building is coming along well, as the photos below show. Watch this space!

23 January 2008, it's looking great and we have a full roof. At least that will keep the rain at bay.

November 07: Frame arrives and is gently put in place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

25 January 2008:
Big Lottery Fund Success for Springboard - we are very fortunate to be receiving a grant of £135,000 for the next three years for family support services, as part of the Big Lottery Fund's 'Reaching Communities' programme. This exciting opportunity means that Springboard will be able to build on and develop the pilot family support work that we started earlier in 2007 (see below) which is going very well and is proving to be of great value to children and their parents/carers. It's going to be a busy year but with the help of the Big Lottery Fund, an even more successful one for Springboard family support services. For more information click here to read the full press release.

23 January 2008: Building work is well underway and going very well, take a look at our Clevedon page

22 Oct 2007: Building work has started at our Clevedon Centre. We are having an extension to provide a resources/community room; more toilets including a fully accessible one; a new entrance; storage for larger seating and children's equipemnt and more office space. As our main entrance is out of action, the main playroom door is now the main access point to the building. Children and parents are using the Sunhill Park entrance as this is safer than walking past the building work.

20 July 2007: This was a very exciting and proud day for us as HRH Queen visited Weston super Mare and performed the official opening ceremony at Ashcombe Children's Centre. Despite the very wet weather, she was greeted by cheering crowds and spent about 20 minutes touring the Centre, including the Springboard facilities. She was very interested in what Springboard does for children and and families, meeting several of them during her whirlwind tour.She also spoke to several staff, volunteers and trustees and seemed very pleased to have time to chat. She was a very attentive and charming visitor. Her visit to Springboard was a very special moment for us all during our 20th anniversary year. Unfortunately, we did not manage to have any photographs taken whilst she was at Springboard, but there are plenty of the visit as a whole if anyone would like to see them. If you wish to see more of the Queen's visit to Weston, please click on the link below.

BBC video footage of the Queen in Weston and her visit to Ashcombe. See our Julia in action!

This beautiful cake to commemorate the Queen's visit was made by a staff member from Ashcombe School. The detail was amazing and it tasted good too!

9 May 2007:

Springboard is presented with a brand new Variety Club Sunshine Coach from actress Sophie Ward. The minibus is sponsored by major property developer Crest Nicholson. During the presentation, children at our Clevedon Centre were very excited at having a good look at the new minibus and trying it out for size and they approved. The minibus will be getting a lot of use, including a trip to Bristol Zoo in June.

We wish to thank the Variety Club for the opportunity to have a replacement coach in place of our much loved older one which saw us proud for 14 years. Thanks also to Crest Nicholson for their fantastic fundraising on our behalf and for supporting the Variety Club Sunshine Coach programme.

 

5 May 2007:

A big thank you to everyone who took part in the Springboard Sponsored Swim which was organised by Friends. It was a great success with many teams taking part in this fun event at the Strode Centre in Clevedon. Swimmers are now requested to collect their sponsor monies as soon as possible and send into Springboard. Thanks again.

 

2 May 2007:

Springboard has received a grant from the Clifton based James Tudor Foundation to help fund family support services over next two years. Thank you to Rod Shaw and their trustees for their generous support.

 

31 March 2007:
Springboard Annual General Meeting was held at Ashcombe Children's Centre and included a drop in sesison for the children and their families. It was a very enjoyable and relaxing morning and after the business of the meeting we did a big Hokey-Cokey around the pole in the Central Play Area! It was different but great fun.

 

September 2006:

We did it! After many months of planning, fundraising and worrying our Weston service is now based in purpose-built premises at the new Ashcombe Children's Centre.

It has been a busy few months for us all, but we are delighted at how well all the children have settled in. Parents and carers are very pleased to have a dedicated parents' room and a place to meet and chat. We have a playroom, fully accessible toilets and changing area, a sensory room, a softplay room and shared kitchen. We also have space in a shared office and have been made most welcome by all the Ashcombe staff. The Centre has a stunning canopy covered central play area, with lots of toys and equipment and a huge sandpit. All the Springboard children and the other children attending the nursery and reception classes are having a great time playing together.

We are all very pleased with our facilities and wish to thank everyone who has supported our building project in any way. Without their tremendous joint effort we would not be where we are today.

See our Weston page for more about our services at Ashcombe Children's Centre.

Click here for address and contact details for Springboard at Ashcombe Children's Centre

 

Introducing our patron Rupert Graves, Weston super Mare born actor:

Pictured here on a recent informal visit to Springboard, Rupert Graves, the popular local actor is lending his support to Springboard' Clevedon extension project. Rupert recently appeared on TV in The Forsyte Saga and many films and will soon to be on our screens as Dr Christiaan Barnard, the South African heart transplant pioneer in 'To Be First'.

Rupert said: “Springboard provides fantastic support to children with additional needs and disabilities at a crucial stage of their lives. They urgently need more facilities at their Clevedon Centre to continue their vital services for the benefit of children and their families. They deserve all the help they can get”. Rupert has a young family himself, and they also enjoyed spending time in the playroom at Clevedon. He hopes to be involved with Springboard for many years to come and to give us any help he can.

If you would like to know more about his work, past present and future, look at www.rupert-graves.com