SUMMER activities for children and young people are planned in Warwickshire despite the pandemic.
Warwickshire County Council has been working over recent weeks with partners to see what provision could safely and reasonably be offered to schoolchildren over the summer across the county.
Activities arranged taking place can be found on the council’s dedicated Family Information Service webpage – www.warwickshire.gov.uk/fis – with more activities to follow.
They include a mixture of outdoor and online activities ranging from sports and crafts, multi-play and music, with several schools providing their sites for the outdoor activities. Schemes run by the district and borough councils are included.
The planning for the activities has followed government guidance and risk assessments have been undertaken to ensure they will comply with the necessary social distancing, and systems are in place should a participant develop symptoms.
A passport for all year groups from Reception to Year 5 has also been created and will be available for children and their families to provide some structure to summertime activities at www.warwickshire.gov.uk/education/parentsandcarers.
It aims to give children an opportunity to tick off their involvement in a range of actions geared towards getting them outside, weather permitting, or carrying out an activity online that will have some educational value.
County education spokesman Coun Colin Hayfield said: “We have been concerned at the amount of time that many children have not been in a school setting and we are grateful to parents for how they have stepped in and taken over the supervision and some of the learning of their children during what would have been normal school days.
“A huge amount of work has been done by county council officers in line with our partners to bring together some kind of offer. It is, inevitably, considerably less than would otherwise have been the case with the limits on social distancing but there is now something that parents can look at and involve their child with to give then some structure, some contact with their peers and to help children make the transition back to schools in September.
“It has been an incredibly difficult period for our young people and their families, and I am grateful to all involved for the efforts they have put in to give something over the summer holiday period which will make a significant contribution to the wellbeing of our young people.”
