Want to set up a new Playgroup. HELP Please.

[Newbarnsleygirl]

OK

Having done alot of research of childrens facilities in Barnsley I have come to the decision that it's rubbish. So instead of moaning about it I may as well do something about it and set my own playgroup up.

However I'm not 100% on where to start. Could you help me out?

How do I go about finding a venue?
Do I need a CRB check and if so where do I apply?
Will it cost an arm and a leg to do?
Do any of you run one and is it successful?

Any advice will be welcome.

P.s Thanks to Desperatehousewife for her inspiration on this one!

[nnosam]

is ti a toddler group where mothers stay with their kids for one morning a week or is it a paid sessions 2 or 3 times a wek where the kids get left there?

[Newbarnsleygirl]

No it's one where mums stay with their children.

I'm taking dd to a playgroup at the moment but it's not fantastic.

I wanted to add some other activities to it like art work, singing, games etc.

[WideWebWitch]

If you're doing parent and toddlers then the regulations will be less onerous I think so that's good. Can you find a playgroup with premises (a hall or something) and rent the room from them for a session? When I was chair of a pre-school we had a m&t group that did this and it meant they were covered by our pre-school insurance. I think this would be simplest as you could, presumably, use their equipment and toys too. Once you've done that you'd just need to do some posters, advertise (tell health visitors) and open.

[Newbarnsleygirl]

Theres a newly built church I've got my eye on and when I walked passed it the other day I noticed that they were holding a coffee morning for the elderly so I guess they must have a hall of some sort.

As for the toys we have enough to supply Toys'R'Us with! What we haven't got I would eventually buy with fee costs as I was thinking of charging £1.50 for children over 1yr.

[nnosam]

i dont know if you have the same but here in gloucester we have PATA (parent and toddler association) they give advice and provide insurance and things like that.
i have just spoken to pata, and if you wantted to you can call the project manager Maureen Price on 01452-542896 or email:
or go to www.pataglos.org.uk.
they do offer suport and membership to people outside gloucester, however you wouldnt get the face to face help and visits from them.
give them a ring and have a chat.
hope this helps.

[Tetley]

Check woth your local council for any regulations & forms that you may need to fill in. Also the Pre-School Learning Alliance may be able to help.

I recently helped to run a mums & toddler group & we had membership & insurance from this.

We had previously been covered under the pre-school's insurance, that ran next door, but their insurance company got funny about the access & wouldn't cover them if we were there at the same time.

HTH

[LIZS]

Not sure how much information on \link{http://www.childcarelink.gov.uk/index.asp\this site] would be relevant , but you can do a search selecting "Toddler Groups" fro those local to you. There may be a Family Services contact number, noted against some of the preschools, for your area which could provide the legal and insurance info you need to comply with.

[LIZS]

try again childcare site

[milge]

Can#t help with how to set it up,regulations are all different over this side of the severn bridge, but i have a load of toys you can have to fill your hall!

[Newbarnsleygirl]

Oooooh thanks everyone. That information is really useful. I'll give them people a ring Nnosam.
I thought it might be a good idea to get someone to do it with me so if anyone knows anyone in Barnsley. I think I'm the only MN here though.
Any more advice?

[Miaou]

Think about storage for the toys so you don't have to cart them to and from your sessions. When considering the venue you may need to arrange permanent storage. Also think about toilet/change facilities, plus kitchen facilities too.

And well done on taking the initiative and doing something about it!!

[nnosam]

good luck and hope you get it all sorted out.

[mrsflowerpot]

Pre School learning Alliance will definitely help you lots and advise you on insurance etc which is obviously vital. They may also be able to tell you about grants etc to set up so you can buy toys, art materials etc. And your local authority early years bit should be helpful too on grants etc.

You'll need a good venue which is either easily accessible or has parking - it needs a secure kitchen area and ideally a space that is easy to partition off (even if that is just by moving chairs etc around it) for the babies.

And a good solid committee (even if it's just 3 of you) is vital. You can't do it all alone, and you need to make sure that everyone is committed to it - hopefully when you get up and running you'll be able to recruit from the parents who come to the group to expand the committee. It's really hard to do any fund-raising, parties etc if you don't have the manpower on the committee.

[nnosam]

hi anyone who is intressted in contacting Maureen Price from PATA, please ring this number 01452-541245. i typed in the wrong number.

sorry

[Newbarnsleygirl]

Thanks for the number Nnosam, they were very helpful.