Free summer lunches at fun days for kids
There is no charge to those taking part in the activity clubs – which will begin after most schools break up. An initial “Come & Try” session will be held at the museum near Ilkeston Market Place on Friday 25 July so families can find out more.
They are invited to meet holiday activity providers from around Erewash between 11am and 3pm by just turning up throughout the day. Places at clubs held across the borough during the rest of the holidays will require advance booking.
These include a summer season of fun days at the museum – on Mondays and Tuesdays throughout the school holidays. The clubs run from 10am to 2pm and are for seven to 12-year-olds.
Similarly aged pupils can also attend two weeks of fun days at Ilkeston’s Rutland Sports Park. The clubs – featuring a giant inflatable – will be staged from Tuesday 29 July to Friday 1 August and from Tuesday 5 August to Friday 8 August. Elsewhere in the borough there will be activity clubs at the Long Eaton School in Thoresby Road from Tuesdays to Fridays during the last two weeks of August – also for kids aged seven to 12.
Older pupils – up to the age 16 – can join separate Teen Holiday Activity and Food Clubs at two other venues. The sessions from 5pm until 7pm will offer “hot food, a chill out area plus sports and activities”. They will be held at Kirk Hallam Games Area in Windsor Crescent on Wednesdays from 30 July and at Cotmanhay Pavilion in Shirebrook Close on Thursdays from 31 July.
All the fun days are part of a county-wide initiative called It’s About Me, which gets funding from the Department for Education. Families need to book in advance to enrol children using a code available from school offices.
More information and book your place
An official said: “Places are available on a first come, first served basis, with priority given to children who receive benefit-related free school meals and those with vulnerabilities.”
Depending on demand, some youngsters who do not get free school meals may be able to attend. Inquiries can be emailed to: communityhealthwellbeing@erewash.gov.uk
The Erewash Museum near Ilkeston Market Place is normally open to the public on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 4pm. Entry is free. Erewash’s Deputy Leader Cllr Becca Everett, who is Lead Member for Community Engagement, said:
“The council is thrilled to continue what is now a tradition of running school holiday clubs – which are always extremely popular. We know that keeping children fit and active during the summer holidays can be a challenge. Our fun days, which include a healthy lunch for those who get free school meals, are the perfect solution.”
One local parent who previously rushed to sign up said: “My children loved it – thank you! I loved seeing them all red faced from running around when I went to collect them.”