Saints Community Development Foundation have had an incredibly busy summer this year, check out what we have been up to below!
Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Multi-sport and Cheer camps at Broad Oak Primary School and The Shining Lights Centre
In partnership with The St Helens Council, The Holiday Activities and Food programme is aimed at providing healthy food and enriching activities free of charge for primary and secondary school aged children who are eligible for benefit related free school meals during the summer holidays. We provided 80 HAF sessions in total at Broad Oak Primary School and The Shining Lights Centre in Sutton Manor in both Multi-sport and cheer sessions.
The Broad Oak and Shining Light Centre HAF sessions seen us sell out and accumulate 2400 bookings over the summer holidays!
Community Integrated Care Sessions
Community Integrated Care sessions are fun welcoming sessions designed for those under the care of Community Integrated Care. Throughout the summer holidays, we delivered 5 fantastic sessions.
Saints Community Development Foundation kicked off the accessible sports programme for people supported by Community Integrated Care living in St Helens – many of whom are huge Saints fans.
At each session, participants take part in relay activities, team games and physical exercises, promoting their health and wellbeing. It is also a fantastic opportunity for the participants and their carers to socialise and make new friends within the sessions.
Wargrave Primary School Unusual Sports and activities Day
Saints Community Development Foundation attended the Wargrave Primary Schools Unusual Sports and Activities Day! SCDF coaches delivered unusual sports such as outdoor dodgeball, kick tennis and rugby rounders to over 80 Wargrave Students that will be going into high school in September.
Saints Summer Rugby League Camps
Saints Summer Rugby League Camps at Cowley seen over 360 bookings over 6 days. Attendees learnt important rugby league skills as well as the all-important basics, whilst having fun in a wide range of exciting games throughout the day with qualified coaches.
Youth Endowment Fund Outreach Sessions
Over 5 weeks, Saints Community Development Foundation visited local parks in Sutton Manor to interact with children and introduce them to a wide range of sports and activities. We attended the parks on Tuesdays 3:30pm – 4:30pm over the summer holidays
Saints Angels Dance Workshops
Over the summer we seen some fantastic Cheer and Dace Workshops by talented individuals such as Mathew Howard, Joe McEvoy and Kate Karins! Over 60 children got to experience these workshops over the summer holidays at The Shining Lights Centre.
Veterans of The Foundation
This summer has been as busy as every for our Veterans, we organised two day trips to Llandudno and Windermere for local veterans, their families and members of our Over 50s Group, all travel and breakfast was paid for by Saints Community Development Foundation.
Our breakfast clubs also takes place every Thursday and Saturday starting from 9:30am, the breakfast club is designed for veterans to socialise and grab a bite to eat.
Over the summer we have continued to offer advice on employment-based and wellbeing opportunities to those who have served in the Armed Forces, including:
- Work experience placements.
- Volunteering opportunities.
- A mentor programme.
- Non-clinical wrap around support service for the Greater Manchester West NHS Trust and a drug and alcohol support service with Combat Stress.
- Structured training programmes.
And much more,
We also continued to offer outreach services by visiting ex service personnel who are socially excluded.
Saints Community Development Foundation also provide support for local veterans through The Veterans of The Foundation HQ based at The Shining Lights Centre in Sutton Manor:
We have the ability to expand our wrap around services to the individuals who need our support, and moreover offer them to more veterans. We already have a wide support network of specialists and partners who enable us to provide these services and we will be able to provide further safe and comfortable surroundings for 1 to 1 support meetings and group sessions.
Expanding on the mental health, support by providing hands on therapy is available in such areas as our Veterans of The Foundation Allotments that allows veterans to plan fruit and vegetables with other like minded veterans and assisting The Friends of The Cemetery who do a fantastic job cleaning war graves within The St Helens Cemetery.
Torus Foundation Firefit Hub Camps
School Holiday Camp August 2021 – FireFit Hub, Liverpool
As well as a chance for children to engage in a variety of fun activities, sessions also provided children the opportunity to socialise in a safe environment. Which also helped ease the financial burden that school holidays often bring with additional costs to families.
The school holiday camp this Summer took place at FireFit Hub, South Liverpool –
FireFit Hub camp was open to both Torus families and existing members of FireFit Hub.
Saints Community Development Foundation Staff attended three camps and helped deliver a range of sports and activities to children attending.
Saints Angels Cheer Camps.
Over 180 children attended the Saints Angels Cheer Camps where they learned how to tumble, dance, stunt and much more! Sessions took place at The Shining Lights Centre in Sutton Manor!
Girls Development Sessions
Over 150 Girls attended our Development Sessions that taken place at Cowley International College Playing Fields. Girls learned the all important basics and fundamentals of rugby league and learned how to correctly pass, use agility and use in game scenarios.
Foundations Over 50’s Group
Saints Community Development Foundation recently announced the start of our over 50 sessions for older members of the community, it includes activities such as:
Chats, biscuits and tea, Bingo, Dominoes, cards and includes chair-based exercises, line dancing and much more!
Young At Heart Sessions
Young At Heart is a mixed session for both Male and Females and utilises equipment such as resistance bands, chairs, light dumbbells, and exercise fit balls to help older members of the public to maintain their fitness! Sessions take place every Friday 11am – 12 noon.
In League With Women
In League with Women’s Wellness 10 week programme was successful over the summer – The Women’s Wellness sessions cover aspects such as mental health and physical fitness with two sessions per week, Every Tuesday 7pm – 9pm and Thursday 7pm – 8pm at The Shining Lights Centre, Sutton Manor WA9 4AT. Sessions start again on the 7th September 2021.
Community Club Fun Days
Over the summer, we have attended 9 community club Fun Days and interacted with over 500 children, We attended:
- Haydock ARLFC
- Newton ARLFC
- Pilkington Recs
- Portico RL
- Haresfinch ARLFC
- Thatto Heath Crusaders
- Blackbrook Royals
- Clockface Miners
- Liverpool Lions RL
Sutton Academy Mental and physical health workshops
Saints Community Development Foundation staff delivered multi-sport sessions and mental health awareness sessions to students going into year 7 at Sutton Academy. Coaches interacted with over 300 students in these sessions.
St Helens Referees Society
The partnership with Saints Community Development Foundation means the Referees society have been using the Shining Lights centre as a training and educational base, with a view to expanding their database of referees and enhancing the experience of their current crop. The Referees train here every week
Stay Safe Whilst You Swim
The campaign looks to tackle and reduce deaths in our local area due to drowning by encouraging children and young adults to swim in safe life-guarded areas.
With school holidays in place and the current warm weather, we want to warn those planning to swim in areas that are unsafe and not under the watchful eye of a lifeguard. Even strong and confident swimmers can struggle and drown after jumping into cold and unpredictable seas, rivers, canals and lakes where temperatures can be as low as 15C, even in the summer. The depth of the water itself is a whole different danger, and you’ll probably have no idea how far down the water goes until it’s too late.
LDRL Festival at Warrington
Alongside weekly training at Thatto Heath Rugby Club, St Helens R.L.F.C. Learning Disability Rugby League Team attended a festival hosted by Warrington Wolves Foundation.
The Community Integrated Care Learning Disability Super League is a collaboration between Super League, the RFL and the national social care charity, Community Integrated Care. It has seen 12 leading rugby league clubs establish accessible teams for people with learning disabilities and autism.
Participants play a specially adapted version of the game that they love at festivals and Super League events.
Saints Learning Disability Rugby League team had a fantastic time at the festival as they each played 6 games playing teams from Wigan Warriors, Warrington Wolves and Widnes Vikings. We are immensely proud of all that played under the club badge and their effort and teamwork were second
For updates and information on the current projects and sessions SCDF provide, please contact: