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Roller skating, Harvey Hadden Sports Centre, one Wednesday a month

Date: Usually first Wednesday in the month, though sometimes gets moved along a week. In 2017: 7 June, ~~28 June~~, 26 July, 6 Sept, 4 Oct, 1 Nov, 6 Dec.

Time: 1.30pm to 3pm.

Venue: Harvey Hadden Sports Centre, Wigman Road, Nottingham, NG8 4PB.

Area: Bilborough, about 3 miles west of Nottingham City Centre on the number 28 bus route.

Age range: From around age 2 or 3 – it actually depends on shoe size, not age as such – up to adult. Parents are welcome to skate. “Crew to help the wobbly ones”.

Shoe size: The all-in-one skates go from child shoe size 8. The “toddler skates”, which go over shoes, are suitable for around child shoe size 6 to 8.

Price: £5 including skate hire and safety gear (helmets, knee & elbow pads etc).

Organisers: The event is run by Skate Base Mobile Roller Disco. You’ll want to read the Skate Base Rules, as everyone has to agree to these.

Note: The rules mention the possibility of taking photos for social media. Skate Base confirm that anyone can opt out of these, or the group as a whole could ask for no pictures to be taken, or none during the skating. They say that so far, the photos they take at home ed sessions have only ever been put on the Home Ed Skate Base Facebook group (not visible to the general public).

Booking: Although you can just turn up and pay, it’s helpful if you do say in advance that you’re going. A home ed mum is keeping track of the numbers for the home edders’ session, to make sure that minimum numbers are reached each month for the event to continue. Email libbytheaxe at yahoo dot co dot uk, or make a comment on the Home Ed Skate Base Facebook group.

It’ll save time on the day if you download, print and fill in the Skate Base registration form (PDF) beforehand. This confirms you agree to the rules, and asks about any medical conditions. Skate Base explain “This information goes in to a storage box and would only be used in the case of an insurance claim etc.”

What to expect, from a home ed parent who’s a “regular” at the session:

Music, lights, a full roller disco with games for the children and staff skating with the kids supervising and organising them if needed as well as helping those who need it.

When you get into the hall, depending if you arrive when the session has already started or before, there are chairs to sit plus the equipment tables/registration desk with lovely staff to help.

It’s £5 for the 1½ hour session and the leisure centre has a lovely café next to the sports hall with good coffee and comfy chairs if you want to give your kids a bit more independence or just recharge 🙂

It is run by a fully-insured professional roller-disco company who provide staff to supervise, music to skate to, all equipment from skates to helmets/knee pads/elbow pads/wrist guards. The kids usually have a lot of fun with staff playing games and support even for complete beginners. Parents can skate too and nobody judges if you can’t stay upright 🙂 Staff are experienced with children of all ages, abilities and any special needs.

There are skates for 3-4 year olds as well as older children. A varied range of children currently attend from ages 3 to 14 but the group does go up to 18yrs. Skills from novice to experienced roller or inline skaters.

My son has been going for a while now and loves it, he has gained so much confidence and new friends … It really is a fab resource.

Access: Detailed access info for Harvey Hadden. Short version: it has good wheelchair access inside including toilets, and 16 accessible parking bays right outside reception.

If you have requests for how the Skate Base staff could support a child with special needs, it probably makes sense to email them direct: contact@skatebase.co.uk. Or call: 07414 067667.

Map showing Harvey Hadden:

Bigger version of map showing Harvey Hadden

Nearest bus stop: “Graylands Road“, on the 28 route, Pink Line. The 35 route, Orange Line, also goes pretty near, at “Bracebridge Drive End”.

Parking: There’s a large car park at Harvey Hadden.

Free Play park meetup, all ages, various Nottingham parks, Thursdays

Date: Thursdays throughout the year.

Time: Late morning through afternoon – typically starting about 12ish, and finishing whenever the last few people decide it’s time to go. If it doesn’t rain, some people are usually at the park till at least 3pm.

Venue: Various green parks around the Nottingham area, especially the ones with good playgrounds, good public transport and toilets.

Age range: All ages welcome. There are plenty of “regulars” in the 1 to 7 age range and several around 8 to 12. Presence of teens is a bit more random – maybe ask first who’s coming, or look out for one of the “teens-ish meetups” instead.

Price: Free. (Exception: if it’s the cold part of winter, then we might decide to meet indoors a few times, and people would chip in a quid or two to pay for the space.)

Organisation: To get announcements of the week’s meeting point without being on Facebook, join the EMHE email list. Or if you prefer Facebook, join the Home Ed Free Play Facebook group. There isn’t one organiser responsible for these meetups – it’s more of an evolving tradition, with suggestions of “how about ____ next week?”

Booking: No need to book. However, if it’s at a park big enough to have different areas, and you don’t have a phone number for someone else there that day, it’s worth turning up within an hour or so of the start. That way, it doesn’t matter if people move on from the original meeting point after a while.

What to bring: Water bottles and snacks, plus sun hats, sun cream and/or umbrella! People often bring picnic food, and a blanket to sit on. Parents may want an extra jumper, in case it turns out the children don’t want to stop playing as the day cools down.

Access: Wheelchair access and toilet situation depends on the park. The Forest and Wollaton Park each have a “Changing Places” toilet. If you have a favourite park which you know works well for your family, feel free to suggest it.

What to expect if you’re new, and tips:

There might be a dozen families that week… or there might be more, or fewer.

Where you see parents sitting around or standing around, come and say hello. We’re a friendly bunch. If in doubt whether it’s us, just ask “Home ed free play?”

Some children run off straight away to play. Some take a while to settle in, and join in more as the time goes on. Some children stay close to their parents, e.g. if it’s their first time at this group, or they were tired that day, or if they’re just enjoying the conversation with the nearby adults. It’s fine for each child to socialise as much or as little as they want to.

If your child wants to join in with something but feels shy getting started, you’re welcome to ask around, to find a child who’s happy to include them and introduce them to others.

If you’re bringing a teenager who specially wants to meet other people their age, it’s worth checking beforehand whether it’s a week when other teens are planning to go. Other than that, don’t worry too much about whether there’ll be other children the same age and same gender. Compared to school, home ed socialising typically has a lot more mixing across ages.

Swimming lessons, Kimberley, Monday mornings

These classes are specifically for home ed children.

Date: Monday mornings starting 5 June 2017, all year round except for Bank Holidays and 2 weeks at Christmas.

Time: each class is half an hour, which includes admin time.

Beginners	9.30 – 10.00
Beginners	10.00 – 10.30
Intermediates	10.30 – 11.00

Venue: Kimberley Leisure Centre, Kimberley, Nottingham, NG16 2NJ. It’s next to Kimberley School.

Area: Kimberley is a few miles north-west of Nottingham City, on the Rainbow One bus route.

Age range: 5+.

Price: Direct Debit £18.75 a month, or block payment £57.50 for 10 sessions.

Trial lesson is free.

If you pay by direct debit, then the price also includes free swimming in any of the public sessions. (You also get free swimming in public sessions if you’re under 8 with a leisure card.)

Booking: Pay in advance. Either visit the leisure centre, or ring 0115 917 3366.

Organiser: Lauren Tavener at Liberty Leisure. Email: lauren dot tavener at liberty-leisure dot org dot uk.

Liberty Leisure swimming lessons page

For the beginners, a fully qualified teacher will be in the water to help aid and assist. There will also be a fully qualified teacher on the poolside, instructing the lesson.

Access info:

Accessible building, accessible changing rooms, and a hoist to help wheelchair users into the pool. The lessons are smaller than mainstream lessons, which would be suitable for children with autism or learning disabilities.

Map showing Kimberley Leisure Centre:

(pointer is on the leisure centre building, despite the label which makes it look like part of the school)

Bigger version of map showing Kimberley Leisure Centre

Nearest bus stop: The bus is the Trent Barton Rainbow One along Kimberley Main Street. On foot from Main Street, the shortest route is to walk up Noel Street (almost opposite Sainsbury’s) and take the only left turn off Noel Street. Bus stops “Library” and “Nottingham Road” are on Main Street about equidistant from the turn-off up Noel Street.

Parking: there’s a car park right in front of the leisure centre. Arrive via Newdigate Street. To the right of the school frontage, follow small road to get to the car park and leisure centre. (On some maps, this small road is named as a continuation of Noel Street, but by car, it doesn’t join up with the other end of Noel Street, where it connects with Main Road.)

GCSEs etc for home ed teens: info event, Nottingham city centre, Wednesday 26 April

Note that New College Nottingham (NCN) and Central College are in the process of merging as Nottingham College – so although the venue this time is NCN, the courses being discussed here include the ones pioneered by Central College in recent years.

Date: Wednesday 26 April 2017.

Time: 6pm to 7pm. Recommendation: allow extra time at the end for possible chatting.

Venue: NCN City Campus, The Adams Building, Stoney Street, Nottingham NG1 1NG. Main entrance is up a flight of steps from Stoney Street; there’s also a back entrance from St Mary’s Gate. Either way, go to reception, and someone from the team will be around to direct you.

Area: East side of Nottingham City Centre, in between Lace Market Square and Stoney Street.

Price: This info event is free, and the courses are also free (government-funded).

Booking: Please book in advance for this info event if possible. You can email centralchoices@centralnottingham.ac.uk, or call 0115 884 2278. This is also a good way to express initial interest in the courses. However, extra people turning up on the night wouldn’t be turned away.

Age range: The various courses are for young people age 13 up. The info event is open to all. (Some parents will probably bring their children to hear the info first-hand.)

These courses are all ones which young people can do while keeping their status as “home ed”. In that way, it’s different from registering at a school.

Courses for 2017-2018 will include:

GCSE English, Maths, Science, Psychology, History, Sociology
Pre-GCSE course, available from year 9
Vocational courses for year 11, e.g. music, engineering, catering, carpentry. Download a copy of a letter from Jo Edgerton listing all of these “infill” courses for the academic year 2017-2018 (docx format).

Year 9 is the academic year where you start age 13 & finish age 14.
Year 11 is the one you start age 15 & finish age 16.

If you already know what you want to do, you can download an application form (PDF) online already.

(For more description of all the options, look out for another post which we hope to do soon. Here’s the explanation from last year to be going on with; that’ll be useful to explain the jargon terms and overall framework, even though some of the details are out of date.)

Map showing the Adams Building:

Bigger version of map showing the Adams Building

Page about NCN City Campus.

Nearest tram stop: “Lace Market”, about 100 yards away. All trams running through the city centre stop here. Tram information.

Nearest bus stops: “Fletcher Gate” and “Broad Street” are probably the nearest, each at around 200 yards away; the Victoria Centre is about 500 yards away.

Parking: Lace Market car park is run by the City Council. Stoney Street car park is run by NCP. They’re both pretty close, within 200 yards; Stoney Street is maybe a little bit closer, but also more expensive.

Access: Flat access to reception is available from the St Mary’s Gate / Lace Market Square side of the building. At time of writing, the room for the event had not yet been finalised, so please check with the organisers that the room they’re booking would also meet your access needs.

Art: Nottingham city centre on Tuesdays, Bingham on Wednesdays

These groups are run by Sam of Altered Art, for home edders 8+. Optionally, this can be part of working towards Arts Award qualifications (in which case you’d also do other things, e.g. going to some kind of arts event and reflecting on it). Or you can just explore creativity in different ways.

Bingham on Wednesdays

Date: Wednesday afternoons, potentially all year round.

Time: Two groups, each one hour. 2pm to 3pm, and 4pm to 5pm.

Venue: Folks and Fables café, 37 Long Acre, Bingham, Nottinghamshire, NG13 8AF.

Area: Bingham is about 9 miles east of Nottingham, via the A52, or 15 mins by train.

Price: £5 per young person per week, payable in 5 week blocks after an initial trial session, if required.

Physical access: The room where the art happens is up a flight of stairs. The main café area is downstairs, and parents are welcome to stay there.

Nottingham on Tuesdays

New group, starting soon. (The Bingham groups have been running a while.)

Date: Tuesdays, middle of the day, potentially all year round.

Time: 11am to 1pm.

Venue: The Dice Cup Café, 68-70 Mansfield Rd, Nottingham, NG1 3GY.

Area: North side of Nottingham city centre, next to Victoria Bus Station and just slightly north of the Victoria shopping centre.

Price: £8 per young person per week (2 hours), payable in 5 week blocks after an initial trial session, if required.

Physical access: The Dice Cup has flat access. There is a toilet with flat access and a wide door, but without extra bars to help with transfer from a wheelchair.

Information which applies to both venues

Booking or enquiries: contact samalteredart at gmail dot com. Not everyone has to start their five-week block on the same week, so you can potentially start any time if there’s space.

Age range: 8+

For Bronze Arts Award it’s ideally 10 years plus but in my current group in Bingham I’m currently teaching 8 – 14 year olds. I’m happy to discuss with parents their young person’s individual needs. I am qualified to teach from 4-25 years old under the Arts Award scheme and have taught Primary age within schools and adults in the community.

More about the activities:

I teach creative arts. Not drawing and painting as such but experimenting with different mediums and using different techniques. I vary my classes depending on where the young people’s interest lies. I use a lot of recycling and eco friendly products. My group in Bingham have created handmade books using a variety of techniques, some scrap doll/creature/monster/robots and we are now working on a set of Artist Trading Cards to swap with each other! I provide lots of exciting and stimulating materials. I show the young people the techniques needed to complete a project but I encourage a lot of exploration and personal development. There is no “getting it wrong” with my classes and I aim to boost self esteem and self-directed creativity.

I enjoy teaching art to home schooled young people for a number of reasons, including smaller group sizes allow my attention to be more concentrated on each young person, there’s no need for a fixed “learning outcome” and the development of the art projects flow more organically to where a young person’s interest lies rather than, in my experience, where a school wants them to be taught. There are more details about my education background and arts experience on my WordPress site.

Access:

I am happy to accommodate any young person or parent with autism or any learning disability, the location is quite calming and I have a lot of experience with young people who are on the autistic spectrum.

Altered Art website

Altered Art on Facebook

Travel info for Bingham

Map showing Folks and Fables:

Larger version of map showing Folks and Fables

Train: Bingham railway station is about 470 yards’ walk.

Bus:

The bus from Nottingham to Bingham is the Rushcliffe Mainline, run by Trent Barton buses, available to pick up on Friar Lane or Broadmarsh bus station.

Rushcliffe Mainline timetable at Trent Barton

Parking:

There is a free car park 5 minutes walk away and often some onstreet parking in front of the café.

Travel info for Nottingham

Map showing the Dice Cup:

Bigger version of map showing the Dice Cup

Nearest tram stop: “Nottingham Trent University”, about 800 yards’ walk. All trams through the city centre stop here. Tram information.

Nearest bus stops: “Victoria Bus Station” (where many of the Trent Barton buses terminate), “York House” and “Victoria Centre”. Many of the Nottingham City Transport buses come to one or other of these stops; the ones which don’t, mostly have stops on or near the Old Market Square, about 700 yards away.

Nottingham railway station and Broadmarsh bus station are less than a mile away.

Parking: at the Victoria Centre car park (click link for prices).

Swimming lessons, Bramcote, Thursdays & Fridays

Lessons with Liberty Swim School. These sessions were set up specifically for non-school children.

Date: Thursday & Friday mornings throughout the year, except Bank Holidays.

Time: Half hour sessions through the morning.

Venue: Bramcote Leisure Centre (Liberty Leisure), Derby Road, Bramcote, Nottingham, NG9 3GF.

Area: Bramcote, on the A52 near Bramcote Park. West side of Nottingham, about a third of the way over towards Derby. Reachable by Trent Barton bus.

Age range: 4+ for beginners / foundation level. Tends to be 5+ for ASA levels 1-3, 10+ for ASA levels 4-6.

Price: £18.75 per month. Payment is monthly direct debit. It goes all year round because the lessons do too. Besides the lessons, this payment includes free swimming for the child at any other public session.

Booking: Book by contacting Helen Kirk, helen dot kirk at liberty-leisure dot org dot uk or 0115 917 3585.

Helen says “I am looking to put on more lessons to accommodate demand, so they may need to be patient with me.”

Bramcote Leisure Centre

Additional info via one of the home ed parents:

Swimming lessons for home ed kids in the area. Initially suggested by a home ed mum, they took up the idea, and it seems to be going well.

They follow the ASA stages, and the ability levels are

Foundation: never been in a pool before

Stages 1-3: starting to learn to swim independently, from 1-2m unsupported, to 25m by the end of stage 3

Stages 4-6: swimming widths of the main pool, progressing to swimming lengths of the main pool.

Classes are limited to 6 students.

There is a large seating area by the main pool where parents can wait, or a reception area downstairs.

The viewing area is NOT open to the public during lessons, except during the summer holiday when there is a disabled swim session in the main pool.

Map showing Bramcote Leisure Centre:

Bigger version of map showing Bramcote Leisure Centre

Buses: Heading west (from Nottingham), nearest bus stop is “Bembridge Court“, by the Sherwin Arms, stop ID “ntsadamd”. This is about 500 yards from the leisure centre as the crow flies. Trent Barton 18, 20, 21 and i4 stop here.

(Nottingham City Transport buses don’t run to this area – nearest is the Pink Line 30.)

Cars: Lots of free parking available at the leisure centre.

Coming from Nottingham on the A52 Derby Road, you’ll want to pass the leisure centre on your right, go round the next roundabout and double back onto the A52, as it’s a dual carriageway at that point. Then you can turn off left for the leisure centre.

Heading east (into Nottingham), there’s a slightly nearer bus stop, “Leisure Centre“, stop ID “ntsadama”. The i4 stops there.

Access info:

The leisure centre has good access for wheelchairs: lifts, a hoist into the pool if needed.

The main pool area is large, and can be very echo-y. The smaller teaching pool is less so.

Instructors sometimes change at the last minute, which some children find hard to cope with.

Fun Club, Stapleford, first Tuesday in the month

Fun Club is the main regular meet up of East Midlands Christian Home Educators Group. “Membership is open to all who are willing to respect the aims of the group and its Christian ethos.”

Date: First Tuesday in the month. No formal meeting in August, although a “park meet” is usually planned.

Time: 10am to 2pm, inc lunch break.

Area: Stapleford, west of Nottingham, close to the A52. (Exact venue intentionally not listed here.)

Age range: “An all age family event, with an upper age range of about 13 years in terms of activities planned but all are welcome. (Young people must be accompanied by an adult who remains responsible for them.)”

Price: First visit free, then membership subscription if you decide you want to join. Annual subscription is currently £40 per year per family, paid as two instalments of £20 – or check the membership details page for any updates.

Booking: Send email to express an interest. There may be a waiting list. When there’s space, you’ll be invited to visit.

Email: tuesdayfunclub at gmail dot com.

Web site: East Midlands Christian Home Educators main web site.

A monthly “hall meet” with a variety of activities planned by members through the year to meet the needs of the age range. Sometimes a “main” activity altogether, maybe with an outside provider (eg: mobile planetarium). Other times a variety of different activities, perhaps around a theme, run by members of the group. Usually start with a games session (2 age groups). Bring a picnic for lunch which we eat together. Afternoon tends to be more of a free play/self directed activities time – and a chat/cup of tea time for parents/carers! Christmas and Easter are celebrated. In summer we have a Sports Day at a local park.

More info here about a typical Tuesday meetup.

Travel info:

Easy access from A52 and M1.

On the i4 bus route from Nottingham and Derby.
On My15 bus route from Long Eaton/Ilkeston.

1/2 hour walk from the Toton Lane Tram Stop/park and ride.

Parking is unfortunately tricky: Best to examine google maps and look for possible “on-street” parking in the vicinity. A small amount of long stay parking in the council car parks – pay and display.

Access info:

The building is accessible on the ground floor where most activities take place. There is no lift to the upstairs rooms. The toilet for those with extra needs is a little small.

When everyone attends the group it is very “busy” and can be quite noisy: walking straight in could be quite daunting.

However we are very flexible and have ways of providing quiet spaces and alternative activities for children who need them.

Tap jam, city centre, Sunday 19 February

Date: Sunday 19 February 2017.

Time: Tap jam itself is 7pm to 9pm. Extra workshop at 6pm, optional.

Venue: City Arts, 11-13 Hockley, Nottingham, NG1 1FH.

Area: Hockley area, east side of Nottingham city centre. Venue is about 700 yards east of the Old Market Square, just north of the ice rink.

Age range: All ages – as long as young ones are able to cooperate with the atmosphere. So when it’s not their turn to dance, they’d either be watching and encouraging the other dancers, or entertaining themselves fairly peacefully, e.g. with a game or book.

Price: Entry to tap jam £6 / Free after 8pm / Free for under-14s. Loan of tap shoes included if you don’t have your own (if they have the right size for you).

6pm-7pm workshop with special guest Junior Laniyan is £12, or £8 for under-14s. Or £15 combined price for workshop and jam.

Booking: No need to book, just pay on the door.

Organiser: Jess Murray from the Tap Rhythm Project. This isn’t a home-ed-specific event, but Jess ran some tap dancing try-out sessions for local non-schoolers last year, which were much enjoyed 🙂

Facebook page for the event

A Tap Jam is a place for tap dancers to improvise with musicians and other tap dancers. Everyone is welcome, whether to take part or simply to watch and enjoy. Tap Rhythm Jams are open to dancers of all levels of experience, from complete beginners to professional performers. We even have tap shoes that you can use for free if you don’t have your own!

About the tap improvisation workshop, 6pm – 7pm (additional cost)…

Special guest Junior Laniyan will lead a musicality and improvisation workshop before the jam starts. You can try improvising in a low key environment and learn some easy approaches to get you started.

Video clip of Junior Laniyan and Andrew Nemr dancing at the London tap jam in 2010

Video clip of Annette Walker and Jess Murray dancing at the London tap jam in 2010

(You don’t have to be amazing dancers like them to give it a go! Beginners welcome!)

City Arts “how to find us” page, including access info.

The tap jam will be in the ground floor space, which has a wheelchair-accessible toilet and flat access.

Nearest tram stop: “Lace Market”. Any tram through the city centre will stop here. Tram information.

Nearest bus stops: “Hockley” opposite the venue (all red or lilac line inbound buses), “Boston Street” 150 yards (all red or lilac line outbound buses), “George Street” 350 yards (which is on the “city loop” bus route, so turquoise line all buses, green line all buses, orange line number 34). Bus information.

Parking: “Arena” car park, Lower Parliament Street, 150 yards – or on nearby streets. Outside the venue you can only drop off or pick up, not actually park.

Leadership Academy at Nottingham City Gymnastics Club

Participants at Nottingham City Gymnastics Club who are 11 or older have the option of joining in with the British Gymnastics “MY Leadership Academy”.

Here’s a short video from British Gymnastics, explaining it (about 4 minutes)

The end of the video talks about sending off for info from British Gymnastics, but that’s what a club has to do if setting up the scheme. NCGC already has the scheme running, so the next step for an individual young person is tell the NCGC organisers that you want to do it, and they’ll tell you more.

British Gymnastics summary page about the Leadership Academy

Related info: NCGC runs four gymnastics sessions a week aimed at home ed young people. See earlier posts here (for times) and here (for more description). Or if you’re ready to book onto a series of sessions, just click through to the club’s booking page.

New home ed sessions at Nottingham City Gymnastics Club – now 4 days a week.

The sessions at NCGC are proving so popular, they’ve now added extra ones on Monday and Wednesday mornings. And the times for Tuesday and Thursday afternoons have changed slightly.

The times of home-ed-specific sessions are now as follows:

Monday	10am-11am	“Structured” session
Monday	11am-12 noon	“Unstructured” session
Tuesday	12.45-1.45pm	“Structured” session
Tuesday	1.45-2.45pm	“Unstructured” session
Wednesday	10am-11am	“Structured” session
Wednesday	11am-12 noon	“Unstructured” session
Thursday	12.45-1.45pm	“Structured” session
Thursday	1.45-2.45pm	“Unstructured” session

Other info about the club and sessions remains the same, so please see previous writeup. Or if you’re ready to sign up, just click through to the club’s booking page.