August 2022 saw the return of the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme to Bletchley Leisure Centre. The HAF programme is run in partnership with Milton Keynes Council, providing free holiday club places to children on benefits-related free school meals, as well as other vulnerable children, giving them a chance to enjoy extra-curricular activities and healthy meals during the school holidays.
Over the course of four weeks, the centre ran activities for children between the ages of five and 14 years, four days a week, with over 600 free spaces available. In total 108 children attended and the scheme provided 864 free meals.
Children were invited to join in with a jam-packed schedule of activities including those centred around the Commonwealth Games including swimming, team games, basketball, dodgeball, short tennis, arts and crafts and bouncy castle fun.
At the end of the four weeks, all the attending children were also treated to an end of summer party with music, balloons, party food and games to celebrate.
Rachael, Children’s Activities Coordinator at InspireAll Milton Keynes enthused: “It was my first-time managing Holiday Club this summer, and it has been a blast! The children were fantastic, full of energy and very excitable, with many of them completing the sessions having gained new skills and new friends. The team worked very hard and put in every effort to ensure the children’s needs were met and gave them a summer to remember. Thank you, Milton Keynes Council for allowing us this opportunity.”
Key HAF Stats
- Total number of kids attending: 108
- Total number of children attending per day: 54
- Total pool hours: 16
- Total number of meals provided: 864
- Total number of active sports hours: 24
- Total number of HAF hours: 64
