Opening Doors
Opening Doors is a joint initiative with the Children's Fund and Southampton Early Years Development & Childcare Partnership. It is managed by Southampton Mencap and has 3 key aims: - To provide appropriate support for children aged 4-16 to access their local After School Club or registered care setting.
- To provide appropriate support for children aged 5-13 to access local play and leisure provision, e.g. Brownies, Cubs, Youth Clubs, Dance Group, Arts Club or Open Access Play Schemes or any other group activity.
- To administer an Inclusive Grant scheme for Early Years Settings and Childminders to provide top-up funding for children with additional needs.
In addition to term time activities, children are given relevant support to access local play or registered care schemes during school holidays. This may include specialist provision where the needs of the child are so high extra support is necessary to enable them to participate. Referrals can be made to Opening Doors by settings, parents or carers and other agencies. Parent/carers are offered a visit to the Portswood Offices to find out about clubs and activities running in their area. Children are then introduced to suitable support workers who work within the various settings to provide support and promote inclusion. The service can support children and young people up to the age of 16 in registered after school clubs, and up to their 14th birthday in play/leisure settings. If you are interested in accessing or working within the service please contact:-
Opening Doors Co-ordinator
Southampton Mencap
187a Portswood Road
Southampton, SO17 2NF
Tel:- 023 8058 4088.
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