Inclusive and holistic approach to innovative play

Inclusive and holistic approach to innovative play

Kids Can Achieve supports young people with learning difficulties and physical disabilities in Harrow between the ages of 5-18 years old since 2002. Their vision and approach are inclusive and holistic, providing innovative play and experiential learning opportunities through play schemes using outreach services and creative therapists.

Once the Covid- 19 crisis took effect and social distancing and PPE became the “new normal”, class sizes went down to 5 (hoping to expand to 10 in July). The lack of staff in special schools required Kids Can Achieve to provide emergency childcare for special schools, which couldn’t cope. The charity also faced parents needing additional support. They were struggling with their children’s behavioural issues and were requesting Applied Behaviour Analysis.

Harrow Giving provided a grant to Kids Can Achieve to support local families with the unforeseen challenges Covid- 19 presented. The charity set up tailored support for families through Whatsapp groups and Zoom meetings. A family that benefited directly from this grant are Debbie and Tyler.

Debbie, a single parent with a 3-year-old autistic son called Tyler, could not leave the house since the new government guidelines. This situation resulted from Tyler’s behaviour being challenging to manage as he does not understand social distancing rules, nor can he wait in the long queues in supermarkets.

Debbie had only recently moved to the Harrow area and therefore did not have a local support network. She was becoming increasingly concerned over how to access food supplies and activities to keep her son engaged at home. The family worker from Kids Can Achieve was able to help and sent Debbie a list of local support organisations and a list of activities to do at home to keep her son engaged in learning. Through Harrow Council, Debbie received a call from a volunteer who has helped her with food deliveries.