As part of
their commitment to corporate responsibility British Gas give all of their
employees the opportunity to do two days community work per year. With 16,000 UK
employees that is an incredible commitment.
Today a group of staff from Energy First in Southampton came to the QE2 Activity
Centre to do their bit, helping prepare the way for the GreenHouse Day Service.
A big thank you to Cath Loftus, Stacey
Hardey, Vicky Chandler, Julie Scott, Michael Page, James Nash, Dave Harvey,
Juliett Kotze and Debbie Turner who spent the day clearing the ground for the
allotment.
Cath writes: We all really
enjoyed the day and hope we made a positive impact on your grounds. We
were all impressed at the work you and your team do, and felt a great
sense of pride in being able to contribute towards this – needless to
say we are all very achy today!
Thank you
for making us feel very welcome in your establishment and for the
opportunity to use some of the facilities, it was a truly excellent
ending to a fantastic day which we will remember (and ache from) for a
very long time!
July 21st
Aiming high, the greenhouse
and riding the range
July has been an incredibly busy month with some interesting developments to
report. First of all, a grant from Southampton City Council (Aiming High
for Disabled Children) has enabled us to improve access to two cabins.
From an invitation to apply for the grant to a decision being made to the work
being completed has taken around 12 weeks, meaning the work has been completed
before the school holidays - in time for the first of our "Families Weeks.
Over the school holidays more than thirty families will be taking residential
short breaks at the Centre so it is going to be a fun summer!
the
green house
We are currently going through the process of appointing staff for the QE2
Activity Centre Day Service. We have had some excellent candidates and
we'll be making some announcements shortly. Watch this space.
Another project I've been working on in my spare time is this - a fundraising cd
for the QE2 Activity Centre. As part of a one man mission to bring fine
music to the masses I have (with a little help from my friends) managed to
cobble together 20 tracks, most of them especially recorded for this cd, by a
wonderful assortment of artists from the UK, USA, Canada, Ireland and Italy.
This will be released by Righteous 23 records on September 13th and here for the
very first time in public is the track listing . . .
Danny & the Champions of the World (UK)
For the sake of the song; Magic Numbers (UK) Quicksilver Daydreams of
Maria; the Mighty Stef featuring Shane MacGowan (Ireland) Waiting around
to die; Dan Michaelson (UK) I’ll be here in the morning; Peter
Bruntnell (UK) Second Lovers Song; Jeb Loy Nichols (USA, via Wales) Flyin’
Shoes; Boo Hewerdine (UK) Lungs; Devon Sproule (USA) Turnstyled
junkpiled; Jeffrey Foucault (USA) Nothin’; Jason McNiff & Songdog
(UK) Mr Mudd and Mr Gold;
Shannon Lyon (Canada) If I needed you; Danny Schmidt & Carrie Elkin
(USA) Rex’s Blues;
Stan Ridgway & Peter Case (USA) If I was Washington; Tom Ovans (USA)
Loretta; Johnny Dowd & Billy Cote (USA) No Place To Fall;
Michael Weston King (UK) Marie; Rob Dunsford (UK) Two girls;
Townes van Zandt with the Calvins (USA) Riding the Range; Jackie Leven (The Kingdom of Fife via the Village of Botley)
Townes at the Borderline; David Wrench & Henry Priestman (UK)
Snake Song
these are mostly songs by the late great Townes van Zandt, except for Riding the
Range, which is Townes covering a song by Michael Weston King and Jackie Leven's contribution which
is a brand new song about Townes, written and recorded especially for this album. Cool, huh.
Order your copy today!
July 5th
Watcha doin? - keepin' busy . . .
At this time of year there isn't much time to update this blog, but you'll be
pleased to know we're keeping busy. Here's a thank you note, received last
week:
To Mr
Oates, Becky, Flo, Nick and Scott
Thank you for a great weekend. We
all loved it and met nice people. I am going to miss this place so much.
Say thank you to Scott for me for helping me when I said I can't do it.
See you next year.
June 4th 2010
Celebrating Pete
Dunnings!
After 21 years at the QE2 Activity Centre
Deputy Manager Pete Dunnings retires today. Yesterday over 100 Centre
users and colleagues came along to help celebrate his time here and wish him
well for the future. Pete and his guests were entertained by Eastleigh
Town Band and a barbecue as well as being presented with a Fire Pit as a thank
you for his years of service.
Pete says "its been an amazing
journey, I've got lots of good memories, met some amazing people, had my ups and
downs - mainly ups - and now I'm looking forward to my retirement. I wish the
Centre well in the future - you've got a good team here."
Thanks Pete
More thanks
Its been a busy week for collecting cheques!
Over the past seven days I have been pleased to accept donations to the QE2
Activity Centre from
Bursledon, Hamble and Hound Local
Area Committee
Chatterbox at The Box - a grant
from the Hedge End, West End and Botley Youth Council
Hedge End Breakfast Rotary Club
These groups represent a cross section of
our local community and we are proud to be part of that community.
May 21st 2010
Ciba Vision Community Day
Today
a bunch of staff from Ciba Vision at Hedge End came to the QE2 Activity Centre
to help prepare the way for the QE2 Day Service. A thousand thanks to . .
.Sue Sainsbury, Ben Terrell, Howard Johnson, Katrina Simpson and Gail Hedges for
working incredibly hard in the blistering heat clearing an area of ground that
will become part of our allotment provision. The area, which during WWII
was part of HMS Cricket, will become the base for a set of raised flower beds
helping young adults with learning disabilities develop their skills as
gardeners.
Thanks again to Sue, Ben, Howard, Katrina and Gail. Thanks also to their
employers, Ciba Vision, for encouraging and enabling their staff to become
involved in their community.
short breaks for Southampton families
To reflect the support given to
the QE2 Activity Centre by Southampton City Council we are offering some
discounted short break weekends during the school summer holidays. We have set
aside two weekends during the school holidays solely for Southampton families
who have children with special needs - these will be activity breaks with a
range of activities including canoeing, climbing, archery, ropes course &
zipwire, motorboat. There is 40% off the regular price on the following dates:
weekend 13,14,15 August
2010 - cost £300 per cabin
weekend 20,21,22 August 2010 - cost £300 per cabin.
If you don't fancy an activity weekend
but would still like a short break at the Centre we are offering an amazing
value accommodation only weekend for just £150, but only if you are a
Southampton family with a child (under 19) with special needs. Please
contact the Centre.
Hampshire County Council grant
QE2
Activity Centre is one of six charities or trusts to receive a cash
boost in the latest string of grants awarded by Hampshire County
Council.
Margaret Snaith-Tempia, the council’s executive member for
culture and recreation said: "These centres play an important role
for people in Hampshire.
“Whether it’s providing outdoor leisure activities for young
people from some of the more deprived areas of Hampshire or offering
an invaluable outdoor facility about the environment, each of the
six organisations has demonstrated that they play an important role
in maximising wellbeing and enhancing our quality of place.
"We offer an excellent range of educational and recreational
outdoor activities for people of all ages in the county and this
funding can only improve the available opportunities."
April 19th
family weeks & short breaks
Aiming High for Disabled Children is a
government initiative aimed at improving opportunities for disabled children and
their families, specifically for short breaks and access to play activities.
Here at the QE2 Activity Centre we have worked together with other agencies,
specifically Hampshire Autistic Society and Southend Borough Council to find
ways to offer short breaks for families. Here's what someone who stayed
last week thought:
I just wanted to write and say what a wonderful time we had at
the QE2 Activity Centre last week. We arrived on Tuesday 15th
and stayed in the single-storey log cabin which was roomy and well
laid out. The activities were well organised and catered for the
youngsters as well as the older ones (my mum took part in all of the
activities except the wall-climbing and she is 75 years old!).
T, my son who has Autism, loved having his family around him
and it was so nice for us to see his confidence grow and the
enjoyment he got from everything from canoeing to archery to the
tunnelling and lots more. Everything was done in such good humour
and with lots of patience and encouragement too. A big thank
you to everyone at the QE2 centre, especially Nick, Peter, Chris and
Graham who gave us such a lovely experience!
With HAS we are providing 32 short break
holidays for Hampshire & Isle of Wight families who have a child with autism
spectrum condition. In conjunction with Southend BC we are providing 15
families with an activity holiday. Plus we set aside some dates for
families who want to make their own bookings. Most of these are fully
booked now but there are two cabins available during May half term week.
Contact the Centre for details.
April 6-8April
9-11April 13-15May 21-23
all fully booked
May 31st - June 3rd:
two cabins available
June 25-27July 26th - 30thAugust 2nd - 6th all fully booked
you can help the QE2 Activity
Centre by recycling aluminium foil. Around
the Borough of Eastleigh there are recycling
bins
sited at the following places:
Hedge End
Sainsbury's/Marks & Spencers Recycling Zone,
Botley
Mortimer Road Car Park,
Bursledon
Tesco and
Chandlers Ford
Bournemouth Road Asda. You can bring clean
foil for recycling directly to the QE2 Activity
Centre.
Crescent Primary School at Eastleigh have
just started collecting too. If your
school, club or workplace wants to find out more
about recycling please
contact the Centre or take a look at
Eastleigh Borough Council's website.
Sunday 21 March 2010
Nature Navigation
at Manor Farm
Hampshire County Council organised a great
(free!!) day out on Sunday at Manor Farm Country
Park introducing people to a geocaching variant
that they called NatNav or Nature Navigation.
"Nature Navigation is an
exhilarating adventure for all the family."
As well as the opportunity to try this high
tech orienteering visitors were also able to visit
an activities tent for cycling advice, tabletop
safari and wood turning demonstrations.
Plus over 100 people took the opportunity
to build QE2 Activity Centre go-carts. Pictures
later.
march 14th
Happy Mothers Day
The ladies of Fareham Flower Club held their
annual Posy Day on Saturday in Fareham Shopping Centre. They spent their
day putting together posies of daffodils and selling them to raise funds for the
QE2 Activity Centre.
Thanks ladies and good luck with your
other fundraising ventures throughout the year.
march 5th
aiming high in Southend-on-Sea
The HAS short breaks were filled in a
matter of weeks but there are still places on the Family Week during August
16-20.
And,
if you live in the wonderful borough of Southend-on-Sea, there's two weeks available
just for you! The following project has been funded by the
Southend Aiming
High for Disabled Children programme. The choice of projects has been based on
the ideas and needs expressed by local parents and the children/ young people
themselves
Family Adventure holidays for
children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder
There are 12 holidays (6 in the May half
term and 6 in August) in self catering chalets in Hampshire. There is a full
activity programme with trained staff including canoeing, climbing and zip wire
– and also less challenging activities like boat trips and crab fishing.
Families participate together so everyone can have fun. More information on
www.qe2activitycentre.co.uk. Further details and application either
via your Social Worker or Laura Clarke, Aiming High Commissioning Officer,
lauraclarke@southend.gov.uk
march 3rd
QE2 Day Service
an exciting development for
the QE2 Activity Centre is a proposal to offer a Day Service for adults with
learning disabilities based at the Centre.
This is due to open in October 2010. A
full programme will be offered based around developing work skills,
independent living skills and recreation & leisure. The Day Service
will run alongside the existing activity provision for groups and individuals.
It is aimed at people who don't want sit around watching tv but would like to be
doing something purposeful with their days.
It will be a focused person-centred service
based on the Centre's stated aim of providing a positive environment where
learning is fun and enjoyable and achievements are celebrated; encouraging and
appropriately challenging all students to achieve their full potential;
recognising individual differences and promoting positive self image and worth;
equipping participants with the knowledge and the confidence to take measured
risks; developing student self-esteem, confidence and independence and providing
a lead to the wider community.
over the last couple of years the QE2 Activity Centre has worked with
Hampshire Autistic Society to provide short
breaks for families who have a child with autism. Each year we have
increased the number of opportunities available and this year there were 32
short breaks available. Well, not quite. HAS put the word out at the
beginning of February and just over a month later all 32 slots are booked.
There are still spaces available for Families Week on August 16th - 20th ~ for more
information follow the families link on the left hand side of this page.
february 16th
Project Birdhide - the opening
sheila, take a bow
stop me if you think you've heard this one before
this charming man
On
a wet February day Chris Packham and Eastleigh mayor Pamela Holden Brown came
along to the Manor Farm Country Park to open the bird hide built by users of the
QE2 Activity Centre. Many of the folk who helped build the hide
came along to see the finished result including the guys from Anglesey Lodge,
Bournemouth day:club and ILG.
Chris also found time to launch Hampshire Bird Festival
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/birds and
unveiled the QE2 2009 plaque (left) made by Manor Farm volunteer Sheila
(pictured above, left).
february 11th
groundwork solent - ropes course
Over
the winter we have been working hard on developing our Challenge Course
activities. Before Christmas we extended the tunnelling system; then we
had a new zipwire put in; now we have started rebuilding the ropes course.
This week we have had a lot of help from Groundwork Solent
www.groundwork-solent.org.uk. Here's their press release:
As thoughts turn to spring,
Groundwork Solent are helping the QE2 Activity Centre to overhaul their
challenge course - enhancing the experience of the centres disabled users.
Groundwork Solent’s Future Jobs
Fund team will be working with the QE2 Activity Centre, in Bursledon, Hampshire
for a week in February to create a new challenge course. Staff at the activity
centre remodel parts of the challenge course regularly, however this year they
have taken down the whole construction in order to create a challenging new
course. Many parts of the course have been generously donated by local
businesses, these with the carpentry skills of the Groundwork team will allow
for totally new features to be created.
Building the challenge course
using the natural environment will give the team of 18-24 year olds from
Groundwork Solent a chance to use their skills to make a real difference to a
very worthy organisation. This will be the 4th community project the
Future Jobs Fund team have undertaken with Groundwork Solent. As one of the
more challenging projects, the team are aware how much fun and pleasure the
completed challenge course will bring and will have this in mind as they
undertake the work.
The course will be finished by
mid February (end of March actually) and ready for the centre to launch. Phil Oates, Manager at the QE2
Activity Centre said, “This will be third year running
we have worked in partnership with Groundwork Solent to carry out projects at
QE2 Activity Centre. The support given in the past has enhanced each project
and we are very much looking forward to working with Groundwork again.”
The guys did a great job adding several new
elements to the ropes course including a Bakers Table and a Car Wash!
February
10th
bird hide grand opening - invitation
QE2 Activity Centre would like to invite
everyone who contributed to the building of the Bird Hide at Manor Farm to come
along to watch Chris Packham perform the Grand Opening next Tuesday afternoon,
February 16th at 1:00.
Contact the Centre to let us know if you are
coming. See you there!
February 5th
Project Birdhide
Sheila, take a bow
When we carried out Project Birdhide last summer we were helped by a grant from
the Baily Thomas Charitable Fund. The trustees of the fund have written to
say . . . "Thank you for your letter on the use of the grant towards
Project Birdhide. The diary was
wonderful to read, you have all worked so hard in such a short space of time to
achieve what can only be described as a truly inspiring result; everyone
involved should be extremely proud. I was so pleased, as were the
Trustees, to learn that the grant has been, and will continue to be, such a
wonderful benefit to everyone." Thanks.
there is a light that never goes out
What happens next? A grand opening! Chris Packham, former Taunton's
College student, Smiths fan and presenter of BBC Springwatch, will be visiting
the Manor Farm Country Park on February 16th to see for himself the work
carried out by the Project Birdhide team. We would like to see as many people as possible who were
involved in the project here for the opening, get in touch to check timings.
February 1st
family weeks
When I
was a lad (long, long ago) our family often used to go camping, seemed like
every other weekend and all summer long. Usually to Wales, often times to
Cornwall and some summers all over Europe. Came a time when three stroppy
teenagers had enough of looking at Welsh castles and rebelled, vowing never to
go on a camping holiday again. Time passes. Three stroppy teenagers
all grown up and settled with their own lives. One summer all three of us
independently took camping holidays in the same corner of North Wales we had
always visited as children, this time taking our own families. None of us
knew the others were going but when we looked at our holiday snaps afterwards we
realised we had all visited pretty much exactly the same places, the same
castles, waterfalls and lighthouses.
Needless
to say these were the same places we had gone as children. Which just goes
to show, family holidays leave an indelible mark on children, even if doesn't
necessarily seem like that at the time!
If you have a disability
yourself or have a family member who has a physical or learning
disability, autism or some other specific need you can book a
holiday at QE2 Activity Centre any time.
We have set aside some weeks where
all our residential bookings will be from families so you'll have
the opportunity to take part in activities and meet up with other
families. This can be great for siblings as well as disabled
children and parents. Weeks commencing July 26 (only two
cabins left) and August 16th
In addition to these family weeks
we are running a series of short breaks in conjunction with
Hampshire Autistic Society, so if you have a child with ASC you can
have a two night stay, plus activities at a special subsidised rate.
Call HAS on 023 8063 3951 to register an interest.
And if you live in Southend
we've set aside some time for weeks especially for you! (Weeks
commencing May 31st and August 2nd)
January 14th
snowed out
This wasn't how we expected to start 2010
and there was some disruption to our planned maintenance week, but Centre
staff managed to get in every day working hard to make things ready for the coming
season. The new zipwire is complete, there's more tunnels and just look at
the climbing wall!
A few groups managed to get in this week,
but not many. Well done ILG, Tauntons and the day:club! The snow is clearing now and things will
soon be back to normal.
As part of
their commitment to corporate responsibility British Gas give all of their
employees the opportunity to do two days community work per year. With 16,000 UK
employees that is an incredible commitment. 
Today a group of staff from Energy First in Southampton came to the QE2 Activity
Centre to do their bit, helping prepare the way for the GreenHouse Day Service.
A big thank you to Cath Loftus, Stacey
Hardey, Vicky Chandler, Julie Scott, Michael Page, James Nash, Dave Harvey,
Juliett Kotze and Debbie Turner who spent the day clearing the ground for the
allotment. 
To Mr
Oates, Becky, Flo, Nick and Scott
QE2
Activity Centre is one of six charities or trusts to receive a cash
boost in the latest string of grants awarded by Hampshire County
Council.
Nature Navigation
at Manor Farm
And,
if you live in the wonderful borough of Southend-on-Sea, there's two weeks available
just for you! The following project has been funded by the
On
a wet February day Chris Packham and Eastleigh mayor Pamela Holden Brown came
along to the Manor Farm Country Park to open the bird hide built by users of the
QE2 Activity Centre. Many of the folk who helped build the hide
came along to see the finished result including the guys from Anglesey Lodge,
Bournemouth day:club and ILG. 
February
10th
When we carried out Project Birdhide last summer we were helped by a grant from
the Baily Thomas Charitable Fund. The trustees of the fund have written to
say . . . "Thank you for your letter on the use of the grant towards
Project Birdhide. 
there is a light that never goes out
When I
was a lad (long, long ago) our family often used to go camping, seemed like
every other weekend and all summer long. Usually to Wales, often times to
Cornwall and some summers all over Europe. Came a time when three stroppy
teenagers had enough of looking at Welsh castles and rebelled, vowing never to
go on a camping holiday again. Time passes. Three stroppy teenagers
all grown up and settled with their own lives. One summer all three of us
independently took camping holidays in the same corner of North Wales we had
always visited as children, this time taking our own families. None of us
knew the others were going but when we looked at our holiday snaps afterwards we
realised we had all visited pretty much exactly the same places, the same
castles, waterfalls and lighthouses.
Needless
to say these were the same places we had gone as children. Which just goes
to show, family holidays leave an indelible mark on children, even if doesn't
necessarily seem like that at the time! 
