The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Beverley Mullaney, was the special guest at a family fun day at Farcliffe Family Hub, in Toller, Bradford, on Tuesday, 6 August. The event involved Bradfords emergency services and a range of partners from the voluntary and public sector.
The Lord Mayor opened the fun filled event and greeted many of the emergency services colleagues that attended to engage with families. The day was highly successful and saw over 600 local residents enjoy the variety of activities on offer.
The free event was positive in bringing local families and their children closer to emergency services and they were able to look inside some of the emergency services’ ‘blue-light’ vehicles, including an ambulance, police car and police off road bike. Officers and staff from these services were on hand to chat to families about safety, while children played dress up in emergency service uniforms.
Bradford City Football Club Community Foundation were on site offering football fun and there were a range of activities for young people to try, including virtual reality headsets, meet the therapy animals, bun decorating, bagel building, smoothie bike riding, story time, baton twirling as well as tombola, hook a duck and a quiet soft space for the under 2’s.
Practitioners from Bradford Children & Families Trust West Family Hub were available to talk to families and showcase the free help and support that is available to help children thrive. Family Hubs are the district’s network of welcoming centres for families, offering health appointments, family advice and support, free parenting courses, facilities including sensory rooms (with lights, soft surfaces and sound), and a whole timetable of drop-in sessions and groups for families.
Family Hub facilities have recently been improved, with refurbishments, new equipment, and expanded timetables, which was supported via the national Family Hubs & Start for Life government-funded initiative.
Promotion of Family Hub membership for families was highly positive.
The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Beverley Mullaney, said:
“The Bradford District’s Family Hubs play a vital role in offering free services and a welcoming, safe space for children, families and communities. This joyful family day was a wonderful opportunity for families with children and young people of all ages to see what is on offer for them, while also having lots of fun.
“Our emergency services work around the clock to help keep Bradford District’s people safe. It’s also important that young people learn how to keep themselves out of danger. I would like to thank our emergency services for coming along to the event to educate and inform, while also providing an exciting experience for children.”
Susan Claydon, the Assistant Director for Early Help & Transformation in the Trust said,
“Raising awareness of the role that our joint services carry out to support children and families in the district is an important part of our partnership approach. Events like this have a positive impact on the prevention of childhood accidents, on promoting strong relationships between families and our emergency services and in helping families to know where to go to for help. Working together with families in this way will help our children to stay safe and flourish in their communities. The day showcased just how strong our communities in Bradford are.”
Sergeant Pete Brown from the Early Action Team at Bradford said:
“The Bradford District Police Early Action Team have a fantastic partnership with the West Family Hub and the huge success of this event is a result of my team working with them closely over a long period of time. The friendly, relaxed atmosphere and positive interactions between Police and public were great to see, and we’re already looking forward to the next event!”
The emergency services family fun day was organised by Farcliffe West Family Hub, which is part of Bradford Children and Families Trust, working in partnership with emergency services including West Yorkshire Police, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, and Yorkshire Ambulance Service.
Information about Bradford District’s Family Hubs, including timetables for all four Family Hub areas (Bradford West, Bradford East, Bradford South and Keighley/Shipley), is on the Bradford District’s FYI (Families and Young Person’s Information) website at fyi.bradford.gov.uk.
