In March 2021, the Scottish Government announced an enhanced summer offer for all children. The national “Summer of Play” focused on the wellbeing of children and young people during the 2021 summer holidays.
The priority for the £20 million investment was to help address negative impacts associated with the extended periods of isolation and lack of participation in normal activities during the pandemic.
Funding was made available to local authorities and partner organisations to deliver a range of activities for children, young people and their families over the summer, ensuring they were provided with opportunities to socialise, play and reconnect with their local communities and environments.
Head of Setting at Sauchie ELC, Lynsey Graham recognised this was an opportunity to apply for funding to provide a fully outdoor ELC experience to priority children and submitted a bid for funding to Clackmannanshire Council . The bid was accepted and Sauchie ELC were awarded the maximum amount of £5000 to deliver the "Summer of Fun" programme.
Sauchie ELC is an extended year setting and the programme offered priority children, who accessed 1140 hours of funded ELC during term time, the opportunity to access extra ELC provision during the summer holidays.
Lynsey was clear in her bid who would benefit from this programme – and access additional funded ELC; children of siblings with additional support needs, those on stage 3 or 4 of the stage intervention framework, along with children who struggled with the transition back to nursery or any child who was requiring additional wellbeing sessions were invited to take part in Summer of Fun programme. The programme ran for two sessions per week, for five weeks during the summer break. In total, 31 children from the Sauchie ELC community participated in the programme.
Using funding made available through the national “Summer of Play” commitment, Sauchie purchased outdoor equipment including a tent, hammocks, food preparation kits, fishing rods, a trolley and outdoor toilet.
This kit was used to facilitate an outdoor classroom environment at nearby Gartmorn Dam; a woodland park that provided children with the opportunity to learn about and explore their local community.
Educators prepared the outdoor kit ahead of each session and met the children with their families en route to Gartmorn Dam. Once there, the children learned how to fish, how to make fire and how to safely prepare food – a snack and lunch was provided as part of the session.
The outdoor kit has been an invaluable additional resource for the setting. The educators at Sauchie ELC are extremely passionate about delivering quality, outdoor experiences to the children. The setting benefits from a large wrap-around garden with a bike space, sensory zone and learning hub that is used daily by educators and children.
We feel very privileged to be able to deliver a programme that is right for our local community; we know the families and understand the needs of our ELC community. The children loved their outdoor summer experience, the funding allowed us to deliver a programme that would have been unachievable otherwise.
Sauchie ELC are planning a similar outdoor classroom experience for the October and Easter Breaks, with a view to extending the programme to more children in Summer 2022.