20 October 2024
Further to our last statement of 28th August 2024 the Trustees of CJP met on 10th September to consider the future of CJP. The conclusion was we would try and recover from the situation we faced this summer and attempt to push CJP forward in a new direction. This was helped by the responses we received from Parents and Carers in our request for input on 28th August which was universally in favour of us continuing to offer our high quality holiday clubs.
A number of actions are being taken, including a review of our financial situation, reaching out to other Play Scheme providers to see if there is value in collaboration and appealing for more Trustees and Committee members to help drive CJP forward. If these steps produce a positive outcome then we will look to recruit a new play scheme manager to be in position before March 2025 so that they can focus 100% on a Summer 2025 Play scheme.
The Trustees and Committee meets again on Tuesday 29th October to discuss progress and next steps. If any parents and carers or other interested parties want to give their views on the future of CJP or would like to join our committee either as a supporter or Trustee (we have a zoom meeting option to make life easier) please contact our Chair of Trustees, David Jones, at 
davidjhjones@btinternet.com. We would welcome your participation in an open public session at 8pm at the start of the next Trustees meeting on Tuesday 29th October.
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29 July 2024
Further to our earlier statements, we apologise again to all parents and carers that we have not been able to open our two-week Summer Play Scheme which was scheduled to start today.
The Trustees of CJP are meeting at the end of August to discuss the future of CJP and how, if we continue, we avoid last-minute cancellations in the future. If any parents and carers or other interested parties want to give their views on the future of CJP please email our Chair of Trustees, David Jones, at davidjhjones@btinternet.com.
Finally, we note an issue with the Play Scheme Manager email address (camjointplay@btconnect.com) where Carol Brown's name is still associated with this email in some situations. We wanted to be clear that Carol retired in February 2024 after running successful Play Schemes for 12 years with CJP but is no longer involved in running the Play Scheme. Our new Manager, Suzie Davies started work in May 2024 and can be reached on this address. We are seeking to resolve this issue in our email system but suggest you also check and update your local email address books as appropriate.
David Jones, Chair of Trustees
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UPDATE 24 July 2024
We regret to announce that the CJP Summer 2024 Play Scheme has been cancelled.
As promised in our Facebook Statement on Monday and in the calls, messages and emails Parents and Carers have received over the last few days, the Trustees have spent the last two days reviewing the challenges we continue to face in completing the final steps to run the Summer 2024 Play Scheme.
We had hoped the extra effort Trustees and our Play Scheme Manager have put into the last few days would be able to address these issues and enable us to run at least 1 week of the Summer 2024 Scheme.
However, at our Trustee meeting last night (Tuesday 23rd July) we concluded that all of the challenges had not been successfully addressed and therefore we have no choice but to cancel the remaining week of the CJP Summer 2024 Play Scheme. The key challenges that we have been unable to resolve relate primarily to staffing challenges and paperwork associated with safeguarding.
The Trustees fully understand how disappointing and frustrating this is for parents, carers, their children and also for the staff. Several of our Trustees are parents who have used the scheme so fully appreciate the value it delivers and as a result the impact the cancellation will have. We apologise that the final cancellation notice is so late but we were determined to exhaust all avenues to address our challenges.
As Chair of Trustees I have seen many successful CJP Summer Play Schemes and I am deeply disappointed and frustrated that we have had to cancel. Trustees will meet in the next few weeks and will keep you informed on intentions for any Play Schemes in 2025.
David Jones, Chair of Trustees (davidjhjones@btinternet.com)
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UPDATE 22 July 2024
As promised in our Facebook Statement on Friday, the Trustees have spent the weekend reviewing the challenges we still face in completing the final steps to run the Summer 2024 Play Scheme and considering our best options for addressing them.
At a meeting of Trustees to review the situation last night (Sunday 21st July) we concluded that we were not in a position to run the 1st week of the scheme safely (29th July – 2nd August) and the first week is therefore cancelled. Instead, we would focus all our efforts on trying to make sure we could run the 2nd week of the proposed Summer Scheme (5th to 9th August).
We understand how disappointing and frustrating this is for parents, carers and their children given the delays you have already faced but the Trustees and staff have to be confident that we can run a safe, secure and successful scheme. We are working over the next 48 hours to resolve the remaining issues and a statement by email, Facebook and on the Website will be posted by 10am on Wednesday 24th July to confirm our final position. Our team will be contacting Parents, Carers and Staff directly before Wednesday to get input into resolving some of our challenges.
David Jones, Chair of Trustees.
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Fantastic News!
We are incredibly happy to announce the successful recruitment of a Playscheme Manager. Suzie Davies has joined our team and is looking forward to organising and leading the Summer Playscheme.
Suzie will be in touch with all our current families over the next few weeks to introduce herself and discuss options for the Summer playscheme.
If you are looking to join us this summer then please do complete an application form which can be found on our "joining CJP" pages and be sure to send this back to us by the deadline of 30th June.
We are hiring
Playscheme Manager Recruitment
We are seeking a Playscheme Manager (Part time and Home Based) to lead and manage the provision
of high quality holiday playschemes/leisure activities for children with severe learning disabilities
Home based for much of the year but based in the playschemes when they are running during Easter and Summer school holidays. The post averages 21 hours per week year round.
You will need as a minimum a level 3 qualification and 2 years’ experience in childcare. Transport is also required.
Salary £15 to £20 per hour depending on experience
We take Child Protection and safeguarding very seriously and the successful candidate will undertake an Enhanced DBS.
Closing date for Applications 22nd March 2024
Further information is available from Mr David Jones, Chair of Trustees, davidjhjones@btinternet.com, Tel: 01223 847213
Application forms and job descriptions are available on our recruitment pages.
Summer Playscheme 2024 - Update 01.05.24
Recruitment for the position of Playscheme Manager is going well and we are planning to run the Summer scheme on the dates previously advertised Monday 29th July to Friday 2nd August and Monday 5th August to Friday 9th August.
If you have recently submitted a new application to join CJP you will be contacted within the next 3-4 weeks with a view to conducting a home visit to meet you.
Staff Members - we would love to hear from you regarding your availability for the Summer scheme, please do get in touch!
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09 March 2024
This morning we want to say a huge THANK YOU to The Cambridge Arts Theatre who have once again donated to us following a bucket collect at their Christmas Panto.
We are so incredibly grateful for the Cambridge Arts Theatre who always think of CJP at Christmas time. The money will go towards running our Summer Playscheme.
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2024 Playschemes
UPDATE 20 January 2024
As you may already know, Carol Brown is retiring as our Play Scheme Manager in February 2024. She has led some fantastic and much appreciated Play Scheme’s over her 12 Years with us as Play Scheme Manager and she will be missed. I am sure you will all join me in thanking Carol for her work with CJP and the joy she brought to the many children who attended the schemes under her management. I am sure you will agree with the Trustees in wishing her a well-earned, long and enjoyable retirement.
The Trustees are now in the process of recruiting a new Play Scheme Manager as well as dealing with some of the key challenges we face as a Charity this year, including finding new funding, appointing an new Finance Officer, recruiting additional play scheme workers and recruiting new Trustees to help with the wide range of responsibilities that running Play Schemes entail.
Given our current position we will not be running our 3 day Easter Play Scheme in 2024 and instead will be focusing all our effort to make sure we are able to run a 2 week Summer Play Scheme with a new Play Scheme Manager and enough funding to make sure we can continue to provide the same quality of play scheme.
We will keep our website and Facebook page updated with developments over the next few months but If you feel you can help us with our challenges in anyway please do contact me. We would welcome all offers of help and support.
David JH Jones, Chairman
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October 2023 Playscheme
UPDATE 08 OCTOBER 2023 - It is with great sadness that at the current time we are unable to run the planned October Playscheme. We do not have enough staff to be able to give the level of care we would like to provide.
We appreciate that this is disappointing news, to us also.
Please do keep an eye on our social media and your email for news of our visit to Cambridge Arts Theatre Christmas Panto.
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We are excited to bring you a three day October Half Term Playscheme, which will be held at Granta School, Linton 24-26 October 2024.
As always, the number of days we are able to offer to Parents/Carers is dependent upon staffing levels.
Further information and booking details will be sent to all current users of our scheme in due course.
Please note, we are unable to add your child to our events if you haven't submitted a child application form (available on our website) and have conducted a meeting to assess our suitability to meet your child's needs.
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Summer Playscheme, 2023
What an absolutely fantastic two weeks we had for our Summer Playscheme (24 July - 04 August). We welcomed back old friends and new young people and spent a glorious 2 weeks at Granta School.
We were able to provide a comprehensive range of activities, including games, outdoor play, cooking, swimming, soft play, sensory play and as always, a pictorial programme of activities were sent to families prior to the start. In addition, we had 2 visits from the Ark Farm, fantastic football sessions with Phil Mullen from Cambridge Utd Disability Football Club and 2 dance sessions with Lisa Mason.
We hope our families enjoyed the "go live" on our facebook pages which seemed really popular. If you did miss them head on over as they footage remains on our page for 30 days!
As always, the success of the Playscheme is down to our dedicated Activities Manager, Carol Brown and her amazing staff team. Carol is now on a well deserved summer break before we start planning for our Autumn activities.
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We are incredibly honoured to have been chosen as one of two charities that Great Shelford Parish Council have chosen to be beneficiaries for their fundraising efforts this year.
Already this year, Great Shelford Parish Council have held a Family Fun Day (including the slowest duck race ever) and will soon be holding their Autumn Gala Dinner and Dance in October.
We cannot thank the Parish Council enough for thinking of us.
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Summer Playscheme 2023 - Recruitment Drive
We are excited to announce our Summer Playscheme Dates for 2023 - Monday 24 July - Friday 04 August.
In order to host this scheme for as many young people as possible we need to recruit reliable staff.
If you, or anyone you know maybe interested in a few weeks work over the Summer holidays please do get in touch. Further details are available on our recruitment pages
Cambridge Arts Theatre
Once again we are blown away by the generosity of Cambridge Arts Theatre who during their panto season, raised a significant amount of money for CJP by way of their Bucket Collection.
Huge Thank You to the Arts Theatre Team for their ongoing support and generosity.
Easter Playscheme 2023
The Easter Playscheme 2023 is well underway with Day 1 a huge success with brilliant sunshine which allowed our children to play outside in the glorious spring sun! Swimming is always a firm favourite with this scheduled in twice over the Scheme.
We are really looking forward to a visit from Phil Mullen, Cambridge United Disability Sports Coach. His passion and drive for inclusive sport really shows and our children and staff love when he visits. Its one of our favourite sessions!
We are also looking forward to welcoming Lisa for Dance and Music, as well as our new friends at Make a Smile
As you can see a fun packed few days before we start planning for the Summer Saturday Activities and the Summer Playscheme.
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Annual General Meeting
Documents for AGM 03 November 2022
We are pleased to invite you to attend our Annual General Meeting which is to be held on Thursday 3rd November 2022 at 8pm by ZOOM or at 73 High Street, Little Shelford
As a charity Cambridge Joint Playschemes is managed by a Board of Trustees, who are also known as the Management Committee. Every year the members of the group need to elect a Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and up to 9 other committee members.
We need people to serve on the committee. The committee meets approximately 5-6 weeks for 1-2 hours and is where the main decisions regarding the Charity are taken. We need people who are willing to take an interest in the way the Charity should develop and the work that we do. We have been very well served in the past by our Trustees and committee members who have served on the committee for a number of years, but we now need new people with new ideas to take support them.
Nominations should be received before the Annual General Meeting although nominations can be received at the meeting itself. You must of course have the consent of the person you are nominating. You may also want to consider putting yourself forward for nomination, this is perfectly acceptable.
If you plan to attend the AGM by ZOOM please e-mail: camjointplay@btconnect.com
We will then be able to send the ZOOM details so you can connect. Nominations for the committee can also be sent to the same address.
If you plan to attend in person please let David know at the following address: davidjhjones@btinternet.com
Space is limited so David would be grateful to know in advance the number of in person attendees. Thanks.
David JH Jones, Chair of Trustees,
Cambridge Joint Playschemes
.
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UPDATE JULY 2022
We have been inundated with applications for our Summer 2022 Playscheme and are unfortunately unable to process any new applications as we are now over-subscribed. Those who applied in May and June should already have received notification as to whether we have been able to process their application or if we have had to reject it as the application arrived after we had become over-subscribed.
We are welcoming new applications, however, please note that these will not be eligible for the Summer Scheme 2022 and will instead be processed later in the Summer ready for the Autumn Term and 2023 Playschemes.
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Amazon Wish List
There are so many ways you can support CJP, including our new Amazon Wish List.
We have added to this our most used items, as well as items we would like to add to our Playscheme for the children to use and enjoy. This will be updated regularly.
Please feel free to share this with friends and family. You can purchase any items on the list and everything purchased will be gratefully received by our children and young people.
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We have joined Instagram. Pop on over and give us a follow! https://www.instagram.com/camjointplay/
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January 19 2022
WOW! Have you seen the news from Cambridge Arts Theatre. They have raised a staggering £14,000 for local charities, including CJP.
We cannot thank them enough for their ongoing support and generosity.
https://www.cambridgeartstheatre.com/…/aladdin-audiences-ra…
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Panto Season
We are incredibly lucky to be supported by so many local businesses. In the lead up to Christmas we wanted to highlight one of our many amazing friends, the Cambridge Arts Theatre, who allow us to visit their relaxed performance of the Panto every year and in the past have offered amazing support by raising vital funds for us via the bucket collection during the performances.
We cannot wait for our annual visit this year to watch Aladdin at the relaxed performance which is specifically designed to welcome people with an autism spectrum condition, learning disability and sensory or communication disorders, and families with very young children.
We cannot wait to see the amazing performance.
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Annual General Meeting (AGM)
We are pleased to invite you to attend our Annual General Meeting which is to be held on Monday 22nd November 2021 by ZOOM
As a charity Cambridge Joint Playschemes is managed by a Board of Trustees, who are also known as the Management Committee. Every year the members of the group need to elect a Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and up to 9 other committee members.
We need people to serve on the committee. The committee meets approximately every month and is where the main decisions regarding the Charity are taken. We need people who are willing to take an interest in the way the Charity should develop and the work that we do. We have been very well served in the past by our committee members who have served on the committee for a number of years, but we now need new people to take their place.
Nominations should be received before the Annual General Meeting although nominations can be received at the meeting itself. You must of course have the consent of the person you are nominating. You may also want to consider putting yourself forward for nomination, this is perfectly acceptable.
Please let Carol Brown or Wendy Little know if you wish to nominate someone to serve on the committee or are willing to do so yourself.
Email camjointplay@btconnect.com
Zoom Details for the AGM
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81622441374?pwd=TXhhaU1RZnNWVHhoeTdWaVJscUJNdz09
Meeting ID: 816 2244 1374
Passcode: 900568
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Events Update. 21 October 2021
Hi Friends! We hope you are all well.
We have several events we are currently planning for, however are now experiencing both transport and staffing issues.
If you do know of anyone looking for a fun, supportive position please direct them to our website for an application pack.
In the meantime we will try and work our magic to bring you these events and will of course update as you as when we get more information.
Sad News
Kathleen Powell
We are sad to announce that Kathleen Powell, well known to many associated with Cambridge Joint Playschemes passed away on Friday 24th September 2021. Kathleen and her husband Robert and their son, David, were amongst the founding families to use CJP when it started in 1995 and Kathleen and Robert went on to manage and help run CJP for several years until Rob’s retirement in 2018 as well as helping to rescue it from closure in late 2004. We offer our sincere condolences to Rob. Sadly, David passed away in January 2001.
If you would like to join the Funeral for a celebration of Kathleen’s life the details are Friday 15th October at 10 am, St Andrews Church, Mingle Lane, Stapleford, Cambridge CB22 5SY.
Donations in Kathleen’s memory to Cambridge Joint Playschemes can be given to Robert or left in the Church for those able to attend. If anyone would like to send a donation in Kathleen’s memory directly to the Charity, please post your donation to the Treasurer, CJP, 6 Regent Close, Denver, Downham Market, Norfolk PE38 0DJ. If you wish to have bank details so you can make a direct donation to the CJP Bank Account contact the Chair of Trustees, davidjhjones@btinternet.com
The Trustees of CJP
Autumn Term Update
It is with great sadness that at the current time we are unable to run the planned October Playscheme and Saturday Clubs for the Autumn Term.
The reason for this is out of our control owing to Granta School being unavailable.
We are desperately trying to source an alternative venue so that we can bring you something. If you know of anywhere we can run these activities PLEASE let us know as soon as possible.
Much love to you all Carol and the CJP Team
Summer Playscheme 2021
We are incredibly lucky to have fantastic support from The Cambridge Arts Theatre who fundraise for us every year with bucket collections at their Christmas panto.
This week we were so happy to invite them in to visit us and see how the scheme uses their amazing donations.
During the visit staff from the Arts Theatre were able to meet with staff and attending children and watch them in action. We were busy decorating T Shirts, playing outside on the fantastic play equipment and some of us were "chilling out" watching a film.
We hope that this year we are able to revisit the Theatre and enjoy the Panto again. We really have missed visiting the Theatre, as I am sure all of you have.
Huge thanks, once again, for the support that Cambridge Arts Theatre provide to us.
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What a fantastic start to our Summer Playscheme.
We have welcomed lots of new children and staff and are happy to say all are settling in well.
As always, lots of fun and laughter can be heard along the corridors.
We have already welcomed The Cambridge Arts Theatre and Phil Mullen to the scheme.
Lots more visitors to come this week and next.
Bring on the fun!
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Future Events
HALF TERM PLAYSCHEME
Further to our recent news we are writing to give you an update on our June Playscheme.
Whilst we are going ahead with the Half Term Playscheme this will only run on two days, Thursday 3rd and Friday 4th June, owing to staff shortages.
As a result of the shortages, places will be limited. Booking information will be sent out to all by end of day 12th May and booking forms MUST be returned to us by end of day 24th May.
We are so excited to be able to see you all again in person in a few weeks time!
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20.04.21
We are so excited to announce that we will be running our Half term and Summer Holiday Playschemes. Head on over to our Dates for your Diary page as well as our Facebook page for more details!
Looking for a new challenging, fun, rewarding role? We are seeking Playworkers to join us at Saturday activity sessions and school holiday Playschemes. Further details can be found on our recruitment pages
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Cambridge Arts Theatre
Huge thank you to our amazing friends over at The Cambridge Arts Theatre who have raised over £4,000 for us.
I am sure you will all agree this is a staggering amount to receive. Every single penny will be used on giving our children and young people the best experiences possible.
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February Half Term - Events Update
We are so excited to be bringing some family events to our programme for February Half Term. Details of this have been sent out to our regular users.
We are currently unable to add any additional people on owing to space constraints, however if you are interested in future events please drop us an email camjointplay@btconnect.com we would love to hear from you!
Details of the planned events are below along with links to the companies facebook and web pages. Please head on over and give them a like, please support these small businesses during this difficult time.
Full timings and links will be sent to all our families in due course.
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February Half Term 2021 - A Message from Our Activities Manager, Jan 2021
Hi there
I hope you are all keeping safe and well and here's wishing everyone a very Happy New Year. Let's hope that 2021 is a better year for everyone.
As you are no doubt aware we find ourselves in the midst of another Covid 19 lockdown and as such it is with a heavy heart that I have to inform you that it is looking unlikely that we will be unable to offer a February half term playscheme as we had planned. Obviously our primary concern is for the safety and well being of the children/young people, you and your family and as such we must do our best to follow the current guidelines. If the circumstances change, I will of course inform you.
We will still be planning on providing an Easter Playscheme but as with everything else we must adhere to the guidance.
Stay safe one and all
All the best
Carol
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October Half Term 2020
Who could have imagined 2020 would turn out as it has. We felt during these strange and confusing times it was important to keep the continuity for our Children and Young People
We held our October Half Term Activity Club and what a fantastic few days we had!
Huge thanks to our amazing Playscheme Manager, Carol, along with her superb staff team. The children (and adults) and a fantastic time, please head over to our Gallery to take a look at what fun they had together.
October Half Term Playscheme
We are excited to announce that we will be running a 3 day half term playscheme at the Granta School, Linton from Tuesday 27th till Thursday 29th October 2020.
We will operate from the usual 10:00am-3:00 pm and as per Summer 2020, children/young people will be in small "bubble" groups. Due to Covid 19 restrictions parents will be required to bring and collect their child.
We will make every effort to accommodate the days you request, however this will be dependent on the demand and staffing levels.
We appreciate this is short notice but please email us at Camjointplay@btconnect.com to request your dates. Please ensure that you email us no later than Friday 16th October.
Summer Playscheme 2020 - Update July 2020
We are pleased to announce that, subject to last minute and unexpected changes in Government regulations relating to Covid-19, CJP will be running its two-week summer playscheme from 27th July to 7th August 2020.
After extensive discussions with Granta School, they have confirmed that we can use their premises to run the scheme. We will work closely with Granta to put in place the necessary precautions and processes to make sure we can run the playscheme with minimum risk to our users, staff and parents and carers. We will be following very similar procedures to those adopted by Granta school over the last few weeks as it re-opened but with additional measures to reflect the additional risks arising from running the playscheme. We thank Granta for their support and collaboration on enabling this years scheme.
As we indicated earlier, there will have to be some differences this year in running the scheme. All activities will be based at Granta and their will be no external trips this year. Staff levels will be higher than normal per child in order to manage social distancing which will also have the impact of a lower cap than normal being imposed on the total number of children who can attend the scheme each day. In addition, staff will be equipped with appropriate personal protection equipment, hand washing and hand sanitisation equipment will be strongly emphasized at all times and the staff team will undergo additional training to emphasise the additional procedures necessary during the covid-19 pandemic.
There will also be an impact on arrival and departure procedures, and it will be impossible this summer to offer transport to the playscheme. Parents and carers will also have to give some additional consents before their Children can attend the scheme, including an assurance that if anyone in their household displays covid-19 symptoms they will not send their child to the scheme. Further details of these requirements will be passed to all those parents and carers who applied in June for places on our Summer scheme by Carol Brown, Playscheme Manager.
Please note that the scheme is now full for this summer and we won’t be able to take any new applications.
We are very pleased that we can run the Summer playscheme this year as we know it is needed more than ever. But, please accept the changes we have had to make in these exceptional circumstances in order to run the scheme including reducing the number of children we can accommodate. We all hope and pray the summer scheme 2020 is a success but also that in the Autumn and next year we will be able to run Playschemes and some Saturday clubs so that even more Children can make use of our scheme, even though our offering will no doubt be adjusted for COVID-19 for some time to come.
David JH Jones
Chair of Trustees.
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COVID-19 Update - May 2020
We wanted to update you on our plans to get CJP back into action and running schemes as soon as possible. The Trustees met via conference call on Tuesday 5th May and felt it was important that we keep you up to date as the Government plans for the end of lock-down start to emerge.
First of all, we also wanted to send our message of support and best wishes to all of you as we know that the Covid19 lock-down has been particularly challenging for families of children with profound learning difficulties and it has made it even harder to get the support you need. We were very disappointed that the Easter Scheme and our Saturday activities had to be stopped but clearly we had no choice and this was the right thing to do to comply with regulations and to make our contribution to the lock-down and keep everyone safe. But, we wanted to remind you that our Activity Club manager, Carol Brown, is still working and would be happy to take a call if that would help share some of the challenges you face. Carol has been using the time to prepare for when we can start running again and to this end, we set out more information below.
We are pleased to say that the Trustees want to get our play schemes operating again as soon as is possible. We are dependent on three key factors, Government guidance, the approach to School re-opening plans and what we would need to do to run our play schemes while keeping the children and our staff safe and socially distanced. To this end, we are reading all Government guidance as it emerges and we are staying in close touch with the leadership team at Granta School and thinking about how the playscheme might be able to access the additional PPE equipment we might need and how we might use Covid-19 testing for our staff.
At the present time, it does look unlikely that we will be able to operate any Saturday activities this term, but we will endeavour to do so if we possibly can. If anything is possible it would be in July. However, our primary focus over the next two months will be to do all we can to run our Summer Holiday Club. If we are able to run the Summer Play Scheme we will have to make modifications to the way we work. We are considering lifting the staff ratios so there are more staff to help ensure safe operation, limiting the number of places available each day, enhanced health and safety procedures and how to ensure social distancing. We will also run the Scheme in the safer and more controlled environment of Granta School rather than having any activities going out into the community.
So, we suggest you proceed with making your requests for places at the Summer playscheme as normal and keep a close eye on your e-mail, the CJP web site and Facebook pages for updates on how our plans are proceeding. The Trustees will meet again on 26 May when we expect to have much more information about whether and how we can start running the Playscheme again and we will give further updates as soon as we can.
In the meantime, if you have questions, please contact Carol, me or any of the Trustees and we will do all we can to respond. In the meantime, please keep safe and well and keep in mind that we will all be able to return to some level of normality in the coming months and there will be a time when the Play Scheme is running again. We will all be looking forward to that!
David Jones, Chair of Trustees.
COVID-19 and CJP
As a Parent, Carer and User of CJP services, we wanted to update you on the steps CJP are taking to help minimise the spread of COVID-19.
As of today (Friday 13th March 2020) we are planning on the basis that our Saturday clubs, Easter and Summer Playschemes will go ahead as planned. However, the situation is changing very quickly and so please keep up to date with our plans via our website (http://camjointplay.org.uk/news.html) or Facebook page.
Also, should we need to cancel any events we will immediately e-mail and call all parents and carers who are booked onto the cancelled event so please pay attention to your e-mails and messages close to event dates. We will carry forward payments made by parents and carers against any cancelled events so they can be used for future events when normal services resume.
Self-Isolation policy
If our Saturday clubs or Easter Holiday club do operate then it is very important that all our staff and parents and carers take note of the new self-isolation policy issued yesterday and we ask that no child, parent or staff member attend CJP when they should be following the self-isolation policy. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance
The running of CJP events
When we run Saturday clubs or holiday schemes we will continue to follow and monitor official guidance from the UK Government and Public Health England carefully (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public) and we will make sure all all procedures are in place to support the health and well-being of our users and our staff members.
To help combat the spread of COVID-19, we will always:
1. Educate our staff on prevention
2. Emphasizing frequent and proper hand washing
3. Clean high contact points more frequently
4. Providing hand sanitizer and appropriate hand soaps
If you have questions or concerns please contact:
Carol Brown CJP Play Scheme Manager camjointplay@btconnect.com 07791 087036
David Jones CJP Chairman davidjhjones@btinternet.com 07711 06372
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Fundraising News
During our recent Saturday Activity Day, the children wanted to say a huge thank you to the Cambridge Arts Theatre for their generous donation. I am sure you will agree the art work is amazing!
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Huge thanks to our Our amazing friends at the Cambridge Arts Theatre who have generously donated over £2,000 to the Playscheme from their recent bucket collection, which took place during the family panto season.
What amazing news! Huge thanks everyone!
The children and young people will really benefit from this outstanding donation and will be put to good use by way of a day out and some new equipment for the scheme!
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Recently the amazing team at AnyBody Fitness hosted a Christmas Quiz to raise money for us! They have generously donated £160 which will be put to good use for our Children and Young People providing a lovely activity day out for them.
Please pop over and give their facebook page a like and support them!
Thanks to the team at AnyBody Fitness!
New Uniform
We recently received our new uniform. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Huge thanks to Embroider It who provided this in record time. We are looking forward to receiving our sweatshirts ready for the cooler months.
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Summer Playscheme 2019
Our 2019 Summer Playscheme took place between Monday 29 July - Friday 09 August. We had the most amazing two weeks of fun, laughs, days out, visits in and most of all friendship.
We were based, as always at the Granta School in Linton. We would like to offer our sincere thanks to Lucie and the staff team for the use of their facilities over the two weeks. We were also visited by Lisa Mason, dance class and Phil Mullen, Cambridge United Disability Football. Both Lisa and Phil are firm favourites with not only our young people but staff alike.
We made two visits out to Great Yarmouth and Wicksteed Park and had the most fantastic time!
Photos will be up in our gallery soon of all our adventures!
Thanks as always to Star Travel who as always, provided our transport. Sally is always incredibly helpful so if you are looking for transport locally please give them a call and mention CJP!
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Gulliver's Dinosaur & Farm Park
Huge thank you to all the staff at Gullivers Land Dinosaur Park, Milton Keynes for really looking after us when we visited recently. We would thoroughly recommend a viist if you haven't been before! Check out our gallery for some pics from the day!
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Unfortunately we didn't win the Peoples Projects 2019, all is not lost as we do receive a "runners up" award of £5,000 which will go along way to helping with additional days out and staffing for our Summer 2019 Playscheme.
We have been overwhelmed by the support we have had from all our supporters and parents, and thanks to the publicity of this campaign we have been inundated by enquiries from those who want to access our services. We will, headed up by our amazing Carol, continue providing our services to the Children and Young People.
It's not too late to make a difference to CJP, and there are many ways you can help us.
Visit our webpage for details on how to raise money for us via your shopping as well as our our Virgin Giving page
http://www.camjointplay.org.uk/funding.html
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Votes are now Open!
Voting for the Peoples Projects is now OPEN! We need your support to win a share of over £41,000. This money will be used for our playscheme by way of days out, holiday playschemes, new equipment and additional staff to allow more users to access our scheme.
Please vote for us, it will only take a few minutes and will mean the world to our young people that use the scheme.
Share the link with your friends and family!
https://www.thepeoplesprojects.org.uk/projects/view/cambridge-joint-playschemes
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Eek,only 2 days left to vote!
https://www.thepeoplesprojects.org.uk/projects/view/cambridge-joint-playschemes
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As we enter the final few days of voting for the Peoples Projects 2019 we wanted to say a huge thank you to all our supporters. Thanks for sharing our posts, our pictures, our videos and most of all thank you for voting.
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CJP Goes Live - Tuesday 09 April 2019
Did you get a chance to "check in" on our Facebook page earlier?
We went "live" to give you all the chance to see what we do at the Playscheme and see some of our amazing staff in action.
We are incredibly lucky to be able to support our Children and Young People with either 1:1 or 1:2 care during the playschemes. Not only this but we are fortunate to have our lovely volunteer Chris, who at 21 is our youngest member of volunteering staff. Chris attended the Saturday clubs and Playschemes for many years before he became "too old" to use our services. Chris sat a formal interview and now comes back to volunteer for us and support our current cohort of attendees!
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Huge Thanks! For all the votes and support so far! We really do appreciate it.
If you haven't already voted, there is still time - 9 days to go!
Please share our link to all your friends, family and colleagues.
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Radio Stars!
03 April 2019 - This morning our Chair of Trustees, David Jones, had the privilege of chatting to Julian and Lucy from the breakfast show on Cambridge 105 Radio about our fantastic news for the Peoples Projects.
The show is available to listen to on the podcast from Cambridge 105 Radio. Huge thanks to Julian and Lucy for their support!
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CJP On the News!
Did you see us this evening on the ITV Anglia East News?
Take a look at our Peoples Projects video here.
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BREAKING NEWS!!
We can't believe the fantastic news! We have been made finalists for the People's Projects 2019.
We are going to need your help when the voting opens on 01 April 2019, but for now please share the amazing news far and wide!
We are so Unbelievably honoured to be in the final!
The People's Project : Since 2005, the partnership between The National Lottery Community Fund, The National Lottery, ITV and STV has given the public a say in how funding should be put to good use in their local area.
The People’s Projects has awarded around £42 million to 960 good causes across the UK since it started in 2005.
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EASTER PLAYSCHEME 2019
We are delighted to announce the dates for our EASTER PLAYSCHEME for 2019.
We will be running a weeks activities at the Granta School, Linton from Monday 08 April - Friday 12 April 2019.
If you have a young person interested in joining us please contact us camjointplay@btconnect.com for further details and an application form.
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Cambridge Arts Theatre
Huge thanks to the Cambridge Arts Theatre, a wonderful time was had by all at last years Panto of Aladdin. The children and staff thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
We would also like to express a heartfelt thanks for the generous donation which was raised via a bucket collection for CJP at the Panto. This money will be put to very good use this year for outings and activities.
New Sponsors
We are extremely grateful to our new sponsors, TWI Ltd and Scotsdales Garden Centre who have generously donated to our Playscheme. Huge thanks from all the children and young people.
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Easter Playscheme
The Easter Playscheme was a huge success, we would like to thank Tesco Newmarket Road, Cambridge United Community Trust and Granta School for making it such a success and welcoming our young people! We really look forward to working with you again in the future. Full coverage can be found in our April 2016 newsletter which will be issued shortly. Photographs can be found online in our gallery as well as on our facebook page.
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Happy Birthday to us!
This year we are celebrating 21 years of Cambridge Joint Playschemes. Have a look at our 21st Birthday pages for a trip down memory lane and details of our 21st Birthday Party!
Welcome to our new Sponsor
We would like to welcome and thank the lovely team at Bouncing Beans who are kindly sponsoring our Playscheme. We look forward to working with you. I don't know about you but I can't wait to try out their bouncy castles!
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Forthcoming Playschemes
Planning is currently underway for our Easter and Summer Playschemes. We are looking for companies to sponsor us for these events and provide fantastic opportunities for our young people. If this is something you are interested in please drop us an email office.camjointplay@btconnect.com
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Sincere apologies for the lack of updates on our website recently, this was due to a hosting problem, which has now been repaired!
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New Fundraising Opportunities
We have recently started collecting printer cartridges which we then recycle via Empties Please. If you do have any used cartridges or toners please let us know. We would love to take them off your hands!
Christmas Shopping?
Do you shop online? Do it through easyfundraising.org.uk and raise a free donation for Cambridge Joint Playschemes every time you shop! https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/camjointplay/
There is absolutely no cost to you and no catch - every time you shop online we get a donation!
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Radio 5 Live Discussion
Our Chairman, David Jones, joined an interesting discussion on Radio 5 Live on Tuesday about "Who cares for Special Needs children after their parents are no longer able to or after they die". A challenging topic for many parents. A spokesperson from a Charity called Fitzroy is also part of the discussion which provides services to adults with special needs. The discussion can be found over on our facebook page. Makes for interesting listening,
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Committee Members Needed
30 October 2015
In order to keep Cambridge Joint Playschemes running, we need more Committee Members. If you have an interest in keeping our scheme going we need YOU! The Committee meets 5 times a year for no more than 2 hours at time. Meetings are held during the day and we always have lots of tea & biscuits!
It's your chance to get involved and help raise money for our fantastic scheme. If you are interested please drop us an email camjointplay@btconnect.com
Playworkers Needed
Think you have got what it takes to work with our amazing children and young people? Head over to our "Staff" pages and download our application forms.
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Cambridge Evening News: Community Awards 2015
05 October 2015
The winners gallery is now up and live on the Cambridge Evening News website. Great to see such worthy winners, including our very own Carol Brown.
We are incredibly proud to announce that on Wednesday 30 September 2015 at an awards ceremony hosted by Homerton College, Cambridge Joint Playscheme were awarded the accolade of COMMUNITY GROUP WINNER 2015
Our Activities Manager, Carol Brown, was also awarded CARER OF THE YEAR 2015 for the amazing work she does at the Playscheme.
Photos are now available in our into our photo gallery as well as the the news coverage can be found online at Cambridge Evening News: Community Awards 2015
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Summer Playscheme 2015
The Summer Playscheme was a huge success, we would like to thank Cambridge Evening News Press Relief Fund, Arts Theatre, Tesco Newmarket Road, Shepreth Wildlife Park, Scotsdales Garden Centre, Linton PCSO Team and Cambridge Fire Station for making it such a success and welcoming our young people! We really look forward to working with you again in the future. Full coverage can be found in our August 2015 newsletter.
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