Making the most of summer at Margam Country Park

13 Sep 2022

Our 6 week family programme at Margam Country Park, Port Talbot this summer was a closed group for families with young children on the Autism spectrum and their siblings. This lovely space was kindly offered to us by NPT CBC council and the park for free, with the sessions happening under ENRaW GI funding.

Week 1 of the holidays was allocated for families and carers to introduce the group to the kids at home. An introductory pack was shared with everyone containing photos of the space, staff and some details to help prepare them to join us the following week.

The remaining 5 weeks were delivered onsite and included a huge variety of nature-based arts & crafts and wildlife exploration. At every session there were a variety of freeplay and quiet time activities, for anyone who didn't want to engage with what we were doing. This included hammocks, messy play trays, visiting the nearby farm animals, going for a woodland walk or den building. Widget boards, (including now and next, choices, weather & clothing and session timetables) were available for all families to use and take home between sessions, in order to aid communication and reduce anxiety. Makaton sign language was also a communication option at our sessions and the group learnt the most important signs to them- danger, help, animals and snack break time!