Summer of fun with Caring and Sharing's HAF holiday club

Date published: 06 September 2023

Caring and Sharing Rochdale, a local support group based on Yorkshire Street, has seen a jam-packed summer of activities with its HAF holiday activities and food programme.

The group was originally founded in Rochdale in 2017 by Nicky Iginla, a former church minister who decided to help as many people as she could, and mainly assists refugees and asylum seekers, although it also supports the wider community where needed. It was also founded to support and empower the BAME (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic) communities, and is based on Yorkshire Street in Rochdale town centre.

The group’s holiday club saw visits to Hollingworth Lake and Blackpool with other fun activities including knitting, games and a party.

Excited children descended on Blackpool Pleasure Beach after enjoying pizza at a local restaurant.

The younger ones had a ball on the Nickelodeon rides and also had a go on the gallopers, the derby, Alice in Wonderland, the flying machine and many more. The teenagers went on every hair-raising ride they could find, from The Big One to the Grand National and made sure to make the absolute most of the time they were there.

The day before the last day of the holiday club saw a very wet visit to Hollingworth Lake, the closest thing to a beach in Rochdale. With heavy rain, the trip almost didn’t go ahead.

A representative from Caring and Sharing said: “Although the children had been to Blackpool the previous week, we wanted them to experience our own local ‘beachfront’, or rather, lakefront.

“We had a wonderful time with the children. Many of them are from disadvantaged backgrounds and therefore would not usually see our beautiful Rochdale countryside.”

As soon as the group arrived at the lake, the sun shone, and a waddling of ducks welcomed them.

The children had fun getting acquainted with the local wildlife, including friendly ducks and swans.

The children were excited to enjoy a boat trip on the lake, which many had not done before, before a visit to the amusement arcade.

The last day saw the older children, aged 10-14, try their hand at knitting their own woolly creations, whilst the younger ones built towers out of Lego and Jenga, and some played tabletop football.

They also had the chance to play some music in a recording studio with KASH Flow Studios on the top floor with Caring and Sharing’s very own producer Ola Iginla, before enjoying a party with a dancing competition.

The Caring and Sharing representative said: “We love to give new experiences to the children here at Caring and Sharing since we are very aware that – with the cost-of-living crisis and the backgrounds many of these children come from – they would never have the funds to go out for such day trips.

“During the party, we were honoured to be joined by our esteemed guest Councillor Elizabeth Awotegun, who got stuck in getting to know the children and making their last day even more special with her presence.

“All in all, the children had a blast at our HAF Summer Holiday Club and took with them many memories, we will miss them but we are sure to see them all again soon.”