Balsall Heath CATS (CATS stands for Children Action Team Support) is a community group set up in 2004 serving families from diverse backgrounds in Balsall Heath. The group formed to help local children and young people with disabilities be part of the local community and to support, develop and appreciate their different potentials. With good links within the local community, families and schools CATS has been running inclusive sessions for many years and now supports more than eighty local families.
This summer, CATS will be providing inclusive play activity sessions and lunch at Heath Mount School for children including disabled and vulnerable children between 5-18 years old and others – including those who are eligible for free school meals – between 5-16 years old. CATS welcomes children with a range of special needs, including complex special needs. There will be a high adult : hild ratio – up to 1:1 for children with complex special needs – and the service depends on a high level of engagement between staff and families.
Activities
The sessions at Balsall Heath CATS contain a significant amount of physical activity in the form of inclusive play supported by high staff ratios, training and experience in working with disabled and vulnerable children and a high level of interaction with families to identify children’s needs and abilities. The high staff ratio enables the group to ensure that disabled and vulnerable children are able to take part in beneficial physical activity that is based around their needs and abilities. You can see pictures of this during Summer 2021 and read a report about it here .
Food
Balsall Heath is a mixed community and a high proportion of the children participating in the sessions organised by Balsall Heath CATS have special needs around food and eating. For these reasons, the group provides picnic lunches which can be customised to meet individual children’s dietary requirements and can be supplied as packed meals to take away. Staff are trained in Level 2 Food Hygiene and Allergy Awareness.
The summer club is not restricted to children who attend a particular school or who have attended previous Balsall Heaths CATS’ sessions. Given the limited opportunities for SEND children, however, disabled and vulnerable children and their siblings who live locally will be given priority for places. Balsall Heath CATS is able to cater for children with ASC, ADHD, Global Development Delay, CP, Downs Syndrome, Vision Impairment and Learning Disabilities. Newcomers are welcome: but booking is essential and can only be confirmed after you have talked to staff. Make contact via Balsall Heath CATS