Activities for SEND children and families

• For families
• Children under 5
• Young people

For families

• Haringey Family Information Service Directory - The Haringey Family Information Service Directory contains information on childminders, nurseries, playgroups, after-school clubs and other local organisations offering help and support to parents
• Haringey Council Libraries run many activities for under 5s as well as for older children. These range from reading and board games to messy mornings and toy sessions
• There are several leisure centres in Haringey, run by Fusion Leisure, with swimming pools, gyms and group classes
• You can find other sports clubs and groups on the Proactive North London website, many of which are set up for children and young people with disabilities or SEN
• Stage Text (external link) - captioned screenings of theatre shows. You need to be quick to book tickets as they sell fast!
• The council pulls together a list of all of the holiday activities taking place in Haringey for children and young people, including those suitable for children with disabilities or SEN, like the Highgate Inclusive Tennis Club (PDF, 200KB)
• CEA Card (external link) - a cinema card that entitles someone to go with you for free (as a carer). You need to have DLA/PIP to be eligible for this. It costs £6 a year, and you can apply online
• You Local Cinema - subtitled films (external link)
• Theatresign (external link) - BSL interpretation of theatre shows
• The London Transport Museum (external link) - Enjoy the museum at a quieter time, free from the general public, and with many of the gallery sounds turned off
• AccessAble (external link) - AccessAble is here to take the chance out of going out. To give you the detailed information you need to work out if a place is going to be accessible to you. Their Detailed Access Guides tell you all about a venue's access
• Euan's Guide (external link) - Euan's Guide is the disabled access review website where disabled people, their families, friends and carers can find out and share the accessibility of venues around the UK and beyond
• The Challenge and Haven Groups - These are two playgroups located in the west of the borough and offer a space and time for parents and carers to come together and share experiences while their children play in an inclusive environment. Both groups welcome parents and carers whose children are at school. Please see the following contacts, dates, and times for each group:
  • The Haven: Wednesday, 10am to 11.30am - downstairs at Union Church and Community Centre, Weston Park, Crouch End, N8 9PX
    Phone Andriana on 0794 736 9639 or email challenge@unionccc.org.uk
  • The Challenge Group: Fridays 10am to 11.30am St James's Church, St James's Lane, Muswell Hill, London N10 3D8
    Phone Celia on 0793 122 3170
• Wheely Tots - Wheely Tots is a registered children’s charity that believes all children should be healthy, confident, and resilient. Wheely Tots makes this possible by providing inclusive, friendly and rewarding family-oriented events and sessions such as finding the right bike, giving lessons on how to ride a bike and bike servicing facilities
  • Email: info@wheelytots.com
  • Phone: 07397 902255 or 020 7193 7158
  • Address: 639 High Road Tottenham, London N17 8AA
• Kidz Adventure Zone (external link) - A place where children under the age of 12 will have lots of fun. Kids can let off steam as they enjoy the playframe, slides and challenges. There’s also a toddler and baby play area and it’s a great place to hold a birthday party
• Tottenham Green Pools and Fitness (external link) - Tottenham Green Pools and Fitness is brought to you by Fusion, a highly experienced sports and leisure organisation
• Haringey Children’s Centres - A children's centre brings together a range of services for children under 5 and their families such as family support, health and education. It includes good quality childcare, information and support across the local community. The idea is to make services easy to use and to give children the best start in life
• NAS Enfield (external link) - Coffee mornings, children's trampolining and more
• Wave Church (external link) - Second Sunday of the month, 4pm. Methodist Church, Muswell Hill, N10 1PP
• Wave Cafe (external link) - Based in Muswell Hill, United Reform Church, Tetherdown, N10 Art, activities, and lunch for adults with a disability. Thursdays 9am to 5pm
• Brightstars (external link) - Autism and African drumming, art group, sports and more for the whole family. All ages. Based in Crouch End
• Get Out Get Active (GOGA) Haringey - An exciting programme that supports disabled and non-disabled people to enjoy being active together
• Early Help and Prevention Offer (PDF, 109KB) - We have a range of services to support you and your family. See what's on offer

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Children under 5

• Children’s centres run lots of activities for children under 5 and their families, as well as parenting support activities. 
• Portage HUDDLE - The Portage team run Haringey’s Under-fives with Developmental Difficulties’ Learning Experience (HUDDLE). It is an inclusive stay-and-play session that’s lots of fun and provides individual advice on play and learning activities to support your child’s communication and development. It takes place on:
  • Date and time: Every Tuesday, 9.30-11am
  • Location: Pembury House Children’s Centre, Landsdowne Road, N17 9XE.

For further details please contact portage@haringey.gov.uk

• Stepping Stones (external link) - This is a 10-week sensory play and language programme facilitated by Markfield for families with children under the age of 5 with additional needs in communication, social skills, and language. It is designed to equip parents and carers with the skills and knowledge to confidently interact with their children through play and music. Parents, carers and professionals can drop in or contact Markfield directly for a referral form:
  • Email: familyadmin@markfield.org.uk
  • Phone: 020 8800 4134
  • Address: Stepping Stones, Markfield, Markfield Road, London N15 4RB
• Deaf Toddler Group - Haringey’s Sensory Impairment Team facilitate a fortnightly stay and play group for deaf pre-schoolers. The sessions take place at Woodside Children’s Centre. For further details and to submit your interest please email Bharti.Solanki@haringey.gov.uk
• Nurture Stay and Play - This is a specialist stay and play group for children under 5 with speech, language and communication difficulties. Each week we will focus on a particular theme, and support children access different areas of play and learning. Weekly themes include storytelling, messy play, sensory resources and language and communication games.
  • Nurture Stay and Play
    Date and Time: Fridays 10am -11.30am
    Location: Woodside Children’s Centre, 59 White Hart Lane, N22 5SJ
    To find out more, or to book your space, call 020 8888 4398
  • Polo SEND Stay and Play
    Date and Time: Wednesdays 10.30am -11.30am  
    Location: Park Lane Children’s Centre, 139 Park Lane, N17 0HB
    To find out more, or to book your space, call 020 8489 4945
  • Nurture Stay and Play
    Date and Time: Thursdays 1.30pm -2.30pm
    Location: Triangle Children’s Centre, 91-93 St Ann’s Road, N15 6NU
    To find out more, or to book your space, call 020 8802 8782

The Triangle Children’s Centre also have sessions available in their sensory room for children with SEND. These are slots of 45 minutes in their sensory room on Mondays.

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Young people

• Youth Space (external link) has information on activities and events for young people aged 11 to 25 in Haringey, including groups such as the Haringey Youth Council and opportunities in music and radio. The youth service can also provide advice on college or university applications, and job hunting.
• Haringey Shed (external link) is an inclusive performing arts charity offering weekly theatre, dance, singing and music sessions for young people aged 7-16. They have a range of holiday activities throughout the school breaks. They also offer supported volunteer placements for young people aged 13+ who are interested in teaching and supporting performing arts. All based from the Haringey 6th Form College, White Hart Lane, N17 8HR
  For more information please email info@haringeyshed.org or call 020 8243 8743 | 07850 617 169.
• The Gaming Connection - The Gaming Connection is an incredible platform for young autistic people of ages 14 to 19 to connect with others over common interests, without having to leave the comfort of their homes.
  • Online via Microsoft Teams, every Wednesday during term time, 4pm to 5pm
  • Ages 14 to 19
  • To apply please email john.chamberlain@haringey.gov.uk
• Remark! Community Youth Club (external link) Youth Club accessible for young, Deaf people aged 11-19. It is a great place to catch up with friends and play games with people of a similar age
• Coffee and Computers provides free digital support sessions to help you get to grips with the online world.
• #ActuallyHaringey - The Autism Hub is a new specialist autism-specific service that is designed to deliver early help provision to address the needs of autistic adults and those approaching adulthood and their support networks. 

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