On Thursday, August 22, Gloucestershire County Council hosted its second Holiday Activities and Food programme (HAF) festival awards at a family fun day held at the Kings School, Gloucester.

The festival is the highlight of a jam-packed summer Holiday Activities and Food programme, bringing together over 150 families and more than 20 play, activities and food providers from across the county.

Since its launch in 2021, Gloucestershire's HAF programme as a whole has provided 148,864 activity sessions for children and young people, including those with additional needs.

The rain held off and children and young people were able to enjoy a wide range of free, accessible, and fun activities including a climbing wall, mini-golf, music and games, arts and crafts, circus skills, henna and face painting, inflatable sumo wrestling, archery and even a small petting zoo.

A nutritious lunch and fruit made sure tummies were full, with the added option of toasting marshmallows, or riding the smoothie bike to make a healthy drink whilst keeping fit at the same time.

Parents shared how much they value HAF which they say benefits their children's social, emotional, mental, and physical health whilst also helping them learn, build confidence, and make new friends.

Gloucestershire's activity providers were recognised during a special HAF awards ceremony which celebrated the fantastic local partners who help to make the Holiday Activities and Food programme a success each year.

Families across the county were invited to nominate the activity provider who had gone ''above and beyond' to make their child's HAF experience special. 

The awards were presented by Cllr Stephen Davies, cabinet member for children's safeguarding and early years, alongside the HAF team and a parent who had nominated the winning provider in their area. The winners in each district were:

• Cheltenham - Springbank Community Group
• Cotswolds - Paternoster School
• Forest of Dean - Forest Voluntary Action Forum
• Gloucester - School of Larks
• Stroud - The Calm Club
• Tewkesbury - Sportily

Children and young people were also delighted to receive a special HAF marathon medal as part of a summer challenge recording the number of HAF sessions they attended.

Cllr Stephen Davies, cabinet member for children's safeguarding and early years at Gloucestershire County Council, said: "It was wonderful to see so many children and young people enjoying the festival which is a highlight of the summer Holiday Activities and Food programme.

"It was a pleasure to present them with their HAF marathon medals and chat to them about all the exciting activities they have enjoyed.

"Our activity providers have done an incredible job helping us to develop and deliver such a successful programme which benefits children and young people in communities across Gloucestershire.

"The HAF festival awards allowed us to say thank you for the incredible work they all do and recognise the organisations families told us went above and beyond to make their HAF experience special."