Holiday Activity Programme
Providing stimulating play environments for children aged 5-18 during the school holidays.
Our Holiday Activity Programmes are carefully developed in partnership with West Lothian Council and Edinburgh Council to provide your child with the opportunity to try new activities, build friendships, relax and most important of all, have fun.
Our aim is to make our Holiday Activity Programmes a fun time for all! With the support of our experienced staff, your child can develop social skills, get to know their peers and enjoy the school holidays. The Holiday Activity Programmes are a buzz of activity, filled with creative crafts, science experiments, energetic games and lots of outdoor fun. Groups enjoy trips out and about in the community as well as benefitting from visits from a range of guest contributors who share their skills and passions with us such as visits from Fringe performers.
Our Holiday Activity Programmes follow the base GIRFEC principles and values on children's rights. Our sessions promote the eight well being indicators: Safe, Healthy, Achieving, Active, Nurtured, Respected, Responsible and Included, to promote the wellbeing of each child and young person.
Our Holiday Activity Programmes in Edinburgh and West Lothian are registered with the Care Inspectorate as Day Care for Children services. Our more recent inspection reports can be read here.
We recruit a wide range of seasonal staff to be able to provide a high level of care for each child. All staff have a full PVG Disclosure check and attend a range training sessions prior to each holiday programme. Our staffing ratio is a minimum of 1:2 to ensure your child gets the most out of every opportunity over the holidays.
Branch Out Together is not responsible for the allocation of places to your child in the Holiday Activity Programmes, please make all enquiries directly to your local authority Child Disability Service. ( Edinburgh Or West Lothian)
“Thank you very much for this excellent Holiday Activity programme. We were lost without it last year, and greatly appreciate the opportunity for our son to have fun with peers in a lovely setting during the holidays.”
Our Activities
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Music Therapy
We are very fortunate to work closely with a few musical therapists and groups who bring so much joy to the holidays programmes.
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Animal Handling
We have been working with Callum from Cool Creatures for many years. We love to see everyone’s faces light up when they are able to handle animals such as snakes, meerkats and lizards.
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Edinburgh Fringe
Our Edinburgh Holiday Programmes has a fantastic partnership with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which enables us to have some exciting visits from some of the best performers at the Fringe.
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Messy Play
An activity which always brings smiles to everyone face. We work with organisations who provide a safe and stimulating environment for children to explore the wonders of messy play. From slime making to water play, we love getting messy.
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Entertainers
We love to have visits from local entertainers to bring some extra magic to your childs time at the Holiday Programmes. From Silent Discos to Magicians, we aim to keep our programmes dynamic and engaging.
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Outings
Where possible, we all love going swimming, to adventure parks, farms, museums and various other locations. Our outings are always risk assessed and carefully considered by our Care and Support Team.
The City of Edinburgh Council
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To inquire about attending the Edinburgh Holiday Activity Programme please contact the Child Disability Service on 0131 200 2324
You can also visit the below website to inquire if the attendance form is currently open for submissions.
https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/support-pupils/additional-support-learning-1/2
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If you would like to know more about the service or have any general inquires please contact our office on 0131 661 3834
West Lothian Council
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To inquire about the West Lothian Holiday Activity Programme please contact the Child Disability Service on 01506 282252.
Places are not allocated by Branch Out Together
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If you would like to know more about the service or have any general inquires please contact our office on 0131 661 3834
