Learn to Cook and Eat Well at Herons Dale

15/06/2021

This is our last push as we go into the final 24 hours of fundraising with our crowdfunding page through the Aviva Community Fund. We're delighted with the money raised so far and can't wait to see our final total raised tomorrow. Thank you for your support, however big or small, it really does mean the world and every penny will go towards improving the lives of our pupils. If you haven't donated yet then please head on over to the page now and we'd be so grateful if you could share, share, share our cause!

💛 To create an inclusive teaching kitchen in which children with special educational needs can learn, create and enjoy food.

08/06/2021

With just over a week to go until our project page closes, I thought I would drop you all a quick update... We're so excited about and grateful for the money we have received so far and absolutely every penny donated will go towards our cookery room, making a massive difference to all of our pupils' lives. We're hoping to raise even more funds before the project closes, so if you haven't donated yet and you can, please do, however big or small... and don't forget to check out the rewards that you could receive as thanks for your donation.

💛 To create an inclusive teaching kitchen in which children with special educational needs can learn, create and enjoy food.

11/05/2021

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far. If you haven't gotten around to it yet, then don't worry, donations are still open and we would be extremely grateful for your support. However much you can afford to donate, you will be helping to create an inclusive teaching kitchen so all our children at Herons Dale can learn to create and enjoy food for generations to come. Thanks

💛 To create an inclusive teaching kitchen in which children with special educational needs can learn, create and enjoy food.

03/05/2021

What difference will your support make?

Our pupils have a wide range of learning difficulties and associated special needs. This project will have many positive outcomes for their education and well-being including:

Skills for life: giving the critical life skill that will help our children to feed themselves and others healthy food, now and in the future, potentially halting, and even reversing, the potential of diet related illnesses.
Healthy living: creating a space to learn and apply the principles of healthy eating and nutrition.
Improved self-esteem and confidence: develop independence as well as social and communication skills in an environment to feel proud of.

Almost 20 per cent of children are obese by the time they leave primary school, and families on lower incomes tend to be the most disadvantaged in terms of their culinary knowledge and skills. You will be helping to teach children about nutritious diets and giving them important life skills, thereby potentially halting – and even reversing – the growth of diet-related illnesses.

03/05/2021

We plan to create a modern inclusive teaching kitchen, adjacent to our growing garden, where children will learn to cook healthy food using the ingredients that they have grown. The new cookery room will be twice the size of the current space as we plan to knock down a wall and fully utilise the adjoining space as well as the current space. It will allow for 12 children, plus adults, in the room.

There will be an island, which can be height adjusted so that our wheelchair users can access the kitchen at the same time as the rest of their class. The space will also have accessible equipment, including a dishwasher and an oven with hob. This will provide an active learning environment where, through learning about cookery and where food comes from, children can also see science in action and enhance their maths and literacy skills.

The new teaching kitchen will also enable us to offer high quality food education workshops to the parents and wider community. We have well established links with our families and our local community, enabling us to promote and encourage participation in said workshops.

03/05/2021

Hi Everyone, I'm the Fundraiser for Herons Dale School and we are currently fundraising for a new cookery room. Some funds have already been secured and we've now been accepted to create a crowd funding project page through the Aviva Community Fund... hence this page! The project page goes live on the 5th May at 12pm and we would be so grateful of any public support and donations prior to it becoming available for donations from Aviva employees on the 11th May.