On Saturday 31st January, playful people from all across Sheffield came together at the Adventures Hub at Highfields Adventure Playground for a fabulous evening of celebration. We invited those who trained with us last year to collect their certificates for Discovering Play Level 1, PARS 2 and 3, and Paediatric First Aid – and it was great to see so many familiar faces.
During 2024/25, an amazing 96 learners from across the city gained qualifications with us completely free of charge. By building skills and confidence, we’re helping to grow Sheffield’s Playwork workforce and strengthen the quality of play opportunities available to children across the city.
We’re excited to be running a full training programme again this year, with more FREE six-week courses and one-off CPD sessions being announced very soon. You can check upcoming dates and find out more here.
We were also proud to be joined by Cllr Fran Belbin, Deputy Leader of Sheffield City Council; Cllr Dawn Dale, Chair of the Education, Children and Families Policy Committee; and Cllr Marianne Elliott, Spokesperson for the Communities, Parks and Leisure Policy Committee as well as representatives from the Department for Education. Their support helped us celebrate Sheffield’s rich play offer and look ahead to a future where every child in the city can access high-quality play opportunities in their communities.
Thanks also to Amanda from Hackenthorpe Youth Club for sharing their journey of setting up a new club for their community and Dr Shelly Newstead, the creator of the PARS model that we offer training on.
We presented 4 special awards to individuals and organisations who were nominated by Sheffield’s play sector as having made a particular contribution:
Outstanding Contribution
Yanina Koszalinski
Chair of Trustees of Pitsmoor Adventure Playground and Scrap Dragon
Community Impact
Valley Youth Hub
Emma Merrick and team expanding play opportunities for children on Gleadless Valley
Emerging Leader
Shantai Adlington
Team Member at Hackenthorpe Youth Club
Professional Development
Holly Carder
Team Member at MASKK
All the photos from the event can be viewed here.
If you work with children at play, or you’re looking to set up a new project, we’d love to see you at our training or networking opportunities.
We can also offer bespoke training, support and guidance – get in touch to find out more.