Community group for disabled adults gets £10k lottery grant

A community group for children and adults with disabilities and additional needs has been awarded £10,000 in funding from the National Lottery Community Fund.

Valley Daffodils, which runs activities such as arts and crafts, music therapy, football and more, will use the funding for its ‘Circle of Friends’ sessions.

The sessions, which are aimed towards adults with disabilities, are held on Wednesdays at Bargoed YMCA in Gilfach.

As well as arts and crafts, the sessions also include bingo, socialising, pottery, cooking and more.

Ceri Hooper, who founded the volunteer-led group in 2016, said the idea for the sessions came from carers amid uncertainty over the reopening of day care centres in Caerphilly County Borough.

Ceri, whose son has Down’s syndrome, said: “Carers asked if we could start something like this, so we started running it every other week and people kept on coming, so we moved it to weekly.”

The sessions are run by eight volunteers, with around 25 to 30 adults attending each week, with parents and carers more than welcome to attend.

In total, Valley Daffodils has around 75 members and is now a registered charity.

The group relies on fundraising and donations, as well as small fees for users, to fund its activities and cover rent and equipment costs.

The group received £17,000 from the National Lottery Community Fund last year, which went towards running virtual workshops and swimming lessons.

Ceri said she was delighted with the latest funding but admitted it would only cover a short period of time.

“We provide a very important service but we’re fully stretched on very little,” Ceri admitted.

Visit the Valley Daffodils website or Facebook page for more information on the group.

• The Circle of Friends sessions start at 10.30am every Wednesday and run until 12.30pm or 1pm.