At Last Some Good News

[marky]

For once, some good news to celebrate. Congratulations to all concerned with running this scheme.
http://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/news/local/child-care-scheme-is-outstanding-1-4917988

[fred c]

I think we all realise that there are many positives in Hartlepool & this is obviously one of them.... Congrats to the team who run this scheme.

[Stig of the Seaton Dump]

The staff at OSCARs are brilliant but I think it is worth noting that because of cut backs they have moved from proper brick built buildings to a shoddy portakabin in the middle of a field and at the same time the cost of using the OSCARs service has doubled !

It is a novel child care facility that has a row of beer pumps half hidden behind a curtain when around the town there is a raft of new and refurbished schools with much more suitable facilities, although on the bright side the kids are a dab hand at pool and darts now.

(I don't know if anybody else has noticed that council related services like OSCARs, school dinners etc. have their price reviewed much more often these days and parents are hit  with rises at the start of the financial year and new school year.)

I fear for what it is going to be like picking the children up when we have had snow, another reason to get a land rover (Where do the sea coalers get them from ?)

Well done OSCARs, shame on the council including Cllr Hill (still not responded to my concerns about the planned A&E closure).

[fred c]

Have you been inside the "Shabby Portacabins" , it`s what the staff put in & the Kids get out that is important, the facilities seem to be ok for the Dozens of young people that use the place in its other guise of WHRFC.

[Stig of the Seaton Dump]

Fred, I agree with you about the staff doing a good job, the kids benefitting and I believe that 100%.
just a shame they couldn't also benefit from all the investment in schools and colleges that has been going on.
Directly by getting a bit of money themselves to refurbish the building, get some new facilities like computers or
indirectly by using the facilities of one of the schools after hours.

I have been in there, hence the comment about beer pumps plus I can also say that nothing in there is state of the art unlike the schools and colleges in town.

One of the old sites OSCARs used was next to a library and large hall that could be used for games on rainy days.
The children have lost out on this ...reading and exercise opportunities.
On the plus side they now have some grass if the weather is nice.

In short, if people grumble like me, somebody might listen and consider giving a good service a better home.