It has never been so important to be there for our children and their families

I am Becky, the Deputy Manager of Jimbo’s community nursery which is based in the Vinery Centre. On a day to day basis I support the nursery manager with the general running of the nursery and also oversee our Preschool Playroom. In Jimbo’s we can take children from aged 6… Read more

There is no such thing as a ‘typical day’ at our clubs and playschemes!

I’m Dana, the Clubs and Playschemes Coordinator at Leeds Mencap. I started at Leeds Mencap as a volunteer on our playschemes, before getting a job, first on the playschemes, then at one of our youth clubs too, before getting my current role late last year. A team of amazing staff… Read more

‘Oliver felt safe and as a parent that’s the main thing you want’

Nicola tells us about Oliver’s Leeds Mencap journey To say that the Hawthorn playroom at Leeds Mencap was beneficial for Oliver in his first few years is a huge understatement.  I’m so grateful to the two Mums who recommended Leeds Mencap to me, after having attended with their own children. … Read more

‘Seeing the small changes in the children is absolutely amazing!’

I’m the Team Leader at Hawthorn, a specialist playroom at Leeds Mencap which is for very young children with learning disabilities aged between 0-3 years. We usually care for nine children a day, but at the moment due to COVID restrictions, we are only able to see three children. The… Read more

Why Makaton is so fantastic

If you’ve not come across Makaton before it’s fantastic. And this is why… Makaton is a form of sign language that uses symbols, signs and speech to enable children, young people and adults to communicate. Makaton is similar to British Sign Language however it is a more efficient language programme… Read more

Building friendships

It’s been a real pleasure filming our recent videos for the Imagine if campaign and we hope that you enjoyed the latest one ‘Nothing like you Imagine’. Our Friday club members were absolutely brilliant and it was great to see Ella, Emily and Tom talk about what they like to… Read more

Kate’s Story

We know that the COVID-19 pandemic has been really tough on families with children with learning disabilities, read Kate’s story where she talks more about how her family have been coping. Kate’s two sons go to Leeds Mencap’s Youth Clubs, her daughter attends the Sibling Group and Kate goes to… Read more

94% of Leeds Mencap families said that they have felt more isolated during Covid-19

We know that COVID 19 has been challenging for many families across the country. The current pandemic has put them under incredible strain with many feeling overwhelmed, isolated and alone as much of the usual support around them disappeared overnight. We supported families from the start of the crisis in… Read more