HAF schemes in the Black Country, Summer 2025

Delivering summer HAF Schemes across the region

Over summer 2025 we delivered HAF (Holiday Activities and Food) schemes in not one but 3 local authorities: Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton.

The HAF programme was rolled out by the government in 2021 and provides free holiday provision including healthy food and enriching activities for low-income households.
Evidence shows that free holiday clubs can have a positive impact on children and young people. It also encourages children to eat healthily over the school holidays, remain active, take part in activities that support resilience, character and wellbeing and fosters a sense of achievement.
 
This fits in with RAW’s own ethos, that ‘art is good for everyone’ and our purpose which is ‘to engage people in meaningful creative experiences that enable them to build their confidence, meet new people, develop skills and break down barriers’

RAW aimed to achieve the following outcomes, among others, for the young people we worked with in this scheme:

• reduce isolation,
• develop confidence,
• learn new things,
• have fun,
• improve mental health,
• eliminate boredom
• create new artworks that didn’t exist before
• improve self confidence

​We have been a HAF provider to City of Wolverhampton Council for many years and it’s been our aim to develop this offer into other authorities and so we chose 2 neighbouring areas, Dudley and Sandwell this summer, a week of activities in each.

SANDWELL HAF – Wednesbury Library 28.7.25 – 1.8.25

What a brilliant first time delivering our first Sandwell Summer HAF project at the beautiful Wednesbury Library, a Carnegie Library. 
 
The young people did loads of creative projects such as charcoal drawings, Escher tessellations, clay pots, mask making and Steve from Minecraft cartoons.
 
We included some education about healthy lifestyles, including Arcimboldo style portraits with real fruit (which they then ate!); drawings of fruit and vegetable faces, and the children wrote affirmations on tags and placed them on large cardboard fruits, and some British Sign Language fruit and veg vocab. They had chance for some physical activity at lunchtimes in the neighbouring memorial garden.

Thanks to all our staff and volunteers for their help, and of course Sandwell Holiday Activities and Department for Education for funding the sessions and many more across the borough. Thanks also to 2 Much Passion CIC for providing delicious hot food this week.

SELECTION OF PHOTOS

QUOTES FROM LEARNERS

28.7.25

• I like activities we did and that you included education.
• Very fun time colouring and eating fruit and dinner.
• I liked the Minecraft drawing – especially how I can draw a Minecraft poster. Staff were friendly and nice I had lots of fun. Probably the best club I’ve been to this holiday.
• I liked the [Minecraft] Steve step by step drawing. It made it easy to follow the process.

 
29.7.25

• BSL Bingo, Signing, Clay making and colouring. Food was great, great communication, signing games more of them please. Lovely morning
• Really fun clay [pot making]
• Playing with clay was fun.
• I enjoyed doing the clay models and the wood models. I enjoyed lunch and I really enjoyed learning some more Sign Language.

 
30.7.25

• Today we did drawing and it was fun. I did finger spelling with Gary, it was good. The food was lovely then we made plate drawings.
• I loved today, especially plate making to making patterns on paper.
• Everything was perfect.
• It was fun today and lunch too.
• I like everything today

 
31.7.25

• I enjoyed it and had fun. I liked charcoal, its good, and making a tile - very colourful. I liked the food.
• I liked doing the art with charcoal and I liked the food.
• I liked lunch very much and I enjoyed with tiles and charcoal.
• I felt happy and I liked drawing on the tiles.
• I liked the tiles and charcoal.
• I loved today’s activity painting on tiles and drawing with chalk. It’s been very fun.
• It was very good today, I like all of the staff.

 
1.9.25

• In the morning we made homemade pencil cases, and masks in the afternoon. I enjoyed it and I made a new friends.
• liked the pencil case and mask. I love the food too. Staff are friendly  + helpful. I’d like to come again in future.
• I felt happy and I liked doing the mask and pencil case.
• I liked making my mask and pencil case. I learnt some Sign Language as well and played ‘sign down the line’. I really, really, really loved lunch.
• [Mum] Great time for A today. He loved the mask decorating and pencil case. Ideas for future activities: sand art, T-shirt printing & mug decorating.

QUOTES FROM PARENTS

My son had a brilliant time, he even asked for another day he could go, the staff was amazing, wished they had more dates, really hope next school holidays there more dates.
ET
 
My daughter thoroughly enjoyed the activities with RAW and said the staff was great. She looks forward to doing sessions with them in the future.
KR
 
To all at R.A.W,
[W] attended your arts workshop and had a lot of fun! She came home with a lovely mask and pencil case she had created and said the people were friendly and helped her.
 
She would love to do another workshop with you in the future as she loves drawing. Having someone there using BSL was great too and the postcard of the alphabet is something I hope to teach the children over the summer break also!
Thank you for looking after W and hope to see you soon!
LW
​

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DUDLEY HAF – Green Park Community Centre 4.8.25 – 8.8.25

We had use of the classroom at Green Park Community Centre, DY2 7LG. 
At lunchtimes we were able to use the small playground and neighbouring football courts to allow the children to get some fresh air and exercise.
 
Many of the young people who attended had additional needs and health conditions.
 
Thanks to Dudley HAF and Department for Education for funding these sessions.

​SELECTION OF PHOTOS

QUOTES FROM LEARNERS

Today the activity I have enjoyed the most is using your imagination to create pictures with fruit
 
I like how we made things and how you get to play outside and have fun and I learned sign language and how to finger spell my own name.
 
I liked the clay sculpting and learning a new language.
 
I felt happy today because I like drawing. I liked my lunch. I have fun. I made a friend.
 
I would like to come again because I love art and what I’ve done today.
 
The things that I liked the most was going outside to play because I had fun and started to make new friends and the food was really good.
 
I love the food and the art – it was the best day ever.
 
We really enjoyed it. The activities were really good.
 
Great fun, I enjoyed doing charcoal I liked going to outside at lunchtime. The food was lovely. I’d like to come again in future
 
I absolutely loved our day I had fun using charcoal and it inspired me to use it in the future. I loved the tile and I think next time could try papier maché
I liked today activity because it made more confident with my drawing by exploring art equipment. Liked doing the tiles because it was fun to colour.
 
I enjoyed it a lot it was easy and enjoyable and its for a long time but feels like a short time.
I enjoyed the pencil case because you could take it to school and take it with you. I really liked it here too.
 
It was fun, I loved it.
 
I felt great.
 
I felt very happy, relaxed and tired after today. I loved everything we did today. I would love if next time we did some painting.
​
This is the best club I’ve ever been to.

QUOTES FROM PARENTS

“M attended the workshop and really enjoyed it. Thank you so much.”
 
“My son said it was really fun using different types of art and learning a bit of sign language.”
 
“C has been to many ART activities through HAF but I must say this was very impressive.
It has revealed her creative mind and talent and the material use in the activity is of good quality.”
“I wish there was a possibility there for her and other children to be picked up and given a chance to develop their talent.”
 
“She proudly displays her work in her bedroom wall and can’t wait to joint the next opportunity. Will be happy to pass her HAF details to be booked for all future activity you will organise.”
 
“The sign posting materials are of good use too.”
 
“Thank you very much, for your time and dedication.”
 
“Fantastic! My girls said the session was amazing and are gutted they can’t do it again.”

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WOLVERHAMPTON HAF SCHEME – 11.8.25 – 22.8.25

We hired the hall at Workspace, ASAN (All Saints Action Network) WV2 1EL.
At lunchtimes we were able to use the football courts over the road (weather permitting) to allow the children to get some fresh air and exercise.
 
We also commissioned 3 external professionals to lead sessions as part of our offer: a Qigong teacher who led a gentle martial art to encourage mindful movement; a garment customising expert and an art therapist who led a motivating carnival making session.
We were fully subscribed for this project, having delivered for several years in Wolverhampton we have built up a good reputation for engaging with young people and get a lot of repeat bookings, alongside some new participants.

Selection of Photos

QUOTES FROM LEARNERS

From ‘Thought of the Day’ slips:
 
11.8.25
 
I like today especially making fruit faces. It was a very fun day today.
 
I enjoyed learning how to shade in the apple.
 
I felt good about this activity
 
I loved the BSL and the crossword and the staff
 
I really liked when we made animals as a fruits. I would like to do making masks and other creative stuff (we did masks in a later session)
 
I liked everything and I would like to do more activities and crafts to do with drawing (we did drawing in subsequent sessions)
 
Very nice activities. Need cardboard and clay please! (we did both activities on subsequent days)
 
I like doing the fruit animals and in the future, I would like to some painting. (we did painting in a later session)
 
I am very happy and had so much fun. I like coming here
 
I felt happy because I learnt BSL and I like doing the pencil drawing of an apple
 
It was decent doing BSL. The most fun part knowing how to use BSL, it was really helpful. I liked today.
 
12.8.25
I really like the activities today and when we designed the bag
 
13.8.25
I like the bag because I like drawing and like the pencil case because I haven’t done that before
 
I liked creating the bag the best because there were various options to use and materials as well as colours, and because it turned out good.
 
Today I loved doing art and designing my stuff and I really loved it.
 
Fun, I liked making drawstring draw bags. I would like cardboard (we did this in a later session)
 
I really enjoyed making the wooden pencil case 😊
 
I liked everything we did today. I really liked making my pencil case
 
19.8.25
I felt satisfied with today activities because the staff friendly and very helpful. I most enjoyed BSL because I’ve always been curious about it but never had a chance to actively learn it from someone else. I have no other comment other than the other kids very friendly.
 
I enjoyed making the hats and playing BSL games and sign language.
 
I enjoyed this afternoon’s session. The BSL was really fun and we played BSL Bingo and BSL finger spelling from memory. I think we should do this more often.
 
I really loved today. It was so fun! I loved the finger spelling and designing the caps. I loved it so much. Thank you!
 
I enjoyed both BSL and designing the hats today. I also enjoyed the canvas painting and graffiti art yesterday.
 
I loved doing the blossom tree painting using masking tape and today I loved BSL bingo.
 
I liked designing my baseball cap. I loved the food at lunchtime.
 
20.8.25
It was good and fun making the bridges and decorating them
 
I like the lunch
 
I loved the teamwork and how it made everyone do everything!
 
It was fun making a bridge
 
I enjoyed creating a [cardboard] tower because we got to use a lot of activity and teamwork.
 
I liked making the bridge and making it stable, strong and colourful.
 
I liked the teamwork. I got to talk to new people. It was the first time I made something big.
 
 
 
Jotform Survey Responses:
 
I loved it. Will be come back in the future.
 
I really liked it thank you❤️
 
I had a great time😁
 
I really liked it a lot
 
I love it here
 
It was great. Best thing I have ever decided to do

QUOTES FROM PARENTS

​“Our child has SEND, is autistic and has a complex presentation which can vary widely from day to day and even minute to minute. Real Arts Workshops have gone above and beyond in making reasonable adjustments to enable his participation in every holiday season for the past few years, and in managing any incidents appropriately when they do happen. This is the only HAF provider we have used in the last year, and we are most grateful for the opportunities RAW have afforded us.” 
 
 
“My little one enjoyed attending Real Arts Workshops.
She likes crafting, colouring in groups and also learned few signs in BSL and how to cross the road safely. She is definitely looking forward to joining again on the next school break
All the best, Thank you.”
 
 
“As always, there was plenty of providers to choose from over the summer holidays. I was sure that my children would ask me if I could sign them up for VR and gaming sessions, but no! 
They both asked me if they could go to RAW (again), because they have really enjoyed the previous sessions (during Easter Holidays, Christmas and last year over the summer holidays). 
I can’t tell how happy am I that my boys (age 11 and 13) have chosen to spend their time doing arts and crafts over spending time “with technology “. 
A whole TEAM of RAW deserves a big THANK YOU and WELL DONE for being very friendly, helpful, creative and for making their sessions so interesting that children want to go back there. 
Thank you all. “

We are running a Winter HAF scheme in Wolverhampton on Monday 22nd - Wednesday 24th December 2025 at All Saints Action Network (ASAN) and on Friday 2nd January 2026 at Bob Jones Community Centre.
We are also considering other areas and will post here as soon as applications for families are open.