Helping Young People & Families
These Cork-based groups are here to offer their support and services to young people in Cork.
Helium Arts are delighted to host a free Creative meet up for teens in Cork. A one day event will take place at the Mayfield Arts Centre on Saturday August 20th, 2022 from 11:00 - 14:00.
This meet up is for young people age 13 - 18 living with a lifelong physical health condition.
Join artist Ashleigh Ellis to discover the exciting world of eco art and what can happen when creativity and nature join forces! Work with a range of natural materials and tools to creatively experiment while taking inspiration from the world around us. No experience necessary! Learn a new creative skill, meet new people, and have a laugh doing it!
All workshops are;
- Free of Charge
- Delivered by professional artists
- Inclusive and accessible
- Overseen by paramedics
- Supported by volunteers
To register for this meet up, please contact hello@helium.ie or 083-0103240
Youth Work Ireland Cork (YWIC) are affiliated to the Cork City Council COVID-19 Community Response Area Team in Gurranabraher and Churchfield.
YWICork have adapted its services it offers to the young people of Cork City due to the recent COVID-19 lockdown. YWIC weekly groups are now held online through Zoom video calls. The music and rap groups are also using Zoom calls to meet with the young people. There is also a plan to deliver some of the instruments from the youth centre to particular young people so they can take part in their music lessons online.
The youth workers have created a competition to encourage young people to get outside (safely) and get their daily physical activity with the teen gym group are using apps such as ‘Map my Fitness’.
Art groups are also running over the Zoom platform where the young people can follow the instructions of the art tutor from their own home. YWIC liaised with the Cork City Council COVID-19 Community Response Area Team when sending out care packs to certain families in the locality of Gurranabraher and Churchfield which included a COVID-19 time capsule and other art and puzzles.
YWIC have also created a Leaving Cert support group chat and a parents group chat where the youth workers send in relevant articles, supports and services which are relevant to the group members.
The LGBT+ youth project is also still meeting through Zoom. Keeping the groups going every day at their regular times keeps a consistency in young people’s lives.
Check out the Youth Work Ireland Cork webpage.
Young Knocknaheeny Area Based Childhood Programme is all about getting every child’s life off to the best possible start. The home environment and the role of parents, families and communities are so important in a child’s life.
Keep up to date with all of educational and supportive videos, including information about our launch of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library Please subscribe to our Lets grow together Youtube channel
Babies and toddlers do experience and feel changes that take place in their home and in the world around them. The COVID-19 restrictions have brought about changes. Young Knocknaheeny have been focusing their supports towards young children, their parents and wider family during this time.
Catherine Maguire is a Clinical Infant Mental Health Specialist & Mentor who guides parents to think about how babies and toddlers may be experiencing stress at this time or indeed during other stressful and traumatic periods. In the video below, she explains how parents can recognise these expressions of stress, and describes ways to respond to their baby or toddler, while simultaneously taking care of themselves.
Click through to view the 'A message from Catherine Maguire video'.
Some more Young Knocknaheeny video resources
The next series of videos are from other Young Knocknaheeny team members. These videos provide a connection between parents and children and the worker they have a relationship with and contain strategies that help to children to regulate, learn and understand emotions, “serve and return interactions”, developmental guidance, have fun, movement, song and more. They are no more than 3 minutes long.
- Sally O’ Sullivan, Oral Language Officer “Exploring Books!”
- Suzanne Rigby, Infant Parent Support Worker “Row Row Row your Boat!” “Songs about Feelings!” “Nursery Rhymes”
- Tracie Lane, Infant Parent Support Worker, “Tiny Tim” from PEEP Programme “Tommy Thumb” “The Wheels on the Bus”
- Maeve Donegan, Infant Parent Support Worker, “5 Little Ducks”
There are more in production for example one on relaxation and one on play. And all will be posted on YouTube - search Youngknocknaheeny
Young Knocknaheeny can be contacted here: admin.ykabc@nicheonline.ie
Check out their website at www.youngknocknaheeny.ie or follow them on Facebook for more: https://www.facebook.com/youngknocknaheeny/
Music Generation Cork City (MGCC) is an inter-agency socially inclusive performance Music Education Project that is now providing online music tuition for young people.
Link: www.musicgenerationcorkcity.com
The MGCC music education programme for children and young people in the four RAPID (Revitalising Areas through Planning, Investment and Development) areas of Cork City, as well as citywide music camps, performances and festivals. The project works in partnership with community based musicians and music organisations to bring music education into the lives of children and young people across Cork City. Using the Community Education process, programmes are being made available in the places where children live, play, and go to school, bringing opportunities for music-making into the heart of Cork’s communities.
Dearest Lovely Happy Talkers,
Welcome to the Happy Talk Calendar 2021! Have you been missing the Happy Talk Calendar? Because we know we have! Currently we are unable to print and share a Happy Talk Calendar. Instead, we will be sending you the Happy Talk Calendar 2021 as a monthly newsletter with lots of ideas and fun games to play. Please click through to see the ‘March 2021 Happy Talk Calendar Newsletter’.
Every year the Happy Talk Calendar helps us all remember how to build great communication skills! It reminds us to listen, to wait, to pay attention and to take a Mindful Moment to build these skills. It reminds us to play and sing, laugh and chat, and to be the best Happy Talkers we can be! As always we are delighted for you to post, email, print and share this resource as widely as you wish. The more Happy Talkers we connect with, the better!
We hope you enjoy it! Warmest wishes and best regards,
Aoife, Nibbles and Twitch!
For lots of best practice ideas and fun educational games and activities you can do with your child be sure to visit our Resources webpage.
In response to the current situation Happy Talk Speech and Language Programme, which is supported by Cork City Council, have teamed up with UCC Speech and Language Therapy Department to develop and share language resource packs with communities, schools and family support services. These packs will contain games and activities to promote language, early literacy and learning. They are full of fun and easy to follow activities. The weekly packs are aimed at 4 to 8 year olds and are distributed to all Happy Talk sites across Cork and Kerry as well as by the Community Team in Cork City Council reaching all 16 Community Response Areas in the City.
You can see these packs on their Happy Talk Facebook page
Visit the TUSLA website for updates from TUSLA on their COVID-19 response and ongoing supports.