Surrey Association for Visual Impairment. Making a visible difference in Surrey.

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Children's Recreation - Recent Events

Guildford Miniature Engineering

On a very Sunny Sunday in October a group of SAVI families attended an open event at the Guildford Miniature Engineering Society at Stoke Park. Five different engines chuffed around the park all afternoon giving rides to record breaking numbers of people. Debbie and I manned the SAVI gazebo where refreshments provided the sugar boost needed by all the children!! It was a fun ‘smile making’ afternoon - a great way to finish off the summer programme.

Fame the Musical

On 24th September, 4 vision impaired children and their families attended an audio described performance of this exciting musical. We had excellent seats and the audio description was one of the best that we have heard. It was great to visit a new theatre and even better that such a small amateur company put on an audio described show. Well done Pied Piper Productions.

Ice Skating

For the fourth year running we took a large group ice skating at Guildford Spectrum in August. This is a very popular event and always gets well supported, Ice Skating Penguins are available to help children get their balance, and with the entire rink available for our sole use, everyone feels safe.

My thanks go to Nick Vowels and his staff who yet again helped to make the afternoon a roaring success. Thanks also to Debbie and Cat ‘Torvill’, who were on hand to make sure things ran smoothly.

Thames Young mariners

Thames Young Mariners

Families went home elated and exhausted after a long day at Thames Young Mariners on 19th August. The SAVI group and helpers spent the morning raft building and the afternoon Kayaking – finishing off with a challenging leap of faith into the dock (an 8ft drop)!! Wow, were some fears faced then? The traditional SAVI BBQ was served at lunch time with delicious butcher’s bangers and burgers cooked by ‘the men’.

Bird World

On 16th July a small group, of all ages, accompanied Cat Gane my sessional worker on a fun but rather damp day out. Bird World in Farnham proved to be a hit when everyone was treated to a show at the Heron Theatre, followed by Animal Encounters later on after a picnic lunch. They saw all types of birds and waterfowl, with the brightly coloured and ‘noisy’ parrots being the most popular. The brand new penguin beach was great too and well worth a visit.

Three Musketeers:
audio described theatre

On 8th May a small group from SAVI attended an amazing day at the Unicorn Theatre in London. During the touch tour everyone got a chance to meet the actors, touch the props. and also to learn some fighting moves with imaginary swords.

Dr Who Exhibition

The 14th May saw children and parents alike materialise inside the tardis at this interactive experience. Enthusiasts were able to follow a route, receiving instructions from the Doctor himself. They went through tunnels, along corridors brushing shoulders with all manner of strange and scary creatures on the way. Luckily everyone survived to tell the tale. A great success!

boy and helper on a cargo net

Walton Firs Cobham

Participants aged from 3 to 15 took part in a Maze, Assault Course and Caving as their parents looked on, gave a helping hand and in some cases had a go at Walton Firs on 1st June. The weather was kind to us, and everyone had great fun meeting others, relaxing as well as conquering fears and climbing to new heights.

Self defence

On two dates in March SAVI partnered with Action for Blind People and ran two self Defence sessions at Sunbury Leisure Centre. The sessions were fun at the same time as being helpful in building self confidence, teaching ways to stay safe and techniques for if the children ever got into difficulty when out and about.
All attendees learnt a lot and came away thoroughly exhausted.

Beauty and Styling

On Monday 18th April eight visually impaired young ladies and their sighted friends and family gathered at the SAVI offices for a day of Beauty and Styling. We were lucky enough to have two consultants from the London based company ‘Busting Diva’ who provide bespoke style and couture services.
The morning session was spent learning about make up and colouring – the girls were all given complimentary make up pallets and enjoyed exploring and experimenting with new colours as the two pictures below show.
After lunch the group had an opportunity to learn what colours they should be wearing – everyone was given a list of recommended colours and they also learnt about their own body shapes and fashion styles.
The attendees had a great day – it was a treat for them to spend some time thinking about what they looked like and getting advice from professionals. It was also a wonderful opportunity for the girls to meet each other and the lunch time chatter from the SAVI grounds indicated to all, that they were having a good time!

Chelsea Stadium Tour

In February a group of vision impaired football supporters, visited Stamford Bridge for a private tour of the facilities.

Here a dad has written about their morning.

‘Our gregarious first class tour guide Len, showed us the changing rooms, all the boys had their photos taken with Lampard's & Drogba's famous shirts as a back drop .We also visited the Press Room where all the new stars joining the club sign their contracts in front of the assembled media. Torres, the most expensive player in the Premiership ,was the last to sign there. Prior to visiting the Chelsea Museum our guide lined us up into two teams and walked us through the tunnel into the dug outs, sadly, but not surprisingly, we were not allowed onto the hallowed pitch'.

'Everybody enjoyed the tour, even those of us who support less well funded clubs and looked with some envy at the expensive facilities that Chelsea enjoy!’

Pictures below show the Press Room on the left and the Kit Room.

Riding for the Disabled at Cranleigh

SAVI children were lucky enough to visit this brilliant centre to experience pony riding again in March. The seventh time we have been. The children were able to get to know their own pony helping to prepare them for the ride, before mounting their steed and learning the basics in the paddock before going for a short ride out in the countryside.

This event is very popular indeed. Watch out for the next date, and book your child to come along.

The pictures below show the children on the horses.