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One aspect of the VICTA Parent Network is to empower parents to organise events in their area for other parents or families. At the end of 2019, two parents made the most of this offer and hosted two fantastic events.

Louise

Louise planned a weekend extravaganza in Edinburgh with the families of two other young people her daughter had met on VICTA activities earlier in the year. The three teenagers had been in touch almost daily, and this was a great opportunity for them to hang out in person. It was also a chance for the parents to get to know each other better. They visited Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh Zoo, Christmas markets and more! Through the Parent Network, VICTA was able to contribute £200 towards this event.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”34015″ img_size=”350×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”34024″ img_size=”350×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”34017″ img_size=”350×350″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Louise said, “The weekend allowed the youngsters to have quality time together, and the parents to relax and catch up over a cuppa or two. Plenty of laughs and fun had by all.”

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Dawn

Dawn approached VICTA with the idea of doing something festive for families who had met on the VICTA family weekends. With some support from VICTA, she organised a day at Hyde Park Winter Wonderland for 5 families (17 people in total). They went to the circus, saw Santa, and enjoyed the rides and a Christmas treat for the children. VICTA were able to provide over £350 to cover the cost of the whole day.

The children said it was an amazing day and are looking forward to doing more fun activities with their VICTA friends. The parents said they liked how sighted siblings were involved in all activities, which made it feel very family oriented.

In Dawn’s words, “It highlighted to us how amazing our girls are and how socially involved they like being. They thrive in a like-minded and supportive group”.

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Run your own event

VICTA wants to enable as many parents as possible to run events in their area. These events could be for the whole family to enjoy, or just for parents to relax and meet one another. It could involve a theme park, zoo or wine bar (parents only!). It is entirely up to you to do what you feel comfortable hosting.

As VICTA staff, we can be involved as much or as little as you like. For Dawn and Louise, they both had their group of parents. If you don’t know many people in your area but are keen to run an event, we can help with advertising it to families in your area. Louise had booked all the activities and just needed some financial assistance. Dawn requested that VICTA book the activity tickets and she led the group on the day.  We can help with bookings and organisation as much as you need. Or we can step back and let you run the show!

This is a great opportunity to get together, make friends and support one another. We hope that the stories above will encourage you to run your own Parent Network event!

For more information, call 01908 240831 or email fpoulton@victa.org.uk

More information on the VICTA Parent Network can be found here.

To join the VICTA Parent Network on Facebook, please visit: facebook.com/groups/VICTAParentNetwork[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]