Crafts

We had a very crafty early induction to Christmas at our Tuesday Crafts group this week. Due to a delay in the delivery of some craft materials, our snow shakers are now planned for next week, but that didn’t dampen our spirits. We “snow plowed” on with Christmas cards and ornaments, and wow, they turned out fantastic. Well done, everyone!

All spaces are now allocated, and we can’t wait to see you next week. Big thanks to Cheryl and Zoe for facilitating such a fun session — it was a wonderful time socializing, making friends, and learning new skills!

Reconnect Through Music

What a jam-packed Reconnect Through Music session today we had last week. We had 59 people join us for an epic day of pizza, karaoke, singing, and dancing. Chris Davies rocked the crowd with his Rick Astley vibes, Morgan brought out his inner Tom Jones, Susan channelled Kylie Minogue, and Sean threw it back with UB40 classics. The pizza was delicious, and the laughter was endless! Big thanks to Zak and Lexy for keeping the energy high and a shoutout to our amazing volunteers who made it all possible. We can’t wait to see you all next week for hot dogs, music, and more fun!

Reconnect Through Cookery

At Friday’s cookery session, we served up 70 portions of delicious corned beef hash. Our members did a fantastic job preparing fresh broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage as sides, making it a hearty meal. Everyone looked fab in their pyjamas to support Children in Need!

We also had a special chocolate cake to celebrate our volunteer Gethin’s birthday. Some members joined a consultation with Disability Can Do and received £20 vouchers. A big congrats to Gareth on winning the raffle!

Our sessions are now full to capacity, and we’re thrilled to have raised £45 for Children in Need! Huge thanks to all the incredible volunteers for hosting quizzes, cooking, washing up, serving lunch, and setting up the hall. Special shoutout to Peter, our amazing caretaker, for opening up and coming to the rescue with extra corned beef. As always, we had zero waste!

We’re off next week, but we’ll be back on November 22nd to serve up Spaghetti Bolognese. See you then!

Chair Yoga

Yesterday we wrapped up our final chair yoga session for the year with the amazing Lisa. We had so much fun trying out different poses like the rock, tree, and mountain, plus many more. To test our coordination, we passed a squashie toy to each other using only our feet, which had us all giggling!

We ended the session with a soothing stretch, played relaxing music, and focused on some calming northern lights on the ceiling to wind down. These six sessions have been fantastic, and we’ve loved learning new things with Lisa. See you in the New Year, Lisa, and thank you for everything.

Reconnect Through Cookery

Our members had an absolutely spook-tacular day celebrating Halloween at Friday’s Reconnect through Cookery session! The room looked amazing, decorated with chilling props (thanks, Amanda!), and the buffet was simply delicious. Big congrats to Anthony for winning Best Costume, and to Matilda for showing off her moves and winning Best Dancer! We loved seeing everyone dressed up – you all looked incredible.

Special thanks to Darren for keeping the dance floor alive with his DJ skills, and to everyone who helped make this day so memorable for our volunteers and members. We even enjoyed a Halloween quiz, singing, dancing, laughter, and treat bags! Huge shoutout to Pete for opening up early so we could decorate, and a big thank you to Zoe, Cheryl, and Gemma for all their hard work.

Thanks to everyone who donated towards making this event truly special. See you all next week for Corned Beef Pie and Seasonal Vegetables!

GAVO V-Fest Networking Event

Caerphilly People First had a great day yesterday at the Caerphilly GAVO V-Fest third sector networking and promotion event. It was a fantastic opportunity to learn more about the amazing organisations making a difference in our community, as well as a chance to pick up some free goodies! It was lovely to see everyone in their Halloween-themed costumes, and to take part in the fun activities and demonstrations. See you all next year!

TARAGGAN Gardens

Our Caerphilly People First volunteers had a fantastic morning at TARAGGAN Educational Gardens & Nursery yesterday, enjoying the crisp air while harvesting radishes. We’re taking the larger ones home to enjoy, and the smaller radishes will be carefully planted in pots and stored in the polytunnel to keep them cosy during the colder months ahead.

Thank you to our volunteers for their hard work in the garden, and thank you, Kyle, for another great visit.

Halloween Yoga

Yesterday our members and volunteers had a Halloween-themed yoga session that was full of thrills and chills! We each took turns pulling a Trick or Treat from the bag, challenging us to spooky poses like:

Spider, witch on her broom, bat, ghost, and crow.

We ended this spooktacular session with a calming focus on a flickering candle, paired with relaxing music. Not only did we get a good stretch and laugh, but we also found some zen. Thank you, Lisa, for such a fun session; can’t wait for next week!

Caerphilly Parent Network Trunk Or Treat

Yesterday our fantastic volunteers, Ffion, Amy, and Gethin, joined in the fun at the Trunk or Treat event at Bargoed Morrison’s car park, hosted by the amazing team from The Parent Network. It’s always a pleasure for us to attend these community events, spreading the message of self-advocacy and sharing all the wonderful things our volunteers do, but this one was extra special!

The excitement was in the air as children explored the spooky Beetlejuice trail, played games, and showed off their fantastic costumes. Not only were the kids dressed to impress, but mums, dads, carers, and families made it a festive affair too. The props were incredible, and the joyful atmosphere was contagious — this year’s event was even bigger and better than last year. Seeing so many happy children enjoying themselves truly made our day. Thank you, The Parent Network, for an unforgettable day filled with joy, laughter, and community spirit!

Reconnect Through Cookery

Caerphilly People First’s Reconnect through Cookery was packed on Friday as members prepared a delicious sausage dinner. Our team worked together to cook broccoli, cauliflower, and green beans, and we added a tasty twist by chopping onions for the gravy. The fun didn’t stop at the food — members joined in on a quiz, played bingo, and welcomed visitors Pauline and Emma from Cwm Taff People First, who gathered our thoughts on public transport for their consultation.

The meal was a hit, with zero waste, thanks to everyone’s hard work! A huge shoutout to our fantastic volunteers who cook, clean up, set up the hall, and organize the raffle and activities. You’re all amazing!

Next week, we’re gearing up for our Halloween Bash with a disco, fancy dress, and party food! Due to the high turnout, this is a ticket-only event – so please only attend if you have a ticket. See you next Friday for what’s sure to be a spooktacular event!