Following a memorable summer at South Tyneside Family Hubs, we’re back with an Un-BOO-lievable week of Halloween fun.

Our schedule sees all 12 Family Hubs playing  host to a range of fang-tastic activities, with Science Buddies and Williby Roc’s also giving your child a chance to experiment and create magical memories.

Take a look at some of October’s line-up below:

Halloween Hunt – Join us at Horsley Hill Family Hub as we hunt for hidden clues around the Hub, with prizes on offer to all those who attend. Families can also enjoy a range of arts and crafts. Feel free to dress up for Halloween. (Booking required)

Learning with Play (Halloween Storytime) –  What’s a ghost’s favourite book genre? Spooky fiction! Treat yourself to an hour of spooky stories and a good scary tale ending.

Learning with Play (Autumn Messy Play) – Prepare to get messy exploring our themed play stations including pumpkins, wiggly worms and all things autumn!

Spooky Spectacular Session – Enjoy a range of activities at Bede, Biddick and Boldon including sensory, Halloween arts and crafts, a mini disco, and many more. (Booking required)

Science Buddies – Science Buddies are back with bigger and better experiments than ever before. Join them for some Halloween fun this October. (Booking required)

Williby Roc’s – Families can enjoy Halloween themed eco-friendly arts and crafts, nature-based sessions and more. Explore your imagination, make wonderful creations and create magical memories. (Booking required)

Check out the full schedule below:

All Saints, Riverside, Marine Park

Bede, Biddick, Boldon

Hebburn, Jarrow, Primrose

Horsley Hill, Ridgeway, Whitburn & Marsden

Looking for FREE things to do with your little one? We’re joining forces with BBC Tiny Happy People, BBC Children in Need and Asda to bring you fun events in Boldon Colliery.

BBC Tiny Happy People will be delivering free, fun activities and advice for parents & carers of 0–4-year-olds.

From Stay & Play sessions to your child’s favourite CBeebies character in attendance, families can expect a range of activities to help support you and your child’s development and communication skills.

This event will take place on Thursday 3rd & Friday 4th October 2024 in Boldon Colliery. See below for more information.

Please note, these are ticketed events and numbers are limited – please apply for tickets using the links below.

East Boldon Asda event – Thursday 3rd & Friday 4th October 2024

• BBC Tiny Happy People – Stay & Play Sessions
• CBeebies Presenter! Plus local family services

Book a session on Thursday 3rd October.

Book a session on Friday 4th October.

And don’t forget to pick up your FREE BBC Tiny Happy People ‘What’s in the bag?’ goody bag to play along!

These sessions will take place at Boldon Colliery Village Hall Asda Complex.

After the session you will get the chance to meet your local Health Visitors, Speech and Language Therapists & Early Years teams. This part of the session is designed to connect you with local services to help support your child’s development.

There will also be some fun Tiny Happy People activities available for families to enjoy on the day.

Session times on both days:

• 10:00am – 11:15am
• 11:45am – 1:00pm
• 1:30pm – 2:45pm

All sessions include the same content.

To inform us of any accessibility requirements, please email tinyhappy.people@bbc.co.uk

Please note: Session content is only suitable for children under 5 years of age. We kindly ask you not to bring older children to the event as the content is not suitable for children above 5 years old.

South Tyneside Family Hubs welcomed more than 200 breastfeeding mothers and their children to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week 2024.

With the theme of World Breastfeeding Week highlighting the importance of closing the gap in inequalities by ensuring breastfeeding support for all, the celebration saw families of all backgrounds engage in the array of activities on offer.

Hosted by Riverside Family Hub, our Teddy Bears Picnic event on Friday witnessed babies and young people alike enjoy a teddy bear hunt in the garden, which was followed by a picnic, story time, arts and crafts, and a sing-song.

The celebrations continued on Wednesday as ‘Breastival’ visited Hebburn Family Hub, with an incredible 107 mothers and babies/young people in attendance to mark the occasion.

Face painting, biscuit decorating, hook the duck, fabric craft activities, sensory play and bloom sessions were just some of the activities on offer, while parents enjoyed a mini pamper session from local business, Honour your Beauty.

After the event, South Tyneside Family Hubs caught up with some of the mothers who heaped praise on the event. One parent said: “It’s been a great day, and the Family Hubs are fantastic. I am so grateful to them.

“It’s so lovely to have caring people around to advise and support you through breastfeeding.”

Another parent added, “A brilliant event celebrating breastfeeding. It was a great opportunity to meet other mams.”

One parent commented, “I love being a part of this community. It was great to see everyone and just talk to people without being judged. The breastfeeding support team has helped me so much and I am forever grateful.”

Helen Mitchell, Family Hubs Partnership Manager, was delighted with the turnout and believes the breastfeeding service in South Tyneside is stronger than ever. “To welcome this many people to celebrate all things breastfeeding is truly amazing.

“You’ve got different activities, different cultures, and different diversities, that are coming together to share their stories and give advice. It’s amazing.

“Seeing so many faces accessing breastfeeding services is testament to all the hard work our staff do behind the scenes.”

Thank you to all our families, partners and staff who supported this event.

Every Easter, Summer, Christmas and half-term school holiday, we run a wide range of fun, family-friendly seasonal activities throughout South Tyneside.

Over 1000 children, young people and their families have enjoyed our activities so far this summer.

Pop into your local Family Hub to find out more about the activities, events and courses on offer or check out our updated Autumn What’s on Guides:

Hebburn, Jarrow, Primrose

Bede, Biddick, Boldon

Horsley Hill, Ridgeway, Whitburn & Marsden

Riverside, All Saints, Marine Park

Some activities and/or programmes require a booking. Bookings can be made by calling our Family Hubs. Find your nearest Family Hub here

Stay up to date with what’s on at Family Hubs across South Tyneside.

• Like us on Facebook
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Enjoy a week of entertainment and activities as Boldon Festival returns this summer!

The annual event will take place across various venues from 19th August – 26th August, bringing South Tyneside families together throughout the six-weeks holidays.

Activities will be on offer to children and families of all ages, with South Tyneside Family Hubs set to host free family events as part of this year’s festival.

Families can enjoy a unique animal experience at Boldon Family Hub courtesy of Tails ‘N Snails which aims to spread awareness on animal welfare in a fun but educational way.

There will be an opportunity for families to find their zen as Kalma Life UK deliver a taster session of yoga. Families are also encouraged to bring a picnic to this event.

Entry is free but booking is essential. To book either activity, please call Boldon Family Hub on 0191 519 5920.

A free strawberry tea, a sunshine glow in the dark disco for under 11’s, Forest School, line dancing and aquafit or a game of tennis at Boldon Lawn Tennis Club are just some of the activities on offer at Boldon Festival 2024.

Please note, some events require a booking and/or payment upon arrival. Please contact the individual venue to make a booking or if you would like further information about the festival, please contact Boldon Community Association on 0191 536 8085.

Check out the Boldon Festival Facebook page for further details.

From our first birthday celebrations to announcing our six-week summer programme, here’s what happened around the Hubs in June.

First birthday celebrations

South Tyneside families helped make our first birthday celebrations one to remember as over 400 people enjoyed a week’s worth of activities across several Hub destinations.

The Hubs welcomed people of all ages and backgrounds, with various activities on offer throughout the week to suit a wide range of interests.

Full Story: Click Here

Big Help Out sees children tidy up local community

Local children from South Tyneside took to their local communities to take part in the Big Help Out litter pick.

The initiative aims to raise awareness of volunteering throughout the UK and provide opportunities for people to experience volunteering and make a difference in their communities.

Full Story: Click Here

Local parent Louise praises work of Hubs

Our six-week summer programme gets underway on Monday 22 July, with new and exciting activities on offer across all 12 Family Hub locations.

Check out our full summer schedules here.

South Tyneside Family Hub Survey 2024

We would like to hear your views on South Tyneside Family Hubs and the services we offer you and your family.

Your responses will help shape our future offer and help us to ensure we are meeting the needs of every child, young person and family in South Tyneside.

This survey is aimed at parents and carers of children aged 0-19 years (or up to 25 if they have special educational needs), as well as parents who are expecting a baby.

Click here to take survey.