Cedars

The Cedars Hall Project *Latest news* October 2011 Work on Cedars Hall is progressing well. An annexe area has been added to house Kids Can Achieve's advocacy service and the first floor mezzanine for community use has been installed. We have received several donations of furniture and office items, as well as funding to purchase children's IT and outdoor equipment. Building work is due to be completed in December 2011. June 2011 We are delighted to announce that our plans for Cedars are moving forward! We finally signed the lease in March 2011 and our appointed contractor, Indecon, has started work on site. All rubbish and debris has been removed. The contractor has secured the site, erected hoardings, begun work on knocking down areas that won't be required and is busy ordering supplies. Work was briefly put on hold for the Easter and Royal Wedding bank holidays and Indecon was able to use this time re-familiarising themselves with the plans and organising preliminaries. We are all very excited and would like to thank everyone who has helped us thus far, including Harrow Weald Tenants and Residents Association, Harrow Council, David Kann Associates, the Social Investment Business (formerly Futurebuilders) and of course Indecon. A bit of background... Kids Can Achieve have been looking at moving to new premises for some time now. After 7 years at our centre in Pinner Green, it is now too small and no longer suitable for the work we do supporting children and young people with additional needs. Cedars Hall is a former rugby club owned by Harrow Council, approximately 2 miles from our current centre. Together with the local tenants and residents association, Harrow Weald Tenants and Residents Association (HWTRA), we have developed plans for Cedars to include space for our activities and for community use. Who will use the Hall The Cedars Hall project will have three main elements: Bigger premises for Kids Can Achieve providing more space for services, workstations and outdoor play and parking Office space and services space for community organisations - HWTRA, ADHD & Autism Support Harrow and other local groups A community and resource centre providing a range of services and support for the local community ADHD & Autism Support offers services which complement our own and will be renting office space from us in Cedars Hall. Co-location with them and other similar organisations helps us support families more effectively. Harrow Weald Tenants and Residents Association provide support to residents in the Harrow Weald area. They will have a designated office and priority use of a meeting room to provide a clear point of contact for the residents association and a focus for community issues and activities. HWTRA and other community groups will also have the opportunity to use parts of the centre out of hours. Activities might include exercise classes, training courses or children's parties. Plans for the Hall KCA needs more space to deliver the services we provide. Our current premises are much smaller than Cedars Hall and we have no outdoor play space for the children and no parking facilities. Our plans for the interior of the building include space for the children to play in with classrooms and messy play area, better and more child friendly cooking facilities, rooms for counselling and therapies and separate office space for KCA, HWTRA and other partner organisations. Outside there will be a secure children's play ground, with scope for outdoor play, sports and gardening and nature activities. There will also be onsite parking and bicycles to provide a safe pick up and drop off point for parents and to avoid disruption to residents. The centre will be in use from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday, with some use for smaller scale weekend activities. During evenings and weekends, the centre will also be available for small scale use by the wider community. Get involved! If you have any queries regarding our plans for Cedars Hall, there are several ways to learn more about the project: Get in touch! We will be happy to discuss our plans in more detail via telephone or email to info@kidscanachieve.co.uk. Please mark emails 'Cedars Project'. Keep an eye on our website. We will be adding regular updates as the project moves forward. Kids Can Achieve Cedars Hall Chicheley Road Middlesex HA3 6QH 020 8420 2300 info@kidscanachieve.co.uk