Yorkshire charity at heart of Knottingley community launches fundraising campaign as it faces closure ahead of its 50th birthday

Next year ought to be an exciting one for The Old Quarry Adventure Playground. It should be a hubbub of activity, a year of building anticipation and planning not just for the charity’s staff and volunteers, but for the diverse community of children and adults it supports, as together they prepare to mark its golden anniversary in 2022.
Staff, volunteers and members of the community are concerned about the future of The Addy.Staff, volunteers and members of the community are concerned about the future of The Addy.
Staff, volunteers and members of the community are concerned about the future of The Addy.

The reality, however, is likely to be quite different – stark, in fact. For whether it actually survives to reach its 50th milestone is, sadly, not certain.

The Addy, as it is fondly known, is based in the West Yorkshire town of Knottingley. Home to outdoor ‘adventure’ play equipment, an on-site cafe and an indoor hall and meeting room, it provides daily play sessions to children of all ages, as well as services for the elderly, unemployed, children with additional needs and for local youths and tots. It normally covers the cost of its work through a combination of grant funding, trading income and fundraising efforts. But the coronavirus has taken its toll, as centre manager Holly Corbett explains.

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“Because of Covid, our main grant applications have paused so we’re unable to apply for them [at the moment]. That delay has put us in quite a vulnerable financial position. We would normally have been applying for grants by now but because we can’t, there’s going to be a gap until those funding streams open back up again [and the application process is then completed].”

Leni Owens 5, Ette Owens, 2, and Rocket Owens, 1, playing at the centre.Leni Owens 5, Ette Owens, 2, and Rocket Owens, 1, playing at the centre.
Leni Owens 5, Ette Owens, 2, and Rocket Owens, 1, playing at the centre.

The charity’s situation has also been compounded by a decline in income from both its cafe and room hire revenue. Its current grant funding is due to run out in Spring 2021 and the charity says it is facing a predicted shortfall of £60,000 to tide it over until more funding is likely to be received. It has launched a campaign – Save Our Addy – and is asking for financial support to help bridge the gap and protect it from potential closure.

Without that £60k, “it would mean closure of the adventure playground and near its 50th birthday as well," Holly says. "We just want people to help in any way that they can so that we can continue to deliver our much-needed services and activities for the community.”

If there is one message that stands out from all of those concerned about its future, it is that The Addy is the beating heart of the community it serves. It is located in the town’s Warwick estate, built in the 1960s to house miners and workers in Knottingley’s glass industry and liquorice production in nearby Pontefract.

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The Addy was started by a group of volunteers as local families sought a safe place for their children to play. Its main project still remains free, open-access adventure play for children and young people, but in the past ten years it has expanded its provision.

Anthony Fellows and Amber Hepton, with their nieces Eva, and Annie Hepton.Anthony Fellows and Amber Hepton, with their nieces Eva, and Annie Hepton.
Anthony Fellows and Amber Hepton, with their nieces Eva, and Annie Hepton.

Situated in an ex-mining community among one of the most deprived areas in the country, today it also runs a youth club, sessions for children with additional needs and their families, an intergenerational meet for toddlers and elderly people and a pensioners’ luncheon club.

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It also runs day trips for children who wouldn’t otherwise leave the area, provides free meals for children in the school holidays, helps families in crisis with food, clothing and furniture, supports people into work and volunteering, and provides a safe venue for statutory agencies such as police and social workers to meet with families in need. Last year alone,

The Addy had nearly 10,000 attendances by children and young people and a further 1,200 by people over 50. Eleven adults and eight young people also volunteered at the site, which reopened in June after temporarily closing its doors with the coronavirus lockdown.

Children enjoy the adventure playground at the centre.Children enjoy the adventure playground at the centre.
Children enjoy the adventure playground at the centre.
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“We’re the first port of call for anything on the estate,” says Holly, who has worked with The Addy for over a decade. “If anyone needs anything, we’re here to help. We create a safe and nurturing space for people of all ages.

“When children and young people come here, they get treated with respect and it’s a non-judgemental environment. It helps develop their social skills, their self confidence and supports their emotional and physical development. It helps them build friendships and widen their horizons. And the parents in the community know their children are safe and they’re engaged in activity at The Addy. It diverts them away from crime, drugs and anti-social behaviour.

“For elderly people, it helps them to feel part of the community so they aren’t isolated or lonely. They come here, get out of the house, eat well, socialise and have fun with other people of different ages.

“For some of our staff and volunteers, it has also helped them rebuild their lives and made them feel part of a strong community, despite the conditions some of them might be facing.”

Tara Watson Morgan, Deputy Manager, with Holly Corbett, Manager, wondering what the future of the centre will hold.Tara Watson Morgan, Deputy Manager, with Holly Corbett, Manager, wondering what the future of the centre will hold.
Tara Watson Morgan, Deputy Manager, with Holly Corbett, Manager, wondering what the future of the centre will hold.
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That certainly rings true with Sally-Ann Robinson, aged 27, who has volunteered with The Addy since March 2018. She learnt about its work through her mum, an employee with Wakefield Council, and first went along to help paint a mural. She’s now a regular volunteer and runs a weekly intergenerational crafts session with children and older people. During the pandemic, she’s also been sending out play packs and self-care packs to members of the community not able to attend the centre.

The Addy, she says, has given her a “new lease of life” and “changed everything”. “I’d been quite poorly before, I’d been in hospital with my mental health. I wasn’t really coping. I wasn’t getting out of bed at all...They literally made me part of the family at The Addy. I’ve got friends for life, I’ve got some sort of direction, I’m respected, I’ve learnt a lot about myself and my confidence has grown completely.”

That welcoming ‘family’ feel is something of which mum-of-three Katy Clark, who attends The Addy with her children from nearby Castleford, speaks fondly. “We love going. It’s such a friendly atmosphere, a happy place full of happy children that are covered in mud,” she says. “For me, as a stay at home parent, I can feel quite lonely and isolated. You can meet other mums and just have a chat, a bit of adult conversation.

“I would be really lost without it. All the staff are so friendly. If we do need anything, we feel like we can ask... It would be really devastating to lose a place where we’ve all become a little family. Right now especially, we need that community more than ever.”

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Knottingley Councillor Graham Stokes recalls his children – now in their 40s – enjoying The Addy when they were young and for around 15 years, he has been a member of its committee. So passionate he is about its future, he has recently completed a sponsored 60 mile bike ride from Selby to Hornsea to raise funds for its campaign, reflecting “we need to be doing all we can to keep it open”.

Gill Cook, 71, agrees. Before Covid struck, she was attending The Addy’s intergenerational sessions and the pensioners’ luncheon club. “When I retired, I got really bad with arthritis and hardly went out. The luncheon club was a life saver. Many of us weren’t seeing anybody from week to week. It is something to look forward to, going there, meeting people and having something to do.”

Holly talks of how the impact of any closure would ripple across generations. Certainly, both young and old can be seen enjoying The Addy's provision, separately and together, in the charity's fundraising campaign video.

“We just need your help to support our Addy,” a little voice calls out at the end. Gill echoes the sentiment. “I’m not going to let myself think about what could happen if The Addy doesn’t get [the money it needs],” she says. “We’ve got to get it, there’s no option. We can’t just let it go. I think it would be the end of Warwick estate.”

To donate to support The Addy, visit gofundme.com/f/Save-The-Addy

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