Grove & Wantage
Family Community Group
Update: 17th June 2021 - New Programme for June and July (until 21st July)
We are really enjoying seeing so many families at our Bumps and Babies (pre-crawlers), Crawlers and Toddler Groups again. Government restricts us on numbers, and on the rules around what we can and can't do, so for now we will continue with all groups being booked on to, no drop ins allowed. We are very excited to announce we have a new online booking system. We will continue to monitor guideance and will adapt as necessary as we go along.
Bumps and Babies is on Mondays and Thursdays at 12.45 - 2.15pm. Both at St Johns Church Hall, Main Street, Grove, OX12 7LQ.
Crawlers Groups and Toddler Groups - Our Crawler and Toddler groups will be open to all.
Crawlers Stay and Play - A group for young children who are now crawling, but not yet walking.
Mondays 11am - 12 noon. St Johns Church Hall, Grove.
Toddlers Stay and Play - A group for everyone with babies and toddlers aged 0 - 5.
Tuesdays 10am - 11.30am St Johns Church Hall, Grove
Wednesdays 10am - 11.30am East Challow Village Hall.
Thursdays 10am - 11.30am St Johns Church Hall, Grove.
All groups need to be booked on to and bookings open 1 week before each group, and close 30 minutes before each group starts. Bookings are taken through the 'book on a group' page on this website. We no longer have the restriction on those attending Early Years settings. No drop-ins allowed, all attendees must book via the website or app.
Booking guidelines - Please make one booking per household, and a maximum of 2 adults. This will enable us to ensure numbers attending comply with current Government regulations.
Please only book on to one group per week. Demand is high and this will allow as many people as possible to attend our groups throughout the week.
To see a full copy of the Guidelines for Attending, please email . A copy will be displayed on the welcome desk at each group.
All groups are free to attend, donations welcome but not expected. Suggested donation of £3 per family.
Follow us on our facebook page to see the latest updates and any changes to our programme.
If you are pregnant or have a baby under 12 months old, we have created a What's App chat group to create a support network of local parents and carers. If you would like to join the group, please email or Facebook message us with your postcode, and age of your baby/due date and we will send you a link to join. You do not need to provide us with your mobile phone number.
For those with toddlers, we have previoulsy been doing facebook lives and pre-recorded videos of Toddler Time sessions, which can be found on our facebook page. They are now lots of videos, each one has around 30 mins of songs, games and a story for you to enjoy and take part with your little one, all run by our experienced session leaders.
GroW is funded by grants and donations, without these we could not continue our important service in our community. If you would like to donate to GroW, you can do so via the links below in the Make a Donation section, or contact Michelle, Manager to discuss other funding options. Michelle can be contacted by using the form at the bottom of this page.
Please nominate us for a grant award:
We hope you stay healthy and happy and look forward to welcoming you back to our groups.
Michelle, Sarah and Kirsty
and the GroW Management Committee.
Unique baby and toddler groups, providing essential support for families in Grove, Wantage and the surrounding villages.
GroW is a community group run by the community, for the community. We set up in response to the closure of the Childrens Centres in 2017. Our community came together to ensure we have a service that reflects the unique needs of our expanding community, and we have evolved and changed ever since. GroW supports parents and carers in their social, emotional and mental wellbeing. Through play, stories, singing and group activities, we support the physical, emotional, social and educational development of children under 5 years old.
With over 500 families registered with us, and over 100 families per month visit our groups (as at 31 January 2020), we provide an essential and vital service to our community.
All of our groups are drop in sessions, no booking necessary, and are free to attend (donations are welcome). We aim to run all year, including school holidays.
Follow our Facebook page for weekly updates to our timetable including any changes or canacellations.
Weekly timetable (updated 18/02/2020):
Stories and Singing in the library:
Come and explore the activities on offer including craft, stories and singing! Mondays 10-11.30 at Wantage Library.
Bumps and Babies:
We hold a unique group exclusively for Bumps and pre-walking babies. Mondays at the Beacon, Wantage and on Thursdays at St Johns Church Hall. Both groups are from 1pm - 2.30pm . Come along to meet other parents and introduce your baby to a range of sensory toys and experiences, including nursery rhymes.
Stay and Play:
All under 5s. Come and join in a range of play and craft activities, along with story and song time too! Includes a baby area with soft mats and sensory toys. Tuesday 9.30-11am at St Johns Church Hall in Grove, and Thursday at 9.45 - 11.15am in East Challow Village Hall.
Social drop-in at Richmond Care Home, Letcombe Regis:
All under 5s. Relaxed free play with singing and interactioin with the residents. Term time only. Wednesdays, 10.30 - 11.30am. Booking not essential but helpful to know numbers and age of babies or toddlers attending so we take age appropriate toys and activities.
Contact Us
How is GroW funded?
All of our groups are free to attend, so we are funded by grants, donations and local fundraising. To remain sustainable into the future, we are actively seeking further grants, donations and additional sources of funding. Do you work for a company that supports local charities or community groups? We would be very grateful for any help you can give in terms of fundraising or obtaining grants or donations. If you would be willing to volunteer to support us on our fundraising team, please get in touch.
Amazon Smile:
Do you, or your family, shop on Amazon? Use Amazon Smile instead and select us as your chosen charity and Amazon will donate to GroW every time you make an eligible purchase. We are officially part of St Johns Church, but all of Amazon donations will go into the GroW account and be used to deliver our service. Click the link, or search 'St Johns Grove' at www.smile.amazon.co.uk. Please share with your family and friends! https://smile.amazon.co.uk/ch/1129066-0
Make a donation:
You can make a donation at any of our groups by either cash, card, apple pay or google pay. If you aren't attending a group but are generously donating to GroW, please contact Michelle Rozer, Manager on 01235 376037.
Volunteering for GroW
We are looking for local volunteers to help with a variety of roles, ranging from making drinks and snacks for families at our groups through to roles on our management committee. If you would like to get involved to support our community, either on an occasional or regular basis, please get in touch.