A new Lanarkshire youth group has seen dozens of kids enjoy a range of activities.
The Teeny Tiny Totz toddler group was set up by a group of mums in Cleland who were frustrated at having a lack of similar facilities in the village.
And after a number of weeks of preparation, Cleland’s Senior Citizens Centre was packed with parents and their young children.
Now, with the toddler group a permanent fixture in Cleland, parents have now decided to help kids of primary school age.
Shelley Gallacher, who also helped get the toddler group set up, said: “We started the youth group during the summer holidays in July just because there isn’t really anything in Cleland for them to do.
“I’ve got kids in primary six and seven and I didn’t want them hanging about the streets and there was a lot of mums who felt the same.
“So we managed to get a venue and on the first we had between 20 and 30 kids which we thought was great.
“Now we are at over 60 kids every Thursday which is incredible.”
Shelley has been delighted with the level of support from parents and from local businesses.
And she is hoping that support continues and she and her team look for more activities to help the kids.
Shelley added: “At the minute we are having fundraising events to try and get money together for various trips for both the toddlers and the youth group.
“We don’t have a lot but what we do have is enough for the kids, we operate a ‘no phones policy’ and I think that helps.
“We already have 45 kids signed up for a Christmas trip for them so everyone’s enthusiastic.
“I’m really proud of what we’ve achieved so far but we are looking to keep going on.”
The youth club, for kids of primary school age, runs from 6pm to 8.30pm at Cleland Senior Citizens Centre.
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