SHS and Arsenal in the Community team up for 'Dads at Duncombe'
News article from January 10, 2017
School-Home Support (SHS) and Arsenal F.C. teamed up to run ‘Dads at Duncombe’ recently, a dads club for parents of pupils at Duncombe Primary School, Islington. The initiative was created and led in partnership by SHS Practitioner, Susannah, and Arsenal in the Community, the club’s community department, in order to promote teamwork and community values.
The programme took place over six weeks beginning in November, and involved a range of activities including a visit from the Arsenal mascot, Gunnersaurus. Just before Christmas, it culminated in an exciting tour of Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium.
The weekly sessions also included making football kits (with the children’s favourite community values on the back), designing a mascot and creating a stadium model. The programme was designed to encourage dads to engage with their children’s learning and taught parents and children alike the values and importance of community, teamwork and inspiring others. With International Men’s Day on 19th November, the sessions also allowed the group to discuss topics such as being a good male role model for children.
At the start of the project, Adam Kaliniecki from Arsenal in the Community said:
“Arsenal have a long history of engagement with schools in our area and supporting young people in various aspects of their lives.
Every week our Community team provides a range of programmes in sports, education, wellbeing and disability provision, and in this case we’re looking forward to working alongside SHS to address a particular area of need. I’m excited to see how creative the children and adults will be.”
What a great local project!