Debbie Weekes-Bernard, Deputy Mayor for Social Integration, visited Wheely Tots in Tottenham this week to see how the charity is helping families of different backgrounds come together.
Debbie visited the charity and it’s ‘Family Buddy Up’ project to see how a £47,000 grant from the Mayor’s London Family Fund is helping to unite families and promote a healthy and active lifestyle.
The charity, which operates in Haringey, South Tottenham and Northumberland Park, encourages families to cycle more regularly and builds confidence in toddlers and their parents through sociable, family-friendly training sessions. It’s ‘Family Buddy Up’ project pairs families of different backgrounds together to give them the opportunity to bond over a range of activities, including sport and cooking.
Debbie was able to see first-hand the benefits of the scheme as she watched families singing together, drawing bicycles and riding bikes through a model traffic zone.
Last year, the Mayor created the London Family Fund to help parents across the city build social networks and support each other once they have children. The fund provides £600,000 over three years to schemes which help Londoners with children to develop meaningful and lasting relationships irrespective of ethnicity, disability, income or social class. The Greater London Authority awarded funding to nine organisations, including Wheely Tots.
Deputy Mayor Debbie Weekes-Bernard said: “Wheely Tots is a fantastic charity which helps parents and children to make friends, get active and connect with other Londoners. The Mayor and I are committed to bringing Londoners together and this charity shows how the shared experience of raising children is a great way for Londoners to bond.”
The London Family Fund is part of the Mayor’s strategy to address social integration in London – the first time a Mayor of London has set out such a strategic approach. The Fund aims to support grassroots projects that bring families together to build meaningful relationships, generate more diverse social networks, reduce parental isolation and loneliness, and improve the wellbeing of children.
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