Location: Aldridge, Walsall
Diocese: Lichfield
Grant awarded: £6000
The CCF awarded a grant of £6,000 to the Hothouse project in Redhouse in 2008 and was used towards the salary costs of a development worker. The project had been set up by the local parish churches in 2002 to advance the Christian faith of children and young people, by providing a safe environment for them to gather for educational and recreational activities. Originally the Hothouse’s main focus was the provision of sessions for parents and toddlers on weekday mornings. However, it has developed its provision for older children and families, and now runs several weekly sessions covering a wide age range, from ‘baby rhyme time’ and messy church to an after-school club for years 7-8. Formerly un-churched people involved in the Hothouse have become involved in wider parish life, including the churches’ Youth Fellowship. The Hothouse has a vision to expand physically, in terms of gaining more building space, numerically and what it can offer the local community.
