News & Views Children’s clothes to treasure A West Berkshire children’s clothes designer is the latest winner of our Facebook competition to celebrate the local family-friendly businesses that our followers love. Happy Hedgehog Designs hand-makes beautiful traditional clothing that withstands the test of time. Liz Spencer is at the helm, when she is not busy co-running pre-school music classes, Little Quavers, in Thatcham. Liz says: “I have happy childhood memories of my Mum making me clothes, and I began sewing properly once my five children were older. It has always amazed me how a fairly uninspiring piece of flat cloth can be transformed into something beautiful. There is a fabulous range of fabrics available now, and I particularly enjoy working with natural materials.” Consumers are starting to move away from mass-produced garments towards fewer, quality pieces and the Happy Hedgehog ethos fits perfectly. “Although my items are likely to be more expensive than those you could buy in a big store or supermarket, they will be unique and will last a lot longer”, adds Liz. “I only use quality fabrics and hope that my clothes can be passed on to siblings.” Liz promotes her business over Facebook, Instagram and an Etsy store, and custom makes items for children that do not fit standard sizes or who prefer a certain fabric. Over the next few months, she is hoping to set up a Facebook group for parents to sell on their preloved handmade items. Find Liz on Facebook @Happyhedgehogdesigns. Don’t forget to follow Families Thames Valley West on social media. Facebook: @FamiliesThamesValleyWest and Instagram: @familiestvw
4 • Henley • Reading • Wokingham • Bracknell • Newbury • West Berkshire
Making the case for family learning The Family Learning Festival, which runs from 19 October to 3 November, is a national celebration to inspire a love of learning in family life. Organisations across the UK, including schools, libraries, museums, children centres and galleries will be staging a range of free creative family learning activities. This year's festival theme is ‘Future Families’. Organisers will be running activities to encourage families to become earthy explorers, digital discoverers or wellbeing warriors!
Organisers of the festival, the lifelong learning charity, Campaign for Learning, believes learning that takes place in the family and home should be valued as much as learning that takes place in school classrooms and formal education. The family is where we learn important life skills and positive attitudes to learning, which enable us to become confident, motivated lifelong learners. To find a local event, visit familylearningfestival.com
Local Heritage Open Days Heritage Open Days is celebrating its 25th anniversary and it will be the biggest and most diverse to date. Running from 13 to 22 September, this annual celebration of England's history and culture, allows visitors FREE access to historical landmarks that are either not usually open to the public, or would normally charge an entrance fee. Nationwide there will be hundreds of FREE interactive activities for children, including dressing up, crafting, woodland walks and railway rides. With a theme of ‘People Power,’ this year’s festival will offer visitors more opportunities than ever to discover the secret history of their towns, villages and countryside. Co-ordinated nationally by the National Trust with support from the People’s Postcode Lottery, the celebration brings together
thousands of organisations and properties across England. Local events include exclusive access to areas of Shaw House in Newbury; a three-stop walking tour of some of Thatcham’s most historically significant buildings; lacemaking in Wokingham library; and behind-the-scenes tours of the Museum of English Rural Life in Reading. heritageopendays.org.uk
familiesonline.co.uk
