Welcome to the AIMS Families Website
Over 20 years ago Dr Jill Diprose introduced the very distressed new parents of a baby with special needs to the parents of another special needs child. The support and understanding they drew from each other led to other families joining them for coffee and a chat and thus Dawlish Special Needs Group evolved.
We are now known as AIMS and operate a free Saturday “drop in” group at Oaklands Park School, from 11.00 to 2.00pm, where paid play leaders and volunteers offer craft, cooking, music, games and a great outdoor space for letting off steam! Over the years we have bought and acquired a great deal of equipment and musical instruments including a digital drum kit and assorted bikes, scooters and games for children of all ages and abilities to play with. We can also use the school swimming pool.
Families attend together and parents draw friendship and support from each other whilst all the children enjoy activities and play at whatever level suits them. We think of ourselves as a big happy family, the great thing about AIMS is there is no need to explain – children are just children.
We do not receive any funding so to pay our way is a constant challenge. Apart from the running expenses of rent and wages and replacing craft and cooking needs we like to arrange a day out sometimes, such as to the zoo or at Christmas time, on the Santa Train.We rely greatly on the generosity of local people to keep us going.
Latest News
Return since Lockdown 26th September 2020
We finally managed to re-open on Saturday 26th September 2020. We have made a lot of adjustments following the outbreak of Covid19 including limiting our group size. Orchard Manor School have worked very hard to ensure we can return to the school premises. All of...
Latest Newsletter
Newsletter January 2021
Happy New Year. Despite 2020 being a horrendous year, it has gone pretty quickly and luckily AIMS has managed to survive thanks to the hard work of all of our staff and volunteers. We have adapted the way we work and have managed to support our families through...
Please Donate to AIMS
AIMS is a fantastic group that provides activity sessions every Saturday in Dawlish for children with Special Needs and their families. It gives the parents, whose everyday existence can be stressful and lonely, a chance to mix with other parents and families facing similar challenges while their children, including siblings, are having a great time.
Please donate to support our cause.
Charity No: 1088238