By the Children's Alliance
Countless children are facing issues making it difficult for them to live their lives to their fullest potential. Many are affected by challenges such as a lack of physical activity, mental health issues, or socio-economic and cultural inequalities. As adults, we can make a difference, but most people don’t realise how much a child’s first five years will impact their physical and mental wellbeing for life.
We want to change that.
Children’s Alliance is the charitable foundation of Water Babies, born out of their passion in giving back to communities and supporting families. Children’s Alliance provides an action plan of how to actively try and support everyone. Water Babies believes in investing in children, in and out of the pool, for a better future.
As the world leader in baby swimming, Water Babies understands the importance of water education and how water confidence builds life confidence. Children’s Alliance supports communities to give children and young people access to water and water activities, not just through swimming lessons, but also through provision of swimwear, transport to swimming lessons, inclusion into swimming lessons and more.
At the same time, the Children’s Alliance wants to broaden politicians’ awareness to the health and wellbeing issues of many young people in the UK. This began the campaign for a Department which represents Children and Young People, so children are included in policy making processes right at the very beginning. It really does “take a village to raise a child” and it’s everyone’s responsibility to help make a difference in children’s lives. If we address issues at the start of life, we will raise healthier happier adults.
Our Goal
We’re dedicated to ensuring every child gets the best start in life. We approach our goal from two directions through our community work and campaign activity.
‘Getting it right’ for children and young people means getting it right for our wider society. That’s why Children’s Alliance is campaigning for children and young people to be at the heart of policy making; whether that’s at Westminster or in the communities where we all live, work and bring up our families. For too long, children and young people have been an ‘add on’ or afterthought when decisions are made. It’s now time to reverse the balance and ensure that those who will build our future society take centre stage.
The heart of our work, though, is done within our communities where we deliver activities that directly impact children’s health and wellbeing. We commit to free swimming lessons and swim nappies for children who need them, online learning to teach valuable life skills for parents and children, and envisage water splash areas to encourage play as well as water confidence and safety. We support children by providing them with access to water activities, including swimming lessons, transportation to classes, swimwear, and water play equipment. Our goal is to positively affect 10,000 lives by 2030.
Our Values
Our values guide us in achieving our key goals, driving our mission to improve children’s lives. They inspire and remind us of our purpose.
COMMUNITY: We’re in this together.
FOCUS: Children are at the heart of all we do.
ACTION: We seek to educate, inspire, and act for change.
Community Activity
Through our community efforts, we aim to give children and young people a better start in life through water-related activities.
Supporting communities is at the core of what we do. We offer grants to directly impact children’s health and well-being. Charities across the UK can apply for a Children’s Alliance grant by providing details about their project and its connection to water.
Here’s a few examples of community initiatives we’ve supported so far:
We Are Beams: This organisation supports disabled children and their families. We’ve provided £6,000 in grants for swimming lessons for children with special needs and water-based play sessions for babies and toddlers.
Dame Vera Lynn Charity: Supporting young children with cerebral palsy and motor learning impairments, they’ve received £3,000 in grants for ongoing hydrotherapy sessions for severely disabled children.
Access Sport: By focusing on the causes of exclusion and tackling access barriers, they make inclusion the norm for disadvantaged and disabled young people. The charity has received £30,000 in grants to provide over 400 swimming lessons as part of their inclusive initiatives.
FEAR: Specialising in providing wetsuits for children recovering from cancer, they have received a grant of £9,000.
Become a Member
By joining the Children’s Alliance, you have the opportunity to collaborate with like-minded professionals dedicated to supporting children and young people.
The membership experience is diverse and far-reaching. We welcome a variety of viewpoints, supported by professional experience and evidence. This approach enables us to create, discuss, and analyse key recommendations to inform policies for current and future government departments.
Membership is free.
Spread the word: Help raise awareness about the Children’s Alliance and support selected campaigns.
Attend the yearly conference.
Access specialists: Gain insights from experts in our working groups.
We’re always looking forward and welcoming new members to join the Children’s Alliance. To find out more, apply for grant funding, or learn more about how you can get involved, please visit Children’s Alliance.
We can’t wait to welcome you to Children’s Alliance, to help create better starts and brighter futures for all children.
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