History
In the 1960s there was no provision for pre-school children with additional needs in Hampshire, and pre-school playgroups did not have the facilities to offer places to these children. It was at the beginning of the 1970s that Opportunity Groups were founded, and the Romsey Group started in 1971. In the early years, regular Hampshire Opportunity Groups support meetings were held with groups from Totton, Winchester and Fareham (amongst others) attending.
October 1971
Joan Thomas was the mother of 4 children, one of whom had severe learning difficulties and profound physical problems. Worried and annoyed that her daughter was denied the same opportunities to play and to mix with other children in a playgroup setting that her siblings enjoyed, Joan set up a small playgroup in her own home in Cupernham Lane, Romsey. Mothers of children with problems were invited along and encouraged to bring siblings to the group, too.
It was very much Joan’s ethos that the children with additional needs should not be segregated and that they should be given the same play opportunities as their siblings. She did this with the help and support of a friend, Isobel Clark, who was a trained social worker, and some volunteer helpers.
1972
In 1972, a poster was placed in the local library asking for drivers with child safety seats who would be willing to offer transport 2 mornings a week to support the group. Georgina Burrows, amongst others, volunteered to be a driver and like many who came forward, continued to work for the charity as a volunteer, a role she found fun and rewarding for 48 years. She particularly enjoyed working with and supporting children who faced difficulties with speech and language. She continues to keep in touch with friends and families that she met and worked with from ROG.
From the beginning, the group ran on Tuesday and Thursday mornings and originally parents were offered the opportunity to come both days – one day they were encouraged to come for a stay and play, networking with other Mums and the other day they were given the opportunity to leave the building as a chance for respite. Transport was offered to all families as far fewer people had access to vehicles and the group covered a very large catchment area surrounding Romsey.
1976
Fairly quickly the group’s reputation grew, and more and more referrals were made by GPs or by the families themselves. By 1976 it became apparent that bigger premises were needed, and Joan stepped up her campaign with local councillors to find the Group a permanent home. With the hard-won support of local GPs and Health Visitors and with the tenacity of a Jack Russell terrier, Joan put forward her case and eventually was offered the use of the semi-derelict Nightingale House (previously a council-run nursing home) for a ‘peppercorn rent’ of £1 per annum. Although the building was in a poor state, it offered masses of space. The Social Services furniture store was downstairs, and Romsey Opportunity Group took over the entire first floor, with staff working hard to make the space comfortable and welcoming. A rickety lift made it possible for wheelchairs and pushchairs to access the two large playrooms, the ‘Mother’s Lounge’, kitchen and toilets. The toilets were temperamental and often had to be flushed with buckets of water carried from the kitchen!
At this time, there were on average 20 children attending the group and siblings were also offered the opportunity to attend. The group was always full, and families were never turned away. Shortly after the move, the first ROG committee was formed with Joan as Chairman and a committee of helpers and parents responsible for the management and administration of the group. The group played an active role in supporting the families in their care, within and outside of group sessions. For example, staff and volunteers would meet with parents outside of the group, attend hospital appointments and prospective school visits with parents to support and assist them.
1977
In 1977, Sue Lofthouse, a young Mum from Chandlers Ford, joined the group as a volunteer. She knew of the group because a friend worked for the charity. Sue went on to dedicate 47 years of her life to the group and worked for many of those years as a supervisor. Sue loved working with children and found working for ROG incredibly rewarding. She loved that she was able to bring her own children along to the group and would often take other children home with her to give the parents a break, even caring for them over weekends at times. After attending the group from a young age, Sue’s daughter went on to work with SEN children and also worked with Portage, following in her Mum’s footsteps.
Also in 1977, Claire Topp began attending ROG and describes how, as a very young and nervous Mum with a 10-month-old son, she saw none of Nightingale House’s shortcomings on her first visit, but instead found herself welcomed into the most caring, supportive environment, full of fun, laughter and love. Claire’s friendship with Isobel Clark, Georgina Burrows and Sue Lofthouse endures to this day. These wonderful ladies (and others) nurtured her son, listened to her insecurities and fears without judgement, and helped her learn to cope and to progress as a parent and as a person. Claire was asked to join the Committee as a Parent Rep and relished becoming involved in the running of the group. A couple of years later she was elected Chairman and was fiercely proud to hold that post for almost 20 years until she left to study for a degree. Claire has maintained contact with ROG in the intervening years and it still holds a very special place in her heart.
Isobel Clark was the perfect foil for the decidedly unsentimental, campaigning Joan Thomas and together they built ROG’s reputation for excellence with the medical profession, Education Department and with Social Services. Regular visits from the Community Medical Officer and Speech Therapist, Educational Psychologist and Social Services’ Day Care Officer were established. Joan and Isobel introduced the formal monitoring and record-keeping of the children’s progress that led to ROG being involved and respected in school placement decisions which was revolutionary in its time. When the Portage Teaching Scheme was introduced to the UK, Isobel worked with the Educational Psychology Service and organised for ROG volunteers to attend three-day training courses at Southampton University to enable Portage to be used in the ROG setting.
1983
Sessions were going well, were well attended and the group had a waiting list of families wanting to attend. Devastatingly, in 1983, our home in Nightingale House was vandalised twice in quick succession with toys, equipment and fittings smashed and damaged beyond repair. Despite a wonderful public response to the publicity about the attacks, ROG was forced to move out. Sessions were kept going, uninterrupted, by meeting at various host venues: Georgina Burrows’ home; North Baddesley Primary School; Woodley Playgroup, and with swimming sessions in Winchester.
As use of Nightingale House had been provided to the group by the Local Authority, they had a moral obligation to rehouse us and, working closely with Social Services we managed to secure use of the Blacknell Building, on the site of what is now the Appletree Centre, and previously used as the Romsey Registry Office and by the Meals on Wheels Service. The wooden-constructed Blacknell Building provided a light, bright and very welcome home with everything we needed … except enough space! Various other voluntary groups such as ‘The Playaway Club’ and ‘Mind’ shared the building so the playroom had to be cleared after every session and there was no ‘quiet’ space anywhere.
Weather permitting, a lot of time was spent out and about in the local area for picnics and park visits because of limited space. Permissions were sought by the committee and fundraising began in earnest to purchase a second, smaller portable building. It was a very exciting day when a huge crane arrived to lift the new Portakabin over the Blacknell Building into position behind it. More scrabbling for funds to finance getting power to the Portakabin for heating, carpeting etc ensued, but at last we had a quiet room, albeit cold in winter and boiling in summer!
When the Blacknell Building fell into disrepair the council decided to demolish it and put a purpose-built multi-use building on the site. The ROG committee took the decision to be proactive; to have our voices heard at the planning stage and organised a ‘site visit’ by the architect on a ROG session morning. He was won over by the work being done with the children and their families and from then on, we had his ear. Hours and hours of work by Sue Lofthouse and her late-husband Stan, Georgina Burrows and Claire Topp were put into ensuring that the needs of ROG were met and future-proofed after an unsettled history with accommodation. Ever mindful of the need for multiple use/occupancy, we nevertheless reaped the benefits of working closely with the architect in terms of ‘our’ space and needs.
The Centre, still Council owned and maintained, was built for the use of local community groups and ROG has been housed in the building since it opened. The original design of the building included a hoist to raise items into the loft from the outside of the building, but this was removed for Health and Safety reasons many years ago. The building has always been shared with several other groups/charities. With the Appletree Centre under construction, ROG again found itself homeless. Woodley Playgroup very generously offered shared use of their premises and equipment at the Woodley Scout Hall for the duration of the work, and a contact at IBM offered storage space for our own equipment at their Headquarters in Hursley. When the time came, Georgina Burrows used her horse trailer for removal of all of ROG’s belongings to IBM and she called in the help of 4 strong young men, all of whom were on community service probation, to help with the heavy lifting.
1992
The Appletree Centre is opened officially by Southampton FC’s Matthew Le Tissier.
ROG flourished in its new permanent home. The playroom was run by Isobel, Sue and a team of dedicated helpers (Including Georgina, Mavis and Sr Catherine all of whom are still involved in some way). Claire worked with the parents and co-ordinated visits by the professionals who supported ROG. By this time, we had battled to secure monthly visits by the Community Medical Officer (‘School Doctor’); regular visits by a paediatric physiotherapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist and the Educational Psychologist, all of whom would work alongside the helpers to plan how best to meet the individual child’s needs and to support the parents. We also forged links with, and organised visits to, local special schools, notably Shepherds Down, Tankerville and Cedar schools. Swimming sessions were also held at Tankerville School every fortnight.
2020
Over time, ROG continued to face many changes with staff, but certain faces, much as Mavis and Sister Catherine remained consistent supporters of the charity, turning up every day to make a difference. In 2006, Lyn Bird was employed as Family Coordinator, alongside Mavis as Children’s Coordinator. During Lockdown, between March – August 2020, everyone except Lyn Bird and the Admin Officer, Carol West, were put on furlough. During that time, parents were without support from all other avenues with even their family and friends isolated from them.
At this point, Lyn set up WhatsApp groups for parents, which became a life source of humour, grief, information and encouragement. She also started zoom meetings which included music time with Liz and gave families the opportunity to see each other. In a time where the world was on hold, with no other commitments at that time, Lyn also made herself available whenever necessary to attend virtual meetings with health and education professionals, advocating for our families. When possible, the group was moved to meeting in parks and eventually our outdoor play area. Staff wrote their own risk assessments and plans of how to keep safe, submitting them to Hampshire County Council with a plea for allowing the group back into the Appletree Centre.
Lockdown seemed to be a real turning point for ROG. Sue Fisher would ride her bike, delivering gifts to parents. After Lockdown, Lyn’s role evolved to become Manager. and when Mavis retired from her position after an incredible length of service, the Trustees recruited Janine to join the team in 2021 as Deputy Manager, later being promoted to Manager when Lyn moved on. The dedication of all staff, volunteers and trustees has always been and continues to be astounding and we are truly blessed to be surrounded by so many people who care so passionately about the work that this charity stands for. At the point of leaving, Lyn Bird had dedicated 16 years to caring for children and families at ROG and Carol West over 12 years. Mavis Watts returned to ROG as a Volunteer only 6 months after retiring and has now been with us for well over 40 years!
2025
The ROG crew now consists of a nearly new staff team, supported also by May Sherwood, an incredible long-standing Volunteer, who is employed as our Playroom Support, 12 incredible Volunteers and 6 dedicated Trustees. We are one of the only remaining Opportunity Groups left in Hampshire, but the future of the group looks exciting. It has been fascinating to have the opportunity to speak with such long standing, dedicated members of the ROG family and learn about our interesting history. We are so lucky to have been supported by so many wonderful families, volunteers, staff, trustees, patrons and businesses since 1971. Everyone who has contributed to our wonderful charity, past and present, has a special place in the ROG family and we are so grateful to every single one. The journey has not always been easy. Money has always been and continues to be a challenge as a self-funded charity, but we continue on because we believe that the group offers an essential service to the Romsey Community. Certain changes have taken place to the charity over the years, such as the removal of transport for all families but what we offer to families and our ultimate aim remains the same and continues to be at the heart of what we believe in and why we are still here.
Do you know a child who would benefit from a place at the Romsey Opportunity Group?
Anyone can refer a child to us using our online referral form. Simply click the button below.
Refer a Child