My adventures working on children's summer play scheme

During the week of 24th of 28th July 1989, I volunteered to take a group of youngsters, aged between 9 and 12 for a week of camping in Dorset

The week was organised by social worker, Marian Hughes (my mother) and Leo Matuti who ran a children's home

The 14 children enjoyed not only camping but trips to various places of interest - Cricket St. Thomas animal park and Shark centre in Weymouth, Lyme Regis

A beach barbecue was the highlight of the week when one child celebrated her 10th birthday

For some it was the first time way from home, the first time for many for seeing the sea and the first time for swimming in it

One child was so excited by actually discovering that the sea was salty

The photo is of my mother handing out sandwiches

We freshly made sandwiches for the kids every day and if they didn't like them then we told then to “swap them with the other kids, for ones they did like”

One child's mother insisted he was vegetarian, (in 1989 this was a pretty rare occurrence) so we made vegetarian sandwiches for him every day

He would get his vegetarian sandwiches and sigh

We told him “if you don't like them, swap them with the other kids” whereupon he would swap his vegetarian sandwiches for corned beef and sit with a big smile on his face

As with this sandwich story it would be terrible arrogant to think I didn't learn anything

I probably signed some form at the time to say I wouldn't talk about the event

It was a massive learning for me as to how people that were less fortunate than myself, lived their lives

It was a window into a world my mother knew as she was a social worker, people circumstances can be so complex?

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I need to thank my mum for keeping a newspaper clipping from September 1989, where I sourced this?