FAQS

No, just come along whenever there’s a session on. You’re welcome to come attend and see if you’re interested without becoming a member straight away. After attending the group twice, you will need to become a member. Membership is $10 for the current calendar year, and a gold coin donation is requested each week towards the activity and childcare costs.

Unfortunately, our funding agreement with the ACT Government only allows us to offer our services to mums of kids aged 0 – 5.

We start our Wednesday sessions at 9.30am. This allows time for us all to settle our children into childcare, set up, sign in and make a cup of coffee before the activity commences at 10am. Morning tea is arranged by a rota of our lovely volunteer mums.

We finish at 12.15pm (or a little earlier on art days) to allow time for packing up and cleaning the activity room. Children are required to be collected from childcare by 12:30pm.

We all share the job of cleaning the room, stacking the chairs and putting away the tables and other supplies. If you are not sure what you can do to help, please ask!

Every year we have a wide range of visiting speakers and activities to enrich us physically, emotionally, intellectually and creatively. The group plans out future sessions together, so if there is something you would like to do in future, let us know! To see what sessions are coming up, take a look at our Upcoming Events. Check out our Facebook page to see some of the things we’ve made, or view our past term programs!

Membership is $10 per calendar year, payable after your first 2 visits. We think it is amazing to be able to offer so much for so little. You can attend two sessions to decide whether you want to join before signing up. After that, a gold coin donation is payable each week for the activity and the childcare facility (if used) in addition to the annual membership fee. We can also accept a term payment by bank transfer in lieu of coins.  These fees can be waived for mothers experiencing hardship.  Online membership forms can be completed here, or you can fill in a hard copy form during one of our sessions.

We have fun and quality childcare available where your children can be looked after while you enjoy the activity. Our childcare in the adjacent room can be utilised by children over 9 months of age. Due to the nature of some of our activities (sharp objects, small pieces, hot tools etc) we request that mobile children over 9 months of age use the childcare as a safety precaution.  We do however have a large playpen that can be brought out on request to accommodate children to remain in the activity room if they have trouble settling in the childcare.  More detailed information on our childcare can be found here.

We meet at the Downer Community Centre which is located on Frencham Place in Downer. There is a car park and additional street parking available.  The community centre is on the right side of the courtyard.  Look for our sign near the entrance of the door opposite the rock sculpture.

The childcare room opens at 9:30. The activity commences at 10am and concludes at 12:15pm, at which time children must be collected.

We try to arrange some informal activities during the school holidays for mothers who wish to keep in touch when the group is on a break. This can include play dates at the park, meet ups at the movies or anything else that our lovely mums might suggest (we will even shout you a coffee)!

We operate with assistance from the ACT Government through the Office for Children, Youth and Family Support, the Canberra Community Grants Program, and the Community Inclusion Fund (in partnership with Mental Health ACT). Hopefully this community initiative can continue for more generations of mothers and children to enjoy so please join our little community and share in the benefits that this group provides.