Aburound House

Aburound House is on Woodlands Road in Gillingham.  The building is in need of refurbishment work to bring it back to full community use.  We have plans to transform the kitchen area to train independent living skills and the toilets area to provide a disabled toilet.  We would like to develop the main area in the centre to provide various activities including exercise sessions, training and employment, drama, music, woodwork and more.  The main area will also be available for hire to the local community.  Finally we are also hoping to transform the garden area into a thriving horticultural and gardening project.

Despite the building needing refurbishment we are running activities on a small scale within the centre.  These are highlighted below.  There is presently an ongoing steering group working to develop services at Aburound House for Medway users. The aim is to provide a well planned and integrated service to meet the needs of individual service users in Medway who are able to make their own choices about the activities they carry out.

There is a Monday Night Gateway Club attended by over forty service users every Monday evening and Closing the Gap a parent/children's group that meets on Saturdays. Aburound House is also available for hire by outside groups. 

On Tuesdays we run a weekly gardening session for people who want to learn how to grow their own flowers or vegetables.  We also offer a session that develops woodworking skills.  Drama and Music sessions take place on a Thursday for people who want to gain acting skills and develop an interest in music. 

Tuesdays

GARDENING: 10:30am to 12:30pm
WOODWORK: 1:30pm to 3:30pm

Thursdays

DRAMA: 10:30am to 12:30pm
MUSIC: 1:30pm to 3:30pm

Steppingstone Training and Employment Programme

From September 2009 the Steppingstone Training and Employment Programme will also take place at Aburound House.  The programme runs for 24 weeks.  Topics covered include:

• Money Management
• Personal Safety
• Self Advocacy
• Relationships
• Understanding Differences
• Computer Skills
• Decision Making
• Safety in the Home
• Seeking Help and Advice
• Confidence Building
• Identifying Skills and Abilities

The Training and Employment Programme costs £35 per session.  Sessions will run on Tuesdays from 10.30am - 3.30pm.  Sessions start on Tuesday 1st September.

For more information about the Steppingstone Programme, please contact becky.green@dgsmyourchoice.co.uk

For more information on Aburound House please contact communityintegration@dgsmyourchoice.org.uk.