A new place for children to play

AFTER more than a decade without one, Linton now has a new playgroup for children and families to attend.

Having launched last week, sessions take place on Thursdays from 11am to 12pm at the Linton Community Hub.

After moving to the region in October from Melbourne, coordinator Mel said she saw a need for a regular playgroup for the town for her two-year-old son.

“I met some of the people from the Linton Progress Association who’ve said they want to activate the space at the community hub a bit more too,” she said.

“They suggested the idea and I thought it’d be a great way for me and my son to make some friends.

“There’s definitely a need for this because I think there’s a playgroup in Smythesdale and Skipton but not here.

“There’s been a pretty positive response and everyone seems to think it’s a good idea.”

Prior to the new initiative, a playgroup existed in Linton with sessions run out of the town’s recreation reserve and an average of 10 families before ending about 15 years ago.

Many of the toys used during the previous playgroup have been brought out of storage to be used for the new endeavour.

A prep teacher for 12 years, Mel said part of the reason for the new playgroup is to bring a greater sense of community to Linton.

“It’ll be great if later on we can do things like have the CFA come in or other local groups, even the primary school,” she said.

“We’re pretty keen to have it open to everyone and have it be more an intergenerational thing.

“I really want this to be run as a group effort with the other parents to meet up together and form relationships.”