There are lots of wonderful playgroups for young children in and around Bishopston and one of my personal favourites was always Little Fishes Toddlers.

Little Fishes is held on Friday mornings 10 – 11.30am in term-time at Horfield Methodist Church, Churchways Avenue, Horfield.

This group is run by volunteers from the Methodist Church and is open to parents and carers with their children aged 1 until the term following the term in which they turn 3. Younger siblings are also welcome.

There is an entry fee of £1.50 with an additional 50p for each sibling.

Little Fishes is a popular toddler group and there is a waiting list for Little Fishes which could be up to 6 months – please email Helen on little-fishes@hotmail.com to add your name to the list.

Today on Bishopston Mum, local mum, Sally Thomas kindly shares her experience of making her recent first visit to Little Fishes with her toddler – please read on to find out more about this toddler group…

The volunteers at Little Fishes were very welcoming to me and my son as we hadn’t been before. They showed me where to park the pushchair and where the playgroup takes place (upstairs in the Methodist church).

When you arrive at the group you can order a tea or a coffee and your child can choose a healthy snack which I thought was a nice change from just biscuits (although there are biscuits handed out to the adults later; luckily my toddler didn’t spot this!)

The playgroup makes use of two large rooms, with stairgates in between. One room has lots of ride on toys and a little slide, the other has lots of different toys set out in areas with seating and a large craft table with a craft each week.

There is also a book corner including the library which has books for both children and adults and some dual language books.

The group starts at 10am and there is free play time including use of the craft table which is supervised by a volunteer.

The library is opened at 10.50am so that children and parents can borrow books. Tidying up time happens at 11.10 and is followed by singing and story time at 11.20.

There is a well-known bible story once a month. The group finishes at 11.30am.

I spoke to a mum called Jess who has been attending the group for a long time with her children. I asked her what she liked most about the group.

“The set-up of the toys is different each week. The volunteers are always available to help with the craft/messy table, which is great and makes life easier for the parents/carers attending the group, as there is more time to socialise and talk to the other parents and carers.

“On children’s birthdays, there is a birthday dragon puppet which comes out to give the child a birthday card!

“One of the volunteers plays guitar at song time and the children can take turns at helping to strum the guitar if they would like to.

“I like the fact that there is a second large room with ride on toys. This is particularly good for the cooler months of the year – somewhere to burn off some energy as well as playing. There is also a raffle each week!”

In summary, Little Fishes is a friendly and welcoming  toddler group which I would recommend if you are looking for somewhere to take your toddler on a Friday morning and make some new friends.

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For details of other regular activities for young children in Bishopston, Horfield, St Andrew’s and Ashley Down, please see the Bishopston Mum Baby & Toddler Timetable.