February Chat with Sean Harper

As February dawns and Valentine’s Day approaches, February is known as the month of love – or historically a month of ‘new beginnings’. Today we're talking to Sean Harper who is the manager at Just for Fun Holiday Club based in Swindon. The organisation is an OFSTED approved childcare provider for children during the school holidays aged between 4 – 14 years based in Swindon.

What do you love about running your own business? 
I love the fact that I have the capability to change people's lives. For example a parent was struggling to keep their booking for this February half term due to financial constraints. After speaking with them we were able to sort something so that their child didn’t miss out. 

I enjoy being able to be in control of the direction we want to take this business. With it being a holiday club there are so many avenues that we can explore and develop. Weekend sessions and a relaunch of our birthday party packages are just two additions to the holiday club that we can add on.

What do you like about your business community? 
The business community is brilliant. As we have grown, local businesses have seen us more and more via social media, articles and at school events throughout the year. 

We very much have the ethos of giving back and donate £1000s of pounds to local businesses, schools and fundraisers to support those who are trying to raise money for different projects. 

What has changed for you over the last year? 
Just for Fun Holiday Club has grown a great deal in the last year. This is largely down to our involvement with the HAF Programme - or the Holiday Activities and Food programme. 

This is a government funded programme which we are proud to be a part of. This holiday provision is for school aged children from reception to year 11 (inclusive) who receive benefits-related free school meals. We are proud to be a part of something that makes a huge difference to those who need it most. 

What challenges have you had to overcome? 
The main challenges we have had to overcome is the uncertainty of COVID and making sure we do all that we can to meet the requirements and reassure our parents that we are doing all that we can to reduce the chance of anything spreading. 

We sent our staff on COVID prevention training, created a hand book for parents to inform them of all the measures we had taken and put in place and what they could do to help us. 

It has been a difficult time for so many but parents put their faith in us and this is a lovely feeling. There was always the uncertainty of national or regional lockdowns during the school holidays and this caused lots of uncertainty for us as business owners. 

Is it your birthday this month? 
Yes, I have a birthday this month but I wont be doing anything to special to celebrate. Its my partner's 30th birthday this month so all the focus and attention will be on her to make her day memorable. This will involve making cards and gifts with our two children and trying to arrange surprises without her knowing. 

This, in itself is a challenge. Time with the family will be the best way to celebrate both and luckily for me, my birthday falls on the weekend so a day trip somewhere will be nice.

February 17th is Random Acts of Kindness Day - has anyone been kind to you lately? 
One random act of kindness that springs to mind is someone who followed us on our social media page and then started creating content for us to share on all of our platforms. 

We didn’t ask for it but the content was far better then what we were creating ourselves. They asked for nothing in return, just wished us all the very best on our journey.

We later arranged a meeting and now use them for all of our content and short videos.   

Is February a busy month for you? 
Yes as it’s the first of six school holidays during the year. It’s the first step in resetting the standards and driving sales as we look to build up to the summer. 

February allows us to be creative with themes for the week and gives us an opportunity to roll out some of the new equipment we have purchased for the children to enjoy. The weather is generally cold, so we all get creative in finding new and exciting ways to make the children want to come back.

February also celebrates new talent with National Apprenticeship Week? What does this mean to you? 
As we are growing, we are having to employ new members of staff to keep up with the demand of bookings and to stay within the OFSTED ratio guidelines. 

This is exciting as we unearth new talent and bring lots of different personalities to the team which can only make us stronger as a unit. 

With great staff it helps develop some of the younger members who look up and learn from those around them. We are excited to announce that this month we have employed five new members of staff who we can't wait to introduce to the children during Easter.  

And finally: 
If you are looking for donations for fundraising events, please do get in contact. We are always more then happy to support local people and businesses in Swindon and surrounding areas.

For more information visit www.justforfunholidayclub.co.uk