17 Apr 2025, 19:10Paul TompkinsCrieff, Perth and Kinross, Scotland, United Kingdom
Ten Years of the Crieff Bumps to Tots Community Project
Crieff Church celebrates the success of ten years of the Bumps to Tots toddler group, a community initiative that supports local families with young children.
The Crieff Bumps to Tots community children’s project began just after Easter in 2015. It was the brainchild of Muriel Logan and the then Crieff pastor, Marcel Ghioalda. Right from the start, the philosophy was to look after the mums as well as giving the little ones fun in a caring atmosphere, recognising the stresses that many young families can experience.
In the beginning, there were just 10-15 mums in the church hall, but now it is not uncommon to have 40 children and an assortment of mums, dads, grandparents, childminders, and a couple of foster carers. They often comment on how much they appreciate the group and say that it is one of the high spots of the week.
The group is very well thought of locally, and after the Covid pandemic necessitated a break, the local Early Years team contacted the then leader, Mo Keough, to ask if there was anything they could do to help the group reopen, as they saw Bumps to Tots making a significant contribution to the mental health of the young families in Crieff.
One of the mums recently told the local pastor, Njabulo Ndlovu, that she had been coming to the group for nearly the entire ten years. She said that her first daughter absolutely loved it and still has fond memories of playing with the various toys, doing crafts, playing with sand, water and water beads, and even riding a scooter. When she had her second child, she was glad to hear that the group was still running every Monday morning. She said, “It is a great space for the little ones to socialise with other children, learn and develop, and also have some fun.” She added, “For parents, it's been a great place to meet and have some adult conversations.”
Each Easter, the volunteers at Bumps to Tots give the children a special gift from the church – an Easter egg. This is no ordinary Easter egg, but one produced by the Real Easter Egg Company, which contains a booklet sharing the true story of Easter.
Eleri Dutton, the current leader, and the helpers are all volunteers – mostly retired – who serve with the encouragement and support of Pastor Ndlovu. Each session ends with a group sing-along of children’s favourite nursery rhymes and other fun songs. This has been greatly enriched by Yvonne, the group's youngest volunteer, and her toy monkey!
Young and old alike, the group is determined to keep the doors open and welcome a new generation of the Crieff community.
Crieff Church celebrates the success of ten years of the Bumps to Tots toddler group, a community initiative that supports local families with young children.
The Crieff Bumps to Tots community children’s project began just after Easter in 2015. It was the brainchild of Muriel Logan and the then Crieff pastor, Marcel Ghioalda. Right from the start, the philosophy was to look after the mums as well as giving the little ones fun in a caring atmosphere, recognising the stresses that many young families can experience.
In the beginning, there were just 10-15 mums in the church hall, but now it is not uncommon to have 40 children and an assortment of mums, dads, grandparents, childminders, and a couple of foster carers. They often comment on how much they appreciate the group and say that it is one of the high spots of the week.
The group is very well thought of locally, and after the Covid pandemic necessitated a break, the local Early Years team contacted the then leader, Mo Keough, to ask if there was anything they could do to help the group reopen, as they saw Bumps to Tots making a significant contribution to the mental health of the young families in Crieff.
One of the mums recently told the local pastor, Njabulo Ndlovu, that she had been coming to the group for nearly the entire ten years. She said that her first daughter absolutely loved it and still has fond memories of playing with the various toys, doing crafts, playing with sand, water and water beads, and even riding a scooter. When she had her second child, she was glad to hear that the group was still running every Monday morning. She said, “It is a great space for the little ones to socialise with other children, learn and develop, and also have some fun.” She added, “For parents, it's been a great place to meet and have some adult conversations.”
Each Easter, the volunteers at Bumps to Tots give the children a special gift from the church – an Easter egg. This is no ordinary Easter egg, but one produced by the Real Easter Egg Company, which contains a booklet sharing the true story of Easter.
Eleri Dutton, the current leader, and the helpers are all volunteers – mostly retired – who serve with the encouragement and support of Pastor Ndlovu. Each session ends with a group sing-along of children’s favourite nursery rhymes and other fun songs. This has been greatly enriched by Yvonne, the group's youngest volunteer, and her toy monkey!
Young and old alike, the group is determined to keep the doors open and welcome a new generation of the Crieff community.
