Bringing in the New Year at The Ranch

14/01/2025

Even the yellow warning for a storm the day before did not put off our Ranch families from gathering to bring in the New Year on the 2nd of January. A hundred and twenty young people braved the icy blasts and joined us to mark the start of 2025. We absolutely loved seeing everyone back.

Our holiday activities are a brilliant way of bringing together as many Southmead families as we can, to celebrate the world of playfulness that we stand for here at The Ranch. And this get-together was no exception. As well as the spread of outside play across our two-acres – including the pirate ship, zip lines, trampoline, and bike track – we also added some extra sparkle by inviting our partners from across the City to put on activities. Jess held a calming clay session in our art studio, Rob held an electric guitar workshop, and Steve took parents and young people out into Badock’s Wood to forage for food to cook on The Ranch firepit.

As always at The Ranch, the food at this celebration was a highlight. And, as always, the wonderful cooks from Travelling Kitchen produced fantastic homemade delights; everyone was treated to lasagne, with some young people taking more away for their families to enjoy at home. Steve treated us to foraged mushrooms, and apples roasted over the firepit, and, of course, where there is an open fire there must be marshmallows on sticks and those went down very well! At the end of the day, as the light faded, and the flames flickered, we reflected on how important it is to brighten-up this dark point of the year together, and to look forward to new leaves on the trees and warmer weather.

In 2025 we have so much to look forward to including a site facelift with new murals, and the official reopening of our music studio. We will also start to add some ‘lose parts’ which will include pipes, planks, pallets, and other ‘real-world’ objects important for creative play, exploration, and discovery.

Our Ranch Family group will start up again so that parents and carers can continue to have a say in how we develop things at The Ranch; so many of them spent their own childhoods here and their views are vital. Our volunteers are also vital, and we sincerely thank them all for their hard work in 2024 and beyond. This year we will also be encouraging our roster of Young Leaders and Post 16 volunteers alongside our adults. If you can volunteer to help us out we would love to hear from you, just get in touch via the details below or pop into The Ranch to chat with any of our amazing team.

Contact: Matt Caldwell, Manager The Ranch, email: mattcaldwell@southmead.org, tel: 0117 950 3335.