Flynn’s Tuneful Chatter Story

Tuneful Chatter is a joyful, vibrant programme of movement, music and play for Doncaster 0-5-year-olds and their parents/carers. It is designed to develop the social, emotional and communication skills that provide the foundation for children to learn, grow and thrive in and beyond school.

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Helena and Flynn’s Tuneful Chatter Story

Flynn first came to Tuneful Chatter aged three with his mum, Helena, in January 2023. Helena told us that when Flynn was around two years old, she noticed a change in his communication ability. He became much shyer and found interaction with others his own age really challenging. It was at this point that Helena noticed difficulties around Flynn’s communication and began to do all she could to support Flynn to overcome these challenges.

“He has difficulties with communication and some sensory need, so since then he has been referred for a GDA (General Development Assessment)… so we are exploring whether Flynn is perhaps Autistic or not.”

Coming out of his shell

Initially, when they first came to Tuneful Chatter, Flynn found sessions daunting, and socialising with other children was difficult, but as the weeks went on Tuneful Chatter became something he looked forward to and he built up the courage to tackle social situations.

It’s about exposing him to social situations that he finds hard, because that’s real life. And this is not daunting… it’s overcoming that barrier for Flynn. For his personal development, it’s been brilliant for that.

Tuneful Chatter, like all of darts’ programmes, is always participant-led. This means that the artist’s delivery of sessions is guided by the participant, providing a space and safe environment for participants to take part in the session in the way that best suits their needs. Helena recognised that, with Flynn facing additional difficulties in interaction, this open, accessible style of delivery encouraging him to grow and thrive, taking Tuneful Chatter sessions at his own pace and exploring the activities that he could best connect with.

For us, the biggest thing that has helped with that, for Flynn, is the fact that staff have been really understanding that he is developing a little differently to others, and they’re giving him that space… It has just been really welcoming and lovely.

Your support can make a difference:

• A £10 donation could pay for a child to attend a Tuneful Chatter session, accessing creative activity that responds to their additional needs

• By donating £25, you could support the training of a specialist artist to deliver sessions that cater for children with additional needs

• £70 could pay for hire of the studio, providing a fully-accessible creative space where children can learn and thrive

Donate here and support children like Flynn access inspiring creative activities across Doncaster

To find out more about participating in Tuneful Chatter, head over to the Tuneful Chatter webpage or get in touch with Sophie@wearedarts.org.uk.