Gatherings

joyful child throwing autumn leaves in a playground

Our gatherings (listed below) are open to all who resonate with, or are curious about, what we are up to and would like to be part of a wider community. Gatherings may include play dates; workshops; meals; field trips; reflective events where we wonder about an interesting topic together; opportunities to refresh and recharge; and simply spending time in the park.

To enquire about any of the events, or to join the WhatsApp group, email atplayheap@gmail.com.

Upcoming Events:

Rewilding and nature connection at the Grange Project

30th June 2026, 10am till 3pm – book by 16th June!

We are visiting the Grange Project (https://grangeproject.co.uk/) and Wilder Connections (https://wilderconnections.charity/) (Monmouth NP25 5HW) to see their rewilding project and explore different invitations to connect with nature through a joyful, playful and collaborative approach. The day will be themed around growing/foraging for food, and looking after nature.

We have spaces remaining for 10 to 14 year olds, and a waiting list for 7 to 9 year olds. Please register your interest by email to atplayheap@gmail.com. We will then follow up to confirm your space, and will ask at that stage for information about any particular needs and support the Grange Project / Wilder Connections will need to know about (e.g. dietary needs, allergies, medical conditions, accessibility), and ask for your consent to pass your information to them to hold. We will also ask whether you consent to them taking photographs for their wider communications (such as their website or social media).

They will provide a simple lunch and snacks, and you are also welcome to bring your own.

Parents are welcome to join in the activities, or to make use of the co-working space.

Attending the day is free, but as a charity, they would welcome donations from families who have appreciated the experience.

Art by A- and Mama.

Lego satellite builder workshop

18th June 2026, 1pm-2.30pm

Location in Roath, confirmed upon booking

We will be welcoming students from the Cardiff University School of Physics and Astronomy for a Lego satellite builder space workshop. More info here: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/physics-astronomy/engagement/primary-schools. Advertised as being for junior school age, we hope this will suit the space enthusiasts as well as those with a less absorbed interest!

This session will be run by the team, but it is not a drop off; parents must remain on site and are responsible for their children at all times.

Email atplayheap@gmail.com to book.

Art in collaboration with Jetpack AI

Coding with AI

25th June 2026, 10.30am-12.30pm

Location in Roath, confirmed upon booking

We are gathering 10 intelligences – Richard (Lead Developer for Product Innovation at Wordwall), three Claude AIs and six kids – to vibe code a game together! You bring curiosity about coding, games and AI; we will provide devices and software, and a sense of the potential this tech presents and the safeguards needed.

This pilot session is free and open to people 10-14 years old.

This session will be run by the team, but it is not a drop off; parents must remain on site and are responsible for their children at all times.

Email atplayheap@gmail.com to book.

Art in collaboration with Gemini AI

Beginners Welsh Immersion Course

3rd & 4th August 2026
11am to 4.30pm
Mackintosh Sports Club, Roath

Booking link: https://www.ticketsource.com/home-ed-wales/welsh-immersion-course/e-xmbggx

At Play and Home Ed Wales are hosting the wonderful Stacey and Dafydd for a two-day beginners Welsh immersion course infused with music, stories, creativity and joy!

Aimed broadly at 7-14yo, but older/younger people welcome if it will work for them.

This session will be run by the tutors and our volunteers, but it is not a drop off; parents must remain on site and are responsible for their children at all times.

£56.50 per person (total price for the two days), so we can pay for the tutors and the venue, and provide tea/coffee/milk/biscuits.

Bring your own packed lunch.

We know different people need different practical support in order to be able to take part. We will engage sensitively, but please reach out if it would help to chat ahead of time.

Please also let us know of any particular needs or support required (e.g. dietary needs, allergies, medical conditions, accessibility).

Art by Stacey Blythe https://www.instagram.com/staceyblythecomposer

Wild Rhythm

We are excited to partner with Wild Rhythm (https://wildrhythm.co.uk/home) to spend two afternoons immersing in the rhythms of nature – see below for an overview of each session, taken from their website. You don’t need any special skills; just come and be! (Parents remain responsible for their children throughout.)

4th and 11th June 2026, 1.30-3/3.30pm, Roath Park, £18 per person (total price for the two sessions).

Email atplayheap@gmail.com to book.

THE SILENT DISCO OF NATURE’S HIDDEN SOUNDS

Explore the extraordinary world of sound with our Immersive Nature Sound Experiences. Using cutting-edge technology, we reveal the vibrant, unseen soundscapes of the natural world:

🌳 Hear Nature Sing: Experience the mesmerising music generated by plants and fungi using Plantwave technology. Hear the subtle electrical currents of trees and mushrooms transformed into captivating, real-time melodies.

🦗 The Tiny Orchestra: Listen to the delicate world of insects and organisms as if they were right beside you, using ultra-sensitive contact microphones placed on bark, leaves, and underground.

💦 Underwater Symphony: Plunge into the mysterious acoustic depths of ponds and rivers with a hydrophone. Discover the clicks, whooshes, and rumbles of the aquatic ‘underworld’ you never knew existed.

🎤 Be All Ears: Strategically placed Field microphones to amplify the subtle rustles of wind, the distant calls of birds, and the gentle movements of the ecosystem, bringing distant sounds closer to us.

It’s a multi-sensory journey where you become the listener to a private, silent concert—a profound and relaxing way to connect with nature’s sonic soundscapes.

CREATE MUSIC WITH NATURE

Our Rhythm Workshops invite you to become a musician using the natural world as your instrument. This is where innovation meets inspiration!

The Nature Synthesiser: Get hands-on with innovative devices like Playtronica and TouchMe. Learn to connect these tools to fruits, water, plants, and other conductive natural objects, transforming them into expressive, responsive musical instruments.

⚡ High-Energy Connection: Experience the powerful, unifying effect of collective drumming. These sessions are designed to be dynamic, joyful, and incredibly stress-relieving.

🌿 The Nature Orchestra: We incorporate natural elements and unconventional sounds alongside traditional drums to create a truly unique, organic soundscape—a spontaneous symphony reflecting the pulse of the wild.

All ages and abilities welcome – No musical experience required – Just a curiosity about sound!

Past events:

Riddle & Reason

Alternate Fridays – 6th and 20th March, 17th April, 1st and 15th May 2026 – 2pm to 3.30pm – Whitchurch, Cardiff

Join us as we continue to explore a play-based approach to intellectual pursuits – here, we play with maths as a beautiful and creative practice. Although we will develop maths skills and touch on topics that arise in typical maths curricula (Key Stages 2–4), this isn’t a maths lesson. Instead, the aim is to provide an enriching space that we hope will help participants to find the joy in maths and build their own individual relationship with it. We will explore ideas, follow our interest, and problem-solve together. There are no wrong answers, only invitations to curiosity and jumping-off points into new trains of thought.

This half term, the loose theme is arithmetic. There are only two sessions this half term and they will hang together, so we ask participants to sign up to both. We warmly invite you to bring your own ideas and questions too!

These sessions are for children who are curious and creative, and who can engage with puzzling things for approximately an hour. We have found that the sessions have been most engaging for 8–13 year olds, but please do not be put off if you have an interested young person outside that range.

We understand some bodies need to move to think, and other people will need other forms of support, and this will be happily accommodated. We have one designated quiet room.

Parents must be present. They are welcome to take part or not, as they and their kid(s) prefer!

To help us cover the cost of the building, we ask for a contribution in advance for the two sessions of £12 for the first child, £6 for the next sibling, and £2 for any further siblings – but please get in touch if this is difficult, as we would not like cost to prevent a child from attending.

Numbers are limited. New attendees can reach us by email on atplayheap@gmail.com for further information and to sign up.

Riddle and Reason 2

Alternate Fridays – 9^th January, 23^rd January and 6^th February 2026 – 2pm to 3.30pm – Whitchurch, Cardiff

Join us as we play with maths, engaging with it as a beautiful and creative practice – exploring ideas, following our interest, and problem-solving together. There are no wrong answers, only invitations to curiosity and jumping-off points into new trains of thought. Although we will develop maths skills and touch on topics that arise in typical maths curricula (Key Stages 2–4), this isn’t a maths lesson. Rather, we hope it will help participants to find the joy in maths and build their own individual relationship with it.

This half term, the loose theme is geometry. We will provide activities, and we warmly invite you to bring your own ideas and questions too!

These sessions are for children who are curious and creative, and who can engage for approximately an hour in interesting group conversation. We have found that the sessions have been most engaging for 9–13 year olds, but please do not be put off if you have an interested young person outside that range.

We understand some bodies need to move to think, and other people will need other forms of support, and this will be happily accommodated. If needed, we should be able to provide one designated quieter room.

Parents must be present in the building. They are not required to engage with the session, but are very welcome to.

To help us cover the cost of the building, we ask for a contribution per session of £6 for the first child, £3 for the next sibling, and £1 for any further siblings – but please get in touch if this is difficult, as we would not like cost to prevent a child from attending.

Numbers are limited. New attendees can reach us by email on atplayheap@gmail.com for further information and to sign up.

Riddle and Reason 1

Join us for a pilot run of Riddle & Reason – a club where we engage playfully with maths, logic and wider creative energies. There might be a place for workbooks and drills – but it isn’t here! Instead, we will play with ideas, problem-solve together, explore interesting concepts, and engage brains and bodies. There are no wrong answers, just invitations to curiosity and jumping-off points into new trains of thought … and there won’t even always be numbers!

These sessions are for children who are curious and creative, and who can engage for approximately an hour in interesting group conversation. (We understand some bodies need to move to think, and some kids will need other forms of support, and this will be happily accommodated.)

The pilot runs on Tuesdays 11th November, 25th November and 9th December, 2pm-4pm, in Roath, Cardiff. Parents will need to be present in the building, and are welcome to join in but need not be engaged in the session.

Spaces are very limited. Please sign up only if you can manage all three dates.

£10 per child (total for all three sessions) to cover resources.

Enquire by emailing atplayheap@gmail.com; please let us know your child’s age and any particular ways we can support them to access the group.

Let’s Make!

23rd October 2025 – 11.45am to 3pm (Scout hall, North Cardiff)

Join us from 11.45am if you’d like to eat lunch together (bring your own picnic) and have a play, and then from 12.30pm, get stuck in with one of our crafting spaces –

(weather permitting) use real woodworking tools to build owl/bird boxes or animal shapes;
create your own design with pyrography tools;
let your imagination run free on giant cardboard constructions using makedo tools (www.make.do);
build with Magna-Tiles.

Parents/carers remain responsible for their children at all times at this event. The woodworking and pyrography is open to kids aged 6+; kids must be accompanied by a parent/carer who can provide support as required. Makedo (cardboard construction) is suitable for kids aged 5+.

Spaces are limited. Please email atplayheap@gmail.com to sign up (and get more info about the location), specifying whether you’d like to work with wood or cardboard.

We do not want financial means to prevent anyone from joining us, but if you are able, we invite you to make a contribution of £3-6 per child (at your discretion) towards the costs of the day. Please bring cash.

Let’s Build!

25th September 2025 – 11.45am to 3pm (Scout hall, North Cardiff)

Join us from 11.45am for lunch (bring your own picnic) and a play, and then from 12.30pm, get stuck in with one of our building spaces – construct a pallet climbing frame using real woodworking tools, or let your imagination run free on giant cardboard constructions using makedo tools (www.make.do).

Parents/carers remain responsible for their children at all times at this event. The wood workshop is open to kids aged 6+; 6-8 year olds (and anyone else who needs the support) must be accompanied by a hands-on parent/carer. Makedo (cardboard construction) is suitable for kids aged 5+.

Spaces are limited. Please email atplayheap@gmail.com to sign up (and get more info about the location), specifying whether you’d like to work with wood or cardboard.