The WV Holiday Squad has become WV Virtual Squad during the coronavirus emergency – and is offering children, young people and families a huge range of online activities and events they can enjoy from the comfort of home this Easter.

They include arts and crafts, cooking, learning, wellbeing, sport, entertainment and music and are being offered by local organisations including the City of Wolverhampton Council, The Way Youth Zone, InPower Academy and WV Active, as well as national and international organisations including the BBC, Edinburgh Zoo and even NASA.

Full details of the activities and events which are on offer are available on the WV Virtual Squad website.More are being added all the time, so please check back regularly. Organisations which have online activities or events which they would like adding to WV Virtual Squad are asked to do so via the website as soon as possible.

The WV Virtual Squad will be in operation throughout the coronavirus emergency, not only providing opportunities for children and young people throughout the Easter holidays, but also in the weeks afterwards.

Councillor John Reynolds, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said: "Even in these most challenging of times, we are determined to give our children and young people opportunities to be active, to learn and have fun.

“With many children having to take an extended break from school and their friends because of coronavirus, we've decided to turn WV Holiday Squad into WV Virtual Squad.
 
"This Easter, the council and its partners won't be able to offer the hundreds of normal face to face and group activities and events for children and young people that we would have hoped to.

“Instead, we've been thinking hard about how the WV Squad could support children, young people and families who are staying at home for the foreseeable future because of the Government's social distancing measures to help tackle the spread of coronavirus.
 
"So we are delighted to bring you WV Virtual Squad, packed with ideas about how you can keep your children active, entertained and amused over Easter and in the weeks ahead. Please visit the website today where you’ll find plenty of 'virtual' on-line activities being offered by local organisations, as well as links to local and national educational resources which you can use to continue your child's learning journey while they are off school. 
 
"I would also urge any local providers which are offering activities that children and young people could enjoy online to make sure they submit details of them as soon as possible so they can become part of the WV Virtual Squad."

For more details, please visit #WV Virtual Squad 2020.

The latest information and guidance around coronavirus is available at GOV.UK and on the council’s own coronavirus pages at Coronavirus advice and information.  There’s lots of advice on how people can protect themselves and their families from coronavirus from the NHS at Advice for everyone - Coronavirus (COVID-19).