'It's about where we live' - Waterford kids create book about home, housing and community
Pictured at Killure Grove to launch 'Up the hill down the hill', a book about homes and communities by the children of Respond Waterford. All Photos: Joe Evans
Waterford children have created a a compelling book about home, community and housing.
'Up the hill, Down the hill' is a collection of children's stories, illustrations and artwork that detail their lives across different estates in Waterford.
The book is the result of a collaboration between Respond and Kids' Own Publishing Partnership. Respond is an organisation that provides community-based supports for families experiencing housing insecurity.
The project received funding through the YPCE (Young People, Children and Education) Arts Council.
Respond teamed up with the Sligo-based publisher Kids' Own to platform the children from their Early Learning and School Aged Care (ELSAC) and Family Support services. The book's origins begin in Summer 2024, when family support worker Niamh Flavin invited the children to take part in a one-week summer programme in Killure Grove Community Centre in John's Park. The children discovered new forms of expression, building constructions from straw and creating their own visions of home. The second week of the programme took place at Ard na Gleanna Community Centre in Tramore.
Project artist Maree Hensey and writers Mary Branley and Jo Holmwoods helped guide the children in the creative process.
As the kids write at the outset of the book: "We are all children who live in Waterford [in Respond housing]. Some of us have different traditions and different religions.
"Mostly our book is about [Respond] estates. A place with lots of houses and sometimes a green.
"It's about where we live. It's about children's creativity."
On Friday, April 11, the kids, along with their proud families, came to Killure Grove Community Centre to see the official launch of their book.
The project gives a voice to the children who are all too often referred to as figures in government press releases rather than as complex, three-dimensional people with dreams and hopes.
Their stories are a clear-eyed, unfiltered account of growing up under the shadow of the ongoing housing crisis. Many of the children have moved house multiple times in their short lives. Some of them live next door to their granny, while others have grandparents living as far away as Egypt, Czechia, Slovakia and Nigeria.
Community is what connects them, from Killure Grove to Carrigea Crescent and Ard an Ghleanna in Tramore. Throughout the book, the children detail their lives and their experiences living in Waterford.
At the launch, the children celebrated alongside their artistic collaborators from the community, Respond, and Kids' Own.
Niamh Randall, spokesperson for Respond said: "We are delighted to see the book come to life. The book represents all the children in their own special way, providing an outlet for them to share their stories and what they deem as important in their lives."
Niamh continued: "Thanks to Kids' Own for collaborating so closely with the children of Respond to bring this vision to life, and to The Arts Council for Young People, Children and Education Project Award for providing the funding for this project."
Lorna Kavanagh, Project Manager for Kids' Own, said: "We were delighted at Kids’ Own to collaborate with Respond Housing on ‘Up the Hill Down the Hill’ — a project that truly places children’s voices at its heart. The children’s creativity and their thoughtful reflections on home and community shine through every page, offering a moving and authentic insight into their lived experiences."
