Monday
Today was my day off so I took my wife Val, and my two boys, Ruben, five months and Isaac, three years, to visit their grandparents in sunny Grimsby.
Tuesday
After breakfast I drove to the office in Hull and spent the first hour dealing with the post and telephone messages. I contacted the university students who will be doing work placements with the social inclusion team later this year, and called the security department at HMP Everthorpe to check that a volunteer's clearance had come through.
A quick coffee break and I set off to attend the Gypsy and Traveller meeting at the local community centre, where we discussed the possibility of providing a minibus as a mobile play area for local sites. Afterwards, I visited a local site in Hull which is squeezed into a piece of unwanted land on an industrial estate next to a smelly tannery. Although the facilities were primitive, I was impressed by the care taken to keep the site clean and safe. The community living there are tired of waiting for improvements, and I felt frustrated that I couldn't do more.
In the afternoon I supervised a play session at Hull prison for children visiting relatives or family friends. It was quite hectic as there were more than 20 children aged between two and 14.
Wednesday
Today was Dad's Day at Everthorpe prison. This is where the Humber Pre-school Learning Alliance works in partnership with the prison to allow fathers to spend the day with their children, under our supervision. We set out the Visit Hall with loads of different art activities and games and the children flocked in at 10am.
Within half an hour, children and dads were playing happily together, so the other playleaders and volunteers and I helped out with the creative activities and made sure the hall was safe.
After lunch - where each family eats at a separate table - we all went to the prison gym to take part in ball games. One of the inmates asked if we did any rope ladder games!
Thursday
After a brief visit to the office, I drove to Hull prison for a meeting with the Project Support Group to discuss developments for the play area.
We talked about the impact the prison expansion will have on visits and found out we might have to provide more sessions, even though we already open every day, seven afternoons a week.
I ate in the staff mess, and then helped set up the room with play activities. We only had 12 children today, but eight of these were aged under three, so I seemed to spend the whole afternoon picking things up off the floor and keeping things safe. The volunteer had fun with the salad spinner, paper plates and paints.
Friday
I had an easy morning interviewing a prospective volunteer over a coffee.
The induction usually takes about an hour and a half, but today it took nearly three hours! I left the bar buzzing after three cups of coffee.
I had to drive to Everthorpe prison to help the playleader, as the volunteer cancelled at the last minute. We had a strange afternoon because only three children turned up - we never know how many to expect - so we set to work tidying the cupboards and changing the display.
I spent the early evening with my boys in the park at the adventure playground, and went home for pancakes.
Saturday
After an early lunch, Val and I set off to Doncaster to run a session at Moorland prison for visiting children. Val is also a volunteer who works for the Humber Pre-School Learning Alliance.
It was a fun afternoon. The children at the prison were pleased to see us.
It was one family's last visit, as their dad was due to be released next week. Although they were excited, they were worried about adjusting to their routine at home and concerned that if he doesn't find work, he might re-offend.
Sunday
After lunch I went to Hull prison with a volunteer and enjoyed an afternoon playing Ludo, Uno and hopscotch. I think I'm the noisiest person in the prison. Val and I went to the cinema in the evening, after Isaac had gone to bed. Looking forward to my day off tomorrow! NW
