A ‘big family’ is to get even bigger as a pioneering community centre expands.

Slaithwaite’s Waves day care centre is to double in size so that more adults with learning difficulties join them, thanks to a boom in popularity.

Nestled in an unassuming single storey mill building in Upper Mills, Waves has been making just those across the whole area since it was opened up in 2010.

Four years later, they are almost ready to open a new adjoining weaving shed space which will be unveiled on January 22.

Its founders hope the extra facilities on offer will be a big boost to their members and help them to gain more independence than ever before.

Currently 76 members use money from their benefits to go to Waves’ state-of-the-art centre where they can find dozens of activities and opportunities.

They travel from all over Kirklees and now even Oldham and Manchester,

From this month a jacuzzi, massage room, beauty parlour staffed by outside professionals and trendy restaurant are just some of the boutique services that will be on offer, alongside a large sensory space in a bright, airy room for those adults with more severe needs.

It is part of an on-going dream come true for Waves founder Sallyanne Green, who left her role working with disabled students at Kirklees College when she realised nothing like the Waves centre existed in this area.

She has put her whole house on the line to help finance the massive £250,000 project, which also received funding from the government’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee Loan scheme. Sallyanne said: “Why shouldn’t our members have these facilities?

“The whole aim of what we do at Waves is to allow members to live as normal a life as everyone else in society.

“If we can go on spa days and get pampered then I think that’s exactly the sort of thing we should be offering here.”

One of the most empowering aspects to both the new and established buildings that Sally Anne and her team of more than 20 staff highlight is that many of the facilities on offer are designed to be run by the members themselves.

Aged from 16 to 65, they are encouraged to take on job roles to help the centre run from day to day.

Members currently man the reception, help cook lunch and look after the animals and crops housed on the land at the back of site .

But with the new building, members will take on roles such as spa attendant and due to the addition of the new kitchen will be able to turn the original one into their own enterprise.

This will be joined by another venture, which could see them selling crafts and other items that they currently create.

The small bungalow found in the middle of the first building will be turned into a shop selling the centre’s own produce, which will allow everyone to learn how to shop for themselves.

And the increase in space will also allow Waves to dedicate a place for teaching which will help members get qualifications to help them to live on their own.

Member Ruth Skelton, 26, who has been given the job of the spa attendant, said: “Waves has given me the opportunity to go on work placements, something I’d never had the chance to do before – it’s great.”

Other members have already been found placements in the community, which has welcomed them with open arms.

Sallyanne said: “We could not have picked a better place to move as 70% of businesses in the village now take one to two of our members, which is wonderful.

“We started off with seven members and had one paid member of staff. I never imagined that we would grow so big and the response has been overwhelming.

“We’re now looking forward to getting more members and have hired four extra staff, which is just fantastic.

“The centre is so important because it relieves the pressure on families – and some of them have never had a day to themselves before their child comes here since they were born.

“We also take members on holiday to give them time with other family members and friends and offer respite in a cottage nearby.

“We hope that we’ll be able to offer even more of this when we expand it in the near future.”

It is not the only further expansion Sally Anne has in mind.

“We may have finished building number two but we are always thinking about how to improve,” she added. “Because we’re taking on more people from Oldham and Manchester it’s possible that our next site may be there and we listen to what our members want.

“They are on a committee that makes the decisions – so what we do is up to them.

“It fits in with our core aim which is to ensure that everyone who comes to us feels valued.

“After all, we see ourselves as just one big, loving family.”