Family support
We can offer you family support in a variety of ways, sometimes it is just about getting out of the house and meeting new people to socialise whilst your child is learning new skills and becoming school ready. However now and again we all need a little extra support as a child’s early years are critical to their future.
The five years between birth and school are vital for a child’s development. What goes on inside a family strongly determines the opportunities and life chances children have.
Children who are raised in a stable, loving, family environment are more likely to have a positive and healthy future. Home Start will offer help to families with young children deal with the challenges they face. They support parents as they learn to cope, improve their confidence and build better lives for their children as all children deserve the best start in life.
Home Start deliver a variety of services to support families these are -
Referral based family support
This service is provided for families resident within the Staffordshire Moorlands borough with at least one child aged 0-5 years. Generally the support is provided in the home, although Family Support can be provided in group sessions, for example parenting classes.
Families maybe struggling with post-natal depression, isolation, physical health problems, bereavement and many other issues receive the support of a volunteer who will spend around two hours a week in a family’s home supporting them in the ways they need.
Proactive home visits
Two Proactive Home Visits are provided or eligible families when their children are 5-8 months and 13-22 months. These visits are to provide information, advice and guidance and any help that is needed to access services.
Bookstart
This is a learning and literacy programme for babies and children and is designed to encourage parents to share stories and rhymes with their children, especially those who, through lack of confidence or other reasons, find it difficult to read with their child/children.
Volunteering with Home-Start
Home-Start Staffordshire Moorlands is part of the national network of Home-Start schemes. We recruit and train volunteers to help families with young children. Our volunteers, who know about being a parent, support other parents by visiting them in their own homes for a couple of hours each week.
Our home-visiting volunteers all undertake training on our 6-8 week Course of Preparation before being matched with a family. Volunteers all undertake DBS clearance and references are sought. Volunteering with Home-Start can provide great benefits to the volunteer as well as to the family supported - knowing you have helped someone; boosting self-esteem and confidence or even a foot on the ladder towards a job or further education.
To find out more visit the Home-Start Staffordshire Moorlands website, or the national Home-Start website.
Contact us
To find out more about what Home Start can do to support you visit their website, contact them on 01538 387231 or email homestartsm@org.co.uk.