Information for parents/carers

Family Support

Sometimes in life there may be times when you may need some professional advice, guidance and support to deal with situations that come up, such as becoming a new mum, looking for a new job, managing your finance, coping with the stress of a break up or bereavement, help with setting boundaries, help with looking and applying for nursery placements, including 2 years funded place and support with understanding your child’s development.

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 What we offer:

• Parenting group sessions for parents needing support and strategies to manage their children’s behaviour

• One to one personalised parenting support can be offered to parents needing immediate help and support for themselves and their children

• Home visits are an important aspect of our work as it helps us to get to know you and your family better in your own environment

• We can refer you to additional services if you need specialist support for yourself or your child

We work with charities that can provide you with essential resources for your home such as

• cots, beds, fridge, toys or prams (this is based on your eligibility)

• Bookstart corner home visits as part of our outreach to families. We can help you with being confident in supporting your children’s development in reading and mark making

• Baby massage for mums and dads coping with postnatal stress

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Our Policies and Procedures

In order to make sure that our services for families are safe, healthy, good quality and meet everyone’s needs, we have developed a set of relevant policies and procedures which provide information about what we aim to achieve in our work with families and how we will work to achieve our aims. You are welcome to read all of our policies and procedures. Please see the link below:

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Safeguarding children and families:

The Centre fully recognises the contribution that it must make in protecting, supporting and promoting the welfare of children. The staff team is committed to ensuring that children are safe, that Child Protection practice is effective and that procedures are followed. The staff will make every attempt possible to ensure that children are safe from abuse or harm during their time at the centre and will be vigilant in their observations of children who may be exhibiting signs or symptoms of harm.

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Information about registration

online registration form

why we collect information, link to privacy notice (if they want to know more about what we do with their information).

What to expect when they attend our centres, link to our zero-tolerance policy

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Universal provision 

Our Children and Family Centres offer a number of universal services to families with children under five years old, in partnership with several other local agencies and organizations.       Here is a description of the universal services available for families in our area. All the sessions below are drop is so no booking is required.

• Stay and Play Sessions provide high quality and stimulating activities, in an informal and relaxing environment, for children aged 0-5. Activities are based on child initiated play both indoors and outdoors and they encourage interaction between adults and children. These sessions are also a great opportunity to meet other parents/cares, share experience and learn about other activities available for families in the area. Sessions are run by qualified staff and supported by local practitioners such as Speech and Language Therapists, Health professionals, Dieticians, etc.

• Baby Group provides fun and stimulating activities in an informal and relaxing environment for babies up to 12 months. Activities include sensory play, song and rhymes, heuristic play. These sessions are also a great opportunity to share experience with other parents/carers and to meet local practitioners in order to discuss issues related to baby development including weaning and breastfeeding.

• Music and Movement is a fun packed, dynamic, interactive sessions for children aged 0 -5. A great chance for parents/carers and children to sing and learn new nursery, rhymes, action songs and explore and play with musical instruments.

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Adult education & learning 

Here below courses for parents/carers which need to be booked in advance. We provide free crèches for families with children aged 6 months to 5 years attending our classes.

• ESOL Courses: we provide free yearly English classes in three of our centres, for families who have English as additional language. Beginners and Intermediate levels are available. Participants will have also the possibility to obtain a recognised qualification and progress to a higher level class.

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Classes are run in partnership with Romain Designs, Lewisham and Southwark College.

• Teaching Assistant Course, Level 1 and 2: for parents/carers who want to gain the knowledge needed to work as Teaching Assistant in a primary or secondary school. Classes are run in partnership with Romain Designs.

• Adult Education Classes: we offer a number of classes for parents/cares who want to improve their skills for personal development or for gaining new skills which might allow them to go back to work. Classes include: Sewing and Arts and Crafts, Literacy and Math, ICT and Computer Skills.

• Schemas:  Parental workshop sessions exploring child development through the lens of schemas. Come and find out how children’s repeated patterns of play help them to explore and understand the world around them. 

• Baby massage: What better way to bond with your baby than baby massage sessions. Our classes are run on a friendly and informal basis, giving parents the opportunity to learn the principles of developmental baby massage in a relaxed and sociable environment where lasting friendships are often made.

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Click here to view Timetable