Having Support
We know support has made a difference when:
- Parents themselves tell us they are better able to cope.
- We see positive changes in parents and children.
- We receive encouraging feedback from families and other support organisations.
Cancelling a visit
If you need to cancel a visit for any reason, please ring the office as soon as possible. If you’re worried about a message getting through out of hours, please text your Family & Volunteer Coordinator as soon as you know you can’t make the visit. If a member of your household has COVID symptoms, please let us know.
If you are cancelling a visit from your volunteer, we will try to get a message through to them to prevent them having a wasted journey.
It's not what I thought
If you’re receiving Home-Start support and you are unhappy or unsure about any aspect of Home-Start, please contact us to let us know.
The choice of whether to have Home-Start support stays with you – you can change your mind at any time. We will only visit on your invitation. If you accepted support but do not think it is helping or if you don’t need a volunteer anymore, ring your Family & Volunteer Coordinator and let them know – we will not be offended!
Testimonials
I feel that Home-Start helped me like no other service. They helped me with everything really. Physically, encouraging me to get out of the house and go places, mentally, listening to my problems and concerns, supporting me through some really hard times. I’m much more likely to speak to other people now whereas before I would not get involved.
Home-Start have been really helpful and supportive, without being judgemental. My mum had concerns that it would be like Social Services and that the family would be made to feel they were being monitored and assessed all the time. I said that there was none of this, just genuine care, and the advice I’ve (been) given has been priceless … Having Home-Start involvement meant I had someone to offload to when I needed it the most. I’m definitely more able to cope with family life now.
I found Home-Start really friendly and helpful. It’s not easy to ask for help, but I feel very lucky I was able to access Home-Start support.
(My Family Support Worker) was just a phone call away, she would know straight away if I was having a bad day with the kids, she would come in and put the kettle on and immediately start to calm things down.
The support, being listened to, not being judged, being able to offload to someone, to have that support from someone outside the family was really lovely to have that professionalism. Someone to help you find out the avenues to go down. It’s brilliant it really is. Thank you so much for the service!
Become a Home-Start Volunteer Today
Home-Start’s team of trained volunteers make sure a child’s early years count. By volunteering just a few hours each week you can transform the lives of young children and their parents in your community.