How to get help from Home-Start
All parents struggle at one time or another. For some, the challenges can be greater. You are not alone.
Support from Home-Start
If you are a Mum, Dad or carer with a child under five, and are finding things tough at the moment, you can ask for free help. Our volunteers help parents going through difficult times such as:
- Loneliness and Isolation
- Relationship Difficulties
- Coping with Twins, Triplets or Several Pre-School Children
- Ill Health, Disability or Special Needs
- Lone Parenting
- First-time Parenthood or New Babies
- Postnatal Illness
- Children’s Behavioural Problems
Our support is confidential and personal information about you and your family will not be disclosed to anyone outside of Home-Start without your consent, except where there is a concern about the safety or welfare of a child. You choose whether to accept Home-Start support and can change your mind at any time. A volunteer will only visit at your invitation.
We will match you with a volunteer who will visit you regularly, normally once a week, and offer:
- Understanding that when bringing up children, problems are not unusual
- Reassurance that you are not alone
- A listening ear and a shoulder to cry on
- An extra pair of hands to help you cope with everyday situations
- Practical help with activities like playing or story time.
- Friendly Support through difficult times for as long as you need support (up to a year)
Our volunteers are people from different backgrounds and vary in age, but all have some parenting experience and will visit you in your home. They are carefully selected for their friendliness, practical approach and understanding and will have all attended a rigorous course of preparation and background checks before visiting.
How to get help
Home-Start support is completely free, you do not have to pay for any of our support and it is entirely voluntary. It might be suggested to you by a health visitor, a doctor or another professional but it is entirely up to you if you want to work with Home-Start.
We are very experienced in matching families with volunteers who we think will understand your situation and be able to work with you. If either you or the volunteer is not happy you can end the relationship and try another match.
All of our support is confidential. You don’t have to tell anyone that you are being supported by Home-Start, and we will never tell anyone else unless you say that we can.
How to apply
Please check eligabilty by reviewing our Referral Criteria document below. This can be viewed online. Depending on whether you are self referring or a professional referrer please choose one of the referral forms below and send it to is. One of the forms is editable if you use MS Word, the other can be printed and filled in.
Home-Start Orkney groups
Not all of our support and work happens in the family home. When that’s not right for a family, or where we are helping to address isolation and loneliness, create wider network and connections, building relationships and confidence, our groups are often a great way to get the help you need in the right environment. It is possible to receive support at home and in a group, start with a group and transition to home support or use a group as a transition period as home support reaches a conclusion.
Family Groups
We offer Group Support for all families referred to Home-Start Orkney, and they can be referred for just this service. Group Support is offered at various locations and follows a planned programme of activities.
It is run every Wednesday from 10:00am to 11:30am. If you are interested in attending please contact us through our contact us page.
Orkney Breastfeeding Library and Peer Support
We’re delighted to remind expectant and current parents that we operate the Orkney Breastfeeding Library, which has a range of products and books for borrowing.
The NHS Orkney Breastfeeding Peer Support service is well established, and with two of our staff team also trained to provide this support to families referred to our service through our complementary Breast Buddies project, we are delighted that the Library can be made available to all families in Orkney.
Details of what is included are outlined in the leaflet attached below. For further information, please contact either Sarah or Sadie.
Family Testimonials
“they helped me and my children socialise which was very important for our mental wellbeing”.
“Yes, I felt I belong to a group where I can joined with other mothers and kids were able to meet peoples too”.
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.