Barleyfields Children's Centre

Parent/Carer Support

As a family you may need to know about antenatal and post natal care; breastfeeding support; parent and toddler groups; childminders; pre-schools and other early year’s settings. You may have worries about your child’s sleeping patterns; feeding; and behaviour problems.

Barleyfields Children's Centre can support you in the everyday challenges that parents face in bringing up young children. The Children’s Centre is a one-stop shop for information and support. This support is open to anyone caring for children under the age of 5 years - mums, dads, step-parents, carers, grandparents.

5 A Day Parenting Tips (136KB) 

Just found out you are pregnant? It is important to get in touch with a midwife, your GP or family planning advisor as soon as possible.  Seeing someone early in your pregnancy has many health benefits for you and your baby.  You can book a midwife appointment by phoning the midwife team at Lister Hospital - 07920 542412.

NHS Hertfordshire recommend that, during pregnancy, you follow these simple steps:

• Take 400 micrograms of folic acid once a day to help reduce the risk of Spina Bifida
• Avoid drinking alcohol
• If taking medication, seek medical advice
• Stop smoking (help and advice is available from the Hertfordshire Stop Smoking Service 0800 389 3998)
• Have a flu vaccination

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       Breastfeeding Leaflet (153KB)                        Our Family Outreach Worker - what we can offer (125KB)

Barleyfields Children's Centre provides universal parenting support through groups, activities and events. Details of forthcoming parenting workshops and courses are on the Special Events page.

Family Lives is a national charity that works to offer help and support through an innovative range of free, flexible, responsive services - shaped by parents for parents. Families come in all shapes and sizes, and Family Lives services are designed to help anyone caring for a child. We know that parents want to do the best they can for their children, but sometimes family life can be challenging and difficult. There is after all, no one right way to parent. By talking to Family Lives on 0808 800 222, browsing their website www.familylives.org.uk families can contact Family Lives free about anything that is worrying them.

Dads Matter

Dads (whether biological dads, step-dads, dads living with or away from their children, grandads or any other father figure) of all ages and from all backgrounds are extremely important to children, their well-being and happiness. At Barleyfields Children's Centre we recognise that early years services often appear to be focused on mums, and that dads can therefore feel left out.

Research shows that positive fathering helps children to develop:

• better friendships
• fewer behavioural problems
• better results at school
• higher self esteem and life satisfaction
• more satisfying adult relationships

We would like to reassure you that dads are welcome at all of our groups, sessions and courses and we also run Saturday Dads once a month at Stepping Stone Pre-school in Knebworth. If you would like to get more involved with the Children's Centre or you have ideas about how we can support dads more effectively, please let us know.

The Dad Talk website is an exciting social network site championing fatherhood in the UK. It has news, a forum, child development articles and information on a whole range of issues such as Why Dads Matter, Child Safety, Finance, Fun for Dads and Kids and Work-life Balance. - www.dadtalk.co.uk

Parent Forum

The last Parent Forum took place on 7 November 2011 Notes of Parent Forum 7 November 2011 (127KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 21 June 2011 (144KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 16 March 2011 (117KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 17 November 2010 (133KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 20 July 10 (134KB)

The "Swap Shop" notice board has been renamed Hand Me Down Heaven. If you have any baby clothes, toys or equipment that you no longer want or need you can offer your "nearly new" items to other Barleyfields parents. Further information is contained in the flyer attached, and forms can be downloaded here or are available from the Children's Centre office.

Hand Me Down Heaven information (233KB)

Hand Me Down Heaven form (144KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 25 March 10 (134KB)

Notes of Parent Forum 24 Nov 09 (125KB)

Following on from discussions at the Forum, Barleyfields Children's Centre will be providing information about upcoming community events. These will be included on the "What's on" page of the website and also be in a monthly community events newsletter which will be distributed by email.

If you would like to receive this community events newsletter, please email us on barleyfields@pre-school.org.uk to confirm that you would like your email address added to the distribution list.

Further information and the form to register events are contained in the

Community Events Protocol (36KB)

The promotion of events and activities does not indicate an endorsement of such events or activities by Barleyfields Children's Centre.

We are putting together a list of local "Baby Friendly" places. Would you like to let us know of places that welcome you and your little ones? We would welcome parent feedback about positive experiences.

baby friendly places form (133KB)

Perhaps you would you like to help with coordinating the "Baby Friendly" list? If so, please let us know.

Dates of future Parent Forum meetings in 2012:
Tuesday 13 March 2012 9.30 am - 11.30 am

The Forum provides an opportunity for parents of children from 0-5 years to be involved with Barleyfields Children's Centre, express opinions and shape services. You are welcome to bring your children to these informal meetings - there are plenty of toys for children to play with.

Please let us know if you would like to come to the Parent Forum. You may also wish to put forward ideas of items for discussion.

If you are unable to attend, you are very welcome to contact us and we will put you in touch with one of the parent representatives on the Children's Centre Advisory Group. They will be able to bring your views and comments to the Parent Forum on your behalf. Just call the Children's Centre and we will arrange for one of the Parent Representatives to contact you.

Early Support provides information, guidance and resources for families or carers of disabled children and practitioners who work with them. Early Support is based on the principle that working together is the key to providing the best care and
support for disabled children.

Further information on Early Support together with materials and resources is available on the website http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/healthandwellbeing/ahdc/earlysupport

The first edition of HAND news as an eNewsletter has now been published and is sent to all parents on the HAND database. This contains news and information for parents and carers of children and young people with additional needs. You can access the newsletter using the link http://handnews.hertscc.gov.uk

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader 5 or a higher version to open PDF files.

If you don't already have Acrobat Reader you can download it free from Adobe's web site.