Guest Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 A few questions! Do you get parents/childminders to complete a registration form for your stay and play sessions? What info do you ask them for? Do you evaluate your sessions or have to provide evidence of how the sessions are going/what is discussed? Also, does anyone have any ways they found particularly efective to get young parents along to a group? We are fnding it quite difficult as our HV's are extremely busy and obviously with data protection they can't hand over all their contact details. We have to liase with them to get bits posted out or to try and get permission from the parents for us to have their contact details and it's all very long winded! Trying posters etc but really hard to reach these young parents Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mundia Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 Hello there miss A. Im sure other wi be along soon, but yes in our stay and play we did register the parents/children, they were accessing our services and so had to complete registration. I joined my CC when it was new and just a hut and 3 staff. We felt like sales people for the first 3 months, we did leaflet drops in health centres, local shops, the mosque, library, colleges,basically anywhere where people might be. Your health visitors should be able to help encourage these young parents by giving you ideas about what services they might attend the center for (eg classes for example may bring them in?). It can really be drip drip to begn with with word of mouth being the best way to expand your numbers. Im sure the more experienced will be along with their ideas soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 That's good advice from Mundia, as always. Places where young Mums might be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyMaz Posted January 15, 2009 Share Posted January 15, 2009 Our Children's Centre has health visitor clinics on site so the manager can grab them whilst they're getting their babies weighed! Maz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marshie Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 A few questions! Do you get parents/childminders to complete a registration form for your stay and play sessions? What info do you ask them for? Do you evaluate your sessions or have to provide evidence of how the sessions are going/what is discussed? Also, does anyone have any ways they found particularly efective to get young parents along to a group? We are fnding it quite difficult as our HV's are extremely busy and obviously with data protection they can't hand over all their contact details. We have to liase with them to get bits posted out or to try and get permission from the parents for us to have their contact details and it's all very long winded! Trying posters etc but really hard to reach these young parents Hi Miss A we ask parents that come in for sessions or toy libriary all fill in regestration forms for one course then this forms a bank of forms when the parent accesses a group again we check phone numbers then write on oposite side of form the courses they are at and term so that we dont have to create more paperwork for example filling the same form out 5 times for different course. It not only saves trees but time of all concerned as well Marshie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 Hi Do you have an outreach worker within your centre? (or maybe you are the outreach worker?) Ours runs a 'young parents' group and she encourages them to come along to the stay and play sessions, in fact she encourages many of the families she sees during her outreach visits to come along. Mind you I think it takes time and patients for things to fall in to place. jx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 I am a Network Childminder who uses my local Children's Centre. We were invited to register via a newsletter sent to my home address. It said that if registered we would get gifts. We were given a backpack, which I use every day which has got the Children's Centre details on, a pen and a children's book. This seemed to encourage parents to register too, as alot of people attended on this day to register. We were also given information about the Children's Centre, such as Play and Stay sessions and training available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 We struggle too getting young parents into the children`s centre. Any ideas would be welcomed. I know of a Children`s Centre who`s young parents worker initially met up with young parents, outside the children`s centre first, at a coffee bar, then when a relationship of trust was established encouraged them to accompany her into the children`s centre. Things then grew from strength to strength. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Wolfie Posted January 17, 2009 Share Posted January 17, 2009 We struggle too getting young parents into the children`s centre. Any ideas would be welcomed. I know of a Children`s Centre who`s young parents worker initially met up with young parents, outside the children`s centre first, at a coffee bar, then when a relationship of trust was established encouraged them to accompany her into the children`s centre. Things then grew from strength to strength. I've also heard of this approach being very successful - getting out and about in the community, being a friendly face and developing relationships slowly that way seems to be a good way of making those important links. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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