Home-Start home visiting is all about building skills…
Home-based visiting is essential to the Home-Start approach, which relies on a more holistic, flexible, non-judgmental and caring approach. It can help children and young people develop positive social and emotional skills, and supports communities to come together. The families supported, like the Home-Start volunteers, come from a wide range of educational, cultural and financial backgrounds. Starting with home visiting allows H0me-Start to build trust and offer the support to enable families to build confidence in accessing further support in the community.
Families consistently tell us that having a volunteer walk with them, listen, and accompany them to groups has been life‑changing in reducing isolation and building confidence, all resulting in improved wellbeing. Volunteers also tell us how much supporting families improves their own wellbeing and sense of purpose.
Support is created by listening to families, their needs and designing a response of support individual to each family.
How will this happen?
The co-ordinator will visit you at home and together with you, create a tailored plan of support. If a volunteer is matched to support you then they will visit regularly (usually once a week for a couple of hours) and offer friendly support, providing both emotional and practical assistance to help you to make the changes you have identified that you want to happen. Everything is bespoke to your need.
“Knowing she would be visiting got me through those early weeks. She helped me forget about all my worries and anxieties for a while, which meant I could put them in perspective.”