Parenting Support

• Midwifery appointments - Midwifery appointments are very flexible and tailored to you and your pregnancy needs. The midwife will review your physical and mental well being at every antenatal appointment. Information and education will be provided at every appointment relevant to your gestation period.
• Aqua Natal sessions – are provided by Midwifery services. These are Water based exercise specially designed for pregnant women, with the aim to keep you fit alongside numerous health benefits for your pregnancy. Available to all women during their pregnancy at a variety of locations. Free with Everyone Active gym/classes membership. Contact your midwife to find out more!
• Health Visitor antenatal appointment - This is the first contact with your health visitor who will contact you between 28 and 40 weeks of your pregnancy so you can get to know each other, explain what you can expect from the health visiting service & determine any needs you and your family may have whilst you also providing you with some public health information relating to having a new baby.
• HENRY – preparation for parenthood sessions - Provides a practical opportunity to support parents to be, preparing for life with a new baby, including preparation for birth, caring, bonding and the early feeding of your baby. Currently these are by invitation only to first-time-parents or those with vulnerabilities. You will be invited by your Health Visitor if you are eligible.
• Stop Smoking Service - If you smoke and are pregnant you will be offered one-to-one support and a range of Nicotine Replacement products to help you quit. You will be supported throughout your pregnancy and beyond at a time and in a place to suit you.
• Teenage Pregnancy Support - A health visitor will make contact with you during your pregnancy to provide additional support if needed. The health visitor will contact you monthly until the birth of your baby and after the birth, they will continue the regular support as needed.  The health visitor works alongside your midwife in jointly providing support.
• Healthy Lifestyle Clinic - All women with a BMI of over 40 at booking will be invited to the Healthy Lifestyle Clinic. Working together with a Midwife and a Dietician, we will support you to reduce the risk factors associated with raised BMI and pregnancy.
• Walk and Talk sessions – Providing gentle, outdoor exercise and a chance to connect with other mothers from the area. We welcome all women and birthing people to attend these walks led by a qualified Maternity Support Worker any time during their pregnancy or in the weeks following birth.

• Health Visitor Drop In clinics in Family Hubs – After the first 2 weeks, your baby should be weighed: no more than once a month up to 6 months of age, no more than once every 2 months from 6 to 12 months of age, no more than once every 3 months over the age of 1. Your baby will usually only be weighed more often than this if you ask for it or if there are concerns about their health or growth.
  • development and behaviour
  • good sleeping habits
  • feeding your child – breast milk, formula, solids, healthy eating
  • coping with minor illnesses
  • managing a crying baby
  • immunisations
  • toileting
  • any other concerns you have about your child, yourself, or your family.
• New Parents Group - An open access group for new parents, held in our Family Hubs who have recently had a baby, with opportunities to play, explore and learn.  Support and discussion around baby’s brain development, sensory play, sleep, routines and general advice and guidance is available. A chance to chat with other new parents. This session is available from new-born until they become mobile.
• Little Explorers - This session is aimed at children under five years, to provide active play opportunities for families using our family hub space to play, explore and learn, and meet other families from your local area.
• HENRY Starting Solids – Introducing solid foods at six months. Come to a Starting Solids workshop to help you get your baby off to a great start. The workshop will help you decide when your baby is ready to try solid food, what foods to start with, when your baby is hungry and when they’ve had enough; and how to make mealtimes an enjoyable experience for both of you.
• PORTAGE family group - Portage groups offer support to children with complex special educational needs and their families. This includes arranging assessments with other professionals and setting targets to improve outcomes and make learning easier. The groups are ran by a team of Early Years SEND practitioners who are fully qualified childcare and portage professionals and who can offer a key-working service to coordinate services and support for the family. These groups are by invitation only through a referral made by your Health Visitor.
• Early Years Parenting Support (0-5 year olds) – support and information is provided by Family Hub practitioners, to help parents feel more confident in parenting including topics such as regarding routines and boundaries. These sessions are by invitation only through a referral made by your Health Visitor or other appropriate practitioner such as nursery.
• Parenting 1:1 support delivered by your health visiting team - Understanding Your Child’s Behaviour (using the Solihull Approach) is a parenting intervention for any parent with a child between the ages of 0-5 years. This is offered as a 1 to 1 in your home. You will be supported to identify personal goals and the strategies that will help you meet them (such as your child’s sleeping, feeding, toileting or behavioural difficulties) by reflecting on your relationship with your child and your child’s behaviour.
• Community Parent and Toddler groups as well as activities provided by the Library service, also provide parents with opportunities to get informal support from other parents and for their children to socialise and learn through play. You can find further information about community parent and toddler groups here: Parent and toddler groups

Online Course for parents – use password ‘lemontop’

• Understanding pregnancy, labour and birth
• Understanding your baby
• Understanding your child (0-19)
• Understanding your child with additional needs
• Understanding your teenager's brain

Online relationship support for parents – One Plus One programmes www.oneplusone.org.uk/parents

• You, Me and Baby too for new and expectant parents to explore this wonderful but also challenging time for a relationship
• Arguing Better – for parents still in a relationship who are experiencing some conflict
• Getting it Right for Children – for parents who are not in a relationship but are co-parenting and experiencing conflict