Thank you

We would like to say a huge ‘Thank you’ for all your support this year, believing in the work Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West do in your local community.

You may think ‘I’ve done nothing’ that your donation is not going to change the world, but we want you to know all donations and fundraising on behalf of Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West genuinely making a difference. The personal contribution of each and every individual and organisation makes as they support Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West through time, money or encouragement – is something we recognise and value highly. It means we can in turn give more to the families who need our support the most.

This year we have had lots of support from our local TSB in Gorgie Road and we would like to take this oppertunity to say Thank You!

If you would like to find out more about fundraising for Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West see our fundraising page or go straight to our Just Giving Page to make a donation.

If only they could talk …

On Tuesday I spent the morning at our ‘Fun to be One’ group listening to familiar stories of real helplessness; those times when your normally healthy, happy, beautiful baby won’t sleep, won’t eat and just won’t stop crying.

Times when you pace the floor…unsure of who to ask….what to do….just wishing they could tell you what was wrong.

Years ago we would have just popped round to mum or our neighbor, instead now we play google doctors and worry ourselves even more!

As our group discussed colds, bugs, teething and all the many things that can cause childhood illness one thing became apparent, a real nervousness of seeking help, of looking like you can’t cope or causing a fuss over nothing. Discussing this further with some of our home support families many didn’t know where to access help and were worried about information sharing.

“I feel so useless when she just won’t stop screaming and I don’t know what medicines I can give her”

“I haven’t got any family support, I’m on my own all the time and if I get it wrong there’s only me to blame, I hate the doctors thinking I can’t cope”

No one knows your baby better than you and if you are worried then the best possible thing to do is get some good advice. It is a misconception in our society that parents should just automatically know everything about how to be a parent! We take tests before we drive, study for years to earn professional degrees… why is parenting any different?

Because of this, it’s incredibly important that all parents realize it’s OKAY to ask for help! In fact, when you ask for help you are taking a huge step toward becoming a stronger, happier parent and getting the right support for you and your little one. Medical professionals are trained and willing to help with all concerns you have and would always rather you asked for help.

There are a range of health resources available including,

Your own GP and Midwife – will often have emergency appointments available

NHS 24 offers a free call service for any medical concerns – call 111 or have a look at their website http://www.nhs24.com for on online non-emergency enquiry service

Minor Ailments – your own local pharmacy can now give basic advice and medicine for common illnesses

And if it is a serious accident or your baby becomes very unwell call 999

We’re all qualified to do good

Seán Callery works in the communications team at the Law Society of Scotland and recently spent a day volunteering with Home Start Edinburgh West and South West.

 

I’m not a parent and I have no experience of working with parents.

Or kids. I’ve never worked with them either.

Running a charity is another thing I know nearly nothing about.

Oh, and I’m not terribly familiar with west or south-west Edinburgh.

What on earth then did I have to offer a charity based in Edinburgh west and south-west which offers support to the parents of small children?

Nothing on the face of it. But as I realised recently, to be able to muck in and help out a charity doing great work, you don’t really have to know much about that work.

Focus instead on what you do know.

I work in communications and marketing. I help my employers (The Law Society of Scotland) communicate with their audiences and promote themselves. And funnily enough charities like Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West need to do that too.

They help parents who, for whatever reason, need a bit of support in their children’s early years. So they need to communicate with these parents.

They need volunteers to help them do this work and that means reaching out to potential supporters.

They also need donors and other funders to help them pay the bills. That requires communication and persuasion.

Small charities need to be able to shout to be heard and to stay in the front of people’s minds. Many of them just don’t have the resource to be able to do that.

And that’s exactly why they need volunteers.

I was amazed at how easy it was to apply the experience I have from my ‘day job’ to something which seems completely different.

I joined the HSEW team (Margot, Heather, Becky and Leigh) in their office on Gorgie Road for a day and quickly realised their communication challenges are more or less the same as those faced by any brand.

They need to write letters, send emails, update Facebook, tweet tweets, format web pages, distribute brochures, design leaflets, issue press releases and answer phones.

I was able to help out in some of these areas. But in all honesty, I barely scratched the surface.

Home Start Edinburgh West and South West is run by an incredibly small team who have a massive workload. And as you’d expect, communication isn’t always the priority. But they do realise its importance and are unbelievably determined to do what needs to be done.

With a bit of guidance (which hopefully I was able to offer) they’ll continue to get to grips with the challenges they face in reaching the parents they aim to help and the donors and volunteers they in turn look to for support.

I guess the lesson in all of this is that whatever you do, there’s a good chance your experience and qualifications can be applied to a good cause.

And if I can offer a recommendation, I would advise that your charity should begin at Home Start.

Welcome to our new blog!

So… who are we and what do we do?

Home-Start Edinburgh West and South West knows that in our area many parents need help, friendship and support during those early years when children are young. Being a parent isn’t always easy especially if you are also dealing with some of the pressures life can send your way like illness, stress or financial worries.  We understand that raising a family can sometimes feel overwhelming and offer friendship and support to families with young children at home.  Anyone with a child under 5 can contact us or ask another agency involved to complete a referral form.  All help is free and confidential.