Basically we support families in the Hornsby, we help to equip the women and families experiencing Peri Natal Distress with the necessary coping skills to successfully navigate the bumpy and treacherous road of parenting & pregnancy. We offer a safe, non-judgemental environment where they can come and belong. The children have access to a quality and fun childcare service.
The support group is run by qualified volunteers (Social Worker, Counsellors Etc) all facilitators have undergone in house training to assist them with the delicate role of facilitating a group of women/people with mental health issues.
The support group offers a chance for these women to get out, laugh and connect with others without feeling the stigma of peri natal distress.
We provide a supported playgroup for the monther/carers and their babies/toddlers.
Our support group is held on a fortnightly basis at Willow Park Homestead- Hornsby. Mothers in one room are talking through issues and concerns-sharing and caring in a safe environment, active listening and group work provided by skilled facilitators’.
The group also looks at positive affirmations, stress management and relaxation techniques.
The children are cared for in another room with experienced and educated child minders- all of whom have first Aid training. The children are catered for in a supportive, positive environment in attempt to foster positive socialisation, playing and laughing.
Babybumps also provides the support group participants with access to various resources concerning parenting, PND & AND, Health and childhood Development. We are currently in the process of securing more appropriate and relevant resources- both hardcopy and multi-media. The women have stated that they have found accessing the resources very useful and empowering.
Several of the women have accessed the Social Worker on an Outreach and individual basis to discuss pertinent issues that were impacting upon their lives.
Babybumps also provides the group participants with access to information regarding community, government and private services and resources. Babybumps considers Information dissemination of accurate, reliable and appropriate information as essential aspect of assisting the women/families with the tools necessary to successfully navigate the rocky path of parenting with PND & AND. We take this one step further and help to demonstrate that ‘information/knowledge is power” only when put into practice and acted upon.
Babybumps is also in the process of implementing parenting training for parents & families at risk with the assistance of the Northern Sydney Central Coast Area Health Service. These classes are seen as a crucial aspect of the Governments Early Intervention Program- identifying possible families at risk from adverse emotional, cognitive, psychological, physical and social development.
What we do has both an immediate and future value both financially and socially.
We run a weekly supported playgroup and are venturing out into advocacy work. There are free 1 to 1 counselling sessions available at the supported playgroup with 2 qualified, experienced and empathetic professionals. One a social worker and the other a counsellor.
We are a non-profit community group. We are auspiced through the Schizophrenia Fellowship of NSW. We are able to utilise the SFNSW Indemnity Insurance and ABN.
We have an executive committee comprising of 2 co-chairs a secretary, treasurer and 2 general committee members. We adhere to the SFNSW support group charter and guidelines; we have also adopted the Model rules of Incorporated Associations as our constitution. We are currently in the process of updating our constitution from that of POSIE- to that of Babybumps.
We are a flat organisational structure with each volunteer having access to each other and the executive committee. There are currently volunteers having titles pertaining to
Childminding co-ordinator
Support Group Facilitator Co-Coordinator
Training Co-ordinator
Social Co-ordinator
Access and information Co-ordinator
Our Volunteers and supporters consist of Mental Health Workers, Early Childhood Nurses, Midwifes, Social Workers & Counsellors, mothers, accountants, scientists, stay-at-home mums and small business owners.
