Waterways and Mulberry Park Children’s Centres in Thamesmead, south-east London, are proud to announce the growing success of their ‘Parent Voice’ programme.
It’s a monthly offering for parents and grandparents to come together to connect, share ideas and navigate the parenting journey together. Meetings include themed discussions and sometimes guest speakers, along with a free crèche.
The focus is on building confidence, improving wellbeing and supporting each other with challenges around self-esteem, financial pressures, employability and mental health, and helping parents and carers to feel stronger, more connected and empowered.
Colleagues from the children’s centres have worked closely with participants to create a safe and welcoming environment. Recognising that many parents lead busy and often complex lives, the team has taken a patient and understanding approach, focusing on building genuine relationships within the community.
This commitment – led by the Family Hub Coordinator – has led to the development of a fantastic network of women supporting one another by sharing their own experiences, strengths, and skills. As a result, participants recently helped create and deliver a new digital training workshop designed by parents, for parents, helping others learn basic digital skills while encouraging confidence, independence, and entrepreneurial thinking.
Parents who took part in the workshop commented –
“I attended the digital marketing sessions – really grateful for such a thoughtful session, helping mums to understand and practice digital marketing skills and techniques. It was wonderful, relaxing and I loved sharing ideas with other mums”
“I had a very nice time at the digital marketing training and I learnt a great deal” Children’s centres in Thamesmead are run by charitable social enterprise GLL under the ‘Better’ brand in partnership with the London Borough of Greenwich.
Lisa Walsh, GLL’s Strategic Lead, East Children’s Centres, comments, “The programme continues to demonstrate the power of parent participation and the importance of creating spaces where families can grow in confidence, connect with others, and recognise their own value and potential.”
If you’d like more information about the Parent Voice group or other services at children’s centres in Greenwich, visit – https://www.better.org.uk/children-centre
