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It's time to celebrate grandparents!

Grandparent’s Day takes place on Sunday, October 1 2023 and is dedicated to celebrating and acknowledging the vital role grandparents play when it comes to the care, education, and well-being of our families.

Doreen, grandparent to Koby aged 2, attended one of our Children’s Centre Stay and Play events and spoke about her role as a grandparent.

"Part of my job is to support my grandson and if they need it or ask, to support my daughter and son-in-law with difficult decisions too. My biggest tip would be to enjoy every moment and keep your mouth zipped!"

Visit the link below for more top tips and advice for grandparents.

Latest news

Save up to 20% on childcare costs

Did you know you can receive up to £2000 a year for each of your children to help with the costs of childcare? A Tax-Free Childcare account can help towards childminders, nurseries, and pre-schools and can be used at the same time as 15 and 30 hours funded childcare. For every £8 you pay into an online childcare account, the government will pay in £2, saving you 20% on childcare costs throughout the year. Visit the link below to find out more.

Children's Centre Service wins gold again!

We are thrilled to have received the UNICEF Baby Friendly Gold Award for the third year running for the support on offer to mums-to-be and new parents in Nottinghamshire. This is an internationally recognised mark of quality care and would not be possible without the incredible hard work and commitment of our trained peer support volunteers who work with staff from the service and the Healthy Families team. If you are interested in volunteering or would like to find out more about our services and the Baby Friendly Award, please visit the links below.

Are you following the Families Information Service on social media?

The Families Information Service website is host to a variety of useful resources and information for parents and carers. But, you can also find a variety of topics on it's social media channels, including childcare help, low-cost things to do, emotional health and wellbeing, speech and language, children’s behaviour and development and SEND support. Visit the links below to stay up to date on upcoming events and find out what's taking place in your local area.

Returning to work whilst breastfeeding

The theme for the World Breastfeeding Week 2023 campaign was 'Enabling Breastfeeding – making a difference for working parents'. Lots of events were held across Nottinghamshire to celebrate the week and provide useful information for parents and parents to be. Katie, one of the Children’s Centre Service’s peer support volunteers spoke about her experience with breastfeeding and returning to work. Visit the links below to learn more about her story and for further information about breastfeeding and returning to work.

What's on

Your Health Your Way: FREE pre and postnatal nutritional advice

Eating well in pregnancy can be difficult.

That's why Your Health Your Way are offering FREE pre and postnatal nutritional advice and activities for people in Mansfield with a BMI of over 30.

The sessions will be held at Ladbrook Children’s Centre, Mansfield, every Tuesday at 1.30pm and are delivered by highly qualified advisors who specialise in nutrition and physical activity.

Visit the link below to sign up and for more information.

Antenatal PEEP programme: getting to know your baby

The Antenatal PEEP programme is open to all expectant parents from 28 weeks gestation and offers a relaxed and friendly group for you and your partner to:

• Get to know your baby 
• Meet other expectant parents
• Consider how life will change and find out about local support
• Discover how to strengthen your bond with your baby
• Understand early brain development and how to support it

For more information and to sign up, visit the link below or contact your local Children's Centre.

Exciting family hub developments in Nottinghamshire

There have been some exciting developments to family hubs in Nottinghamshire with Retford being the first design site in the county.

One of our aims is to offer a ‘one-stop shop’ of family support services to help make a positive difference to children, young people and their families, whilst delivering the right support at the right time.

Keep a look out for information about your local family hub over the next 12 months to stay up to date and find out how you can help to shape it's development.

For more information about your local family hub, including frequently asked questions and how to get involved, please visit the link below or get in touch with Una Daniel, Family Hub Development Manager at una.daniel@nottscc.gov.uk