News Release
Home-Start Scotland celebrates 21 years of supporting families
30 October 2005
Home-Start Scotland is celebrating its 21st anniversary year starting from November 2005. Over the past 21 years Home-Start has supported 25,000 families and 50,000 children across Scotland. Home-Start is a charity where parents help other parents. Trained parent volunteers offer emotional and practical support to another parent who is finding it hard to cope with young children.
Today, Home-Start supports 2,000 families in 32 communities across Scotland. The charity aims to double its services, enabling it to reach every family that needs its support in Scotland. To achieve this objective the charity needs new investment and support from funders, volunteers and local communities. Last year the 760 Home-Start volunteers in Scotland provided help worth £500,000 to Scottish communities.
Home-Start volunteers exist in Scotland's rural communities as well as inner cities, supporting children and parents in some of the most disadvantaged areas as well as some of more affluent ones. Parents tell Home-Start of the often spectacular effect home-visiting has both on the daily lives of themselves and their children. It is because Home-Start's volunteers are parents themselves and choose to give their time to help others, unpaid, that the relationship they offer families is so special. Home-Start volunteers are there to help parents at that very early stage before their difficulties reach crisis point. Recent studies show parents find Home-Start support caring, reliable and focused on their needs.
Home-Start Director in Scotland, Dave Milliken, said "Home-Start has a highly valued presence in local communities across the country. We know what works because we have been supporting and listening to families in Scotland for 21 years. Our model of support is an outstanding success. We now require new investment in order to respond to the demand from local communities to help our existing schemes expand. By supporting parents we are helping to give children in Scotland a better start in life."
ENDS
Further information:
Emma Pelling. T. 0208 450 2745, M. 07958 558172, epelling@aol.com
Notes to Editors:
1. Director Dave Milliken and Home-Start case studies are available for interview. Please call the numbers above to make arrangements.
2. Since it began in Leicester in 1973 Home-Start has helped over 250,000 families and 500,000 children in the UK and with British Forces in Germany and Cyprus and has now spread across the world, with Home-Start projects in 15 other countries. We help families (with at least one child under five) who are trying to cope with anything from post-natal depression, multiple births and serious illness to isolation, disabilities and children's' behavioural problems.
Home-Start Scotland is celebrating its 21st anniversary year starting from November 2005. Over the past 21 years Home-Start has supported 25,000 families and 50,000 children across Scotland. Home-Start is a charity where parents help other parents. Trained parent volunteers offer emotional and practical support to another parent who is finding it hard to cope with young children.
Today, Home-Start supports 2,000 families in 32 communities across Scotland. The charity aims to double its services, enabling it to reach every family that needs its support in Scotland. To achieve this objective the charity needs new investment and support from funders, volunteers and local communities. Last year the 760 Home-Start volunteers in Scotland provided help worth £500,000 to Scottish communities.
Home-Start volunteers exist in Scotland's rural communities as well as inner cities, supporting children and parents in some of the most disadvantaged areas as well as some of more affluent ones. Parents tell Home-Start of the often spectacular effect home-visiting has both on the daily lives of themselves and their children. It is because Home-Start's volunteers are parents themselves and choose to give their time to help others, unpaid, that the relationship they offer families is so special. Home-Start volunteers are there to help parents at that very early stage before their difficulties reach crisis point. Recent studies show parents find Home-Start support caring, reliable and focused on their needs.
Home-Start Director in Scotland, Dave Milliken, said "Home-Start has a highly valued presence in local communities across the country. We know what works because we have been supporting and listening to families in Scotland for 21 years. Our model of support is an outstanding success. We now require new investment in order to respond to the demand from local communities to help our existing schemes expand. By supporting parents we are helping to give children in Scotland a better start in life."
ENDS
Further information:
Emma Pelling. T. 0208 450 2745, M. 07958 558172, epelling@aol.com
Notes to Editors:
1. Director Dave Milliken and Home-Start case studies are available for interview. Please call the numbers above to make arrangements.
2. Since it began in Leicester in 1973 Home-Start has helped over 250,000 families and 500,000 children in the UK and with British Forces in Germany and Cyprus and has now spread across the world, with Home-Start projects in 15 other countries. We help families (with at least one child under five) who are trying to cope with anything from post-natal depression, multiple births and serious illness to isolation, disabilities and children's' behavioural problems.
