Family Support Worker

Introduction

Hi, my name is Jo Thompson and I’m the Family Support Worker here at Colham Manor Primary School. I’m always available for a friendly chat, a listening ear or to offer support and advice. I work from 8:45am to 4:15pm, Monday – Friday.

If you are a parent or carer that is going through a difficult time or need some support to help you or your family, then please speak to your child’s class teacher or book an appointment with me on Arbor.

Drop-Ins For Parent/Carer Support

There are parent/carer drop-in sessions to offer a friendly, safe space to talk. This is a space where parents/carers are able to ask for support or advice regarding parenting, find out about available services in the local area or just come for a cup of tea and a friendly chat with me.

We have now launched an online booking system on Arbor so parents and carers can book a 1:1 drop-in appointment. 

These appointments are available on:

• Mondays  2:30pm-3:30pm
• Tuesdays 9:00am-10:30am

I hope to meet and support you and your family soon.

Parent Learning Zone

Every Thursday afternoon parents and carers are offered the opportunity to use school laptops to carry out a variety of tasks. They may want to fill out an online application, look for employment, strengthen their IT skills or enrol on a course. It really is up to the individual how they decide to use this time and what they access or learn!

Promoting Home-Start Hillingdon

Throughout the year I work with Home-Start Hillingdon to promote awareness and help them find suitable volunteers. Volunteering with Home-Start Hillingdon is a brilliant opportunity and can also help you find work in a similar field.

Please access the charity’s website below to find out more about what’s on offer. 

Themed Coffee Mornings And Afternoons

I regularly host a coffee morning or afternoon inviting parents or carers to meet specialist members of staff or members of the local community. These coffee events are a great way to meet others, find out information that could benefit your family and help strengthen the school community. 

Examples of themes held in previous coffee morning/afternoon sessions include: SEND; meet and greets; guests from the Children’s Centre; Reading; and dual-language. Some of these sessions also offer resources for parents/carers to take home, including a free book to read with their child.

The Big SEND Coffee Morning

Our families were able to gain information about services in our local area and where to go for additional help and support. Our SENDCo, staff from SENDIASS Hillingdon, and Hillingdon Parent Carers Forum were available to discuss issues, give advice and answer any questions.

SEND Parent Support Group

We have a SEND Parent Support Group to give parents and carers the opportunity to meet others that have a child with additional needs and encourage them to support each other. Everyone within the school community is welcome to the support group sessions and it really is a lovely way to share experiences, current issues, behaviour strategies, parenting tips, a tear or even a laugh! Parents enjoy these sessions where they can seek comfort and understanding from others and can speak freely and honestly without judgement.

If you would like to join our SEND Parent Support Group please contact the school and ask to speak to Jo Thompson or email familysupportworker@colham.org.

Brilliant Parents

I was joined by course providers from Brilliant Parents to promote their services in the area, including seminars and parenting courses.

We were also joined by Keyworkers from the Hillingdon Council who spoke about The Parenting Apart Programme (PAP), a relatively new service that supports children’s emotional wellbeing when families are going through conflict, including divorce or separation. 

I have recently completed The PAP Practitioner training and know how beneficial this programme is for both separated parents and their children.

‘How To Emotionally Support Your Child’ Course

Janet Morgan, a tutor from Learn Hillingdon Adult Community Education came in to run a 5-week course to parents. The purpose of the course was to recognise the emotional and mental health of both parents and children in partnership with each other. The course helped to develop some support strategies that can help identify and promote early intervention for parents when supporting their children with their own mental health.

At the end of the course parents were able to: 

• Identify parental contribution to children’s emotional health
• Demonstrate how to support young people’s personal development
• Develop social problem-solving skills that can increase young people’s resilience
• Receive a certificate award! 

Behaviour Workshop

This workshop was created to help parents/carers understand the importance of boundaries, routine and consequences as well as learning behaviour strategies that they could implement at home. A range of visuals were shared with parents/carers to create at home to help manage behaviour that was challenging.

Based on positive feedback from attendees, this workshop will be held in the future with additional time added as requested, so if you are interested, look out for upcoming dates.

Self-Regulation Workshop

This workshop was run by the school’s SEND Coordinator and myself to help parents learn ways to support their child to self-regulate using the PACE key principles developed by Clinical Psychologist Dan Hughes.

Playfulness - Seeking joy in the relationship. Parents being open, engaged, warm & accessible. 

Acceptance - Activate the witness - release the judge.

Curiosity Be curious - Wait, watch and wonder. What is the feeling behind the behaviour?

Empathy - Be empathetic…I imagine that was...No wonder...That must have been so...

Sleep Well Workshop

This workshop was created to help parents and carers understand the importance of bedtime routine and how to develop good sleep hygiene, as well as learning strategies to support children with sleep that they could implement at home. 

Triple P Parenting Course For Parents (via Zoom)

Brilliant Parents provide parenting courses and support for families, they specialise in delivering programmes for parents with young children and teenagers.

The Triple P Stepping Stones course is an 8-week programme, which offers parenting support for families whose children have additional needs. 

Thanks to Annmarie, the course manager from Brilliant Parents, I was able to help families access the Stepping Stones course online for 2 hours each week, providing laptops, support and lots of tea and biscuits.

Useful numbers

• Library Information Desk - 01895 250714
• Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex - 0345 130 7324
• Centre for ADHD and Autism Support - 020 8429 1552
• Communicare Counselling Service - 01895 256056
• Citizens Advice Hillingdon - 0344 848 7903
• Hillingdon Autistic Care and Support (HACS) - 020 8606 6780
• Hillingdon Independent Domestic Violence Advocacy (HIDVA) - 020 8246 1745
• Hillingdon Mind - 01895 271559
• Hillingdon Women's Centre - 01895 259578
• Samaritans - 116 123 (freephone)
• Victim Support - 08 08 16 89 111 (freephone)
• Metropolitan Police - Non-emergency 101
• Hillingdon Fire Station - 020 8555 1200