Virtual Family Hub
Doncaster Family Hubs are designed to bring services together to work with families from conception, through childhood and into adolescence (0 -18 years and 25 years SEND) to deliver an integrated local offer. For any families that have difficulty in accessing our services in person, the Virtual Family Hub is the perfect place to go! Designed to provide the same information and activities as our Family Hub buildings - just virtually.
Coronavirus Update
If you have symptoms of a respiratory infection, such as COVID-19, and you have a high temperature or do not feel well enough to go to work or carry out normal activities, you are advised to try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people.
Live Chat with a Team Member
In our Family Hub buildings, team members are on hand at reception and in sessions to provide a warm welcome. You can use the live chat function available by clicking the 'Chat Box’ icon on the right hand side of this page to get in touch with a team member straight away during our opening hours.
All of our staff are qualified in a wide range of subjects and have lots of knowledge about the support services that are available across Doncaster and beyond. This could be to get more information about our services, to answer your family questions or to reach out to if you are feeling lonely or struggling in some way.
Become a Member
The best way for us to keep in touch with you is for you to become a member of Doncaster Family Hubs, and it's free to join us! Follow the link below to complete a membership form.
What's On?
Click on the drop down menu below for to see some of our latest virtual activities delivered by Early Years Development Workers across all the Doncaster Family Hub teams.
Let's Share a Story - We're going on egg hunt
Let's Share a Story - The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Let's Share a Story - Pooh Can't Sleep
Let's Share a Story - Jungle Friends
Let's Share a Story - One Year with Kipper
Let's Share a Story - Norman the Slug with the Silly Shell
Social Media
Family Hubs use social media platforms to share lots of interesting and useful content, with daily updates.
Each Family Hub in Doncaster has their own Facebook page. Search for the Family Hub you require and hit the follow button, or follow the links below.
North Area Hubs - Bentley Family Hub, Adwick Family Hub, Askern Family Hub
South Area Hubs - Denaby & Conisbrough Family Hub, Rossington Family Hub, Mexborough Family Hub
East Area Hubs - Stainforth Family Hub, Moorends Family Hub, Armthorpe Family Hub
Central Area Hubs - Central Family Hub, Wheatley Family Hub, Balby Family Hub
Doncaster Family Hubs also have an Instagram page. Search for Doncaster Family Hubs and hit the follow button.
Infant Feeding Support
Family Hubs are local venues that can offer information, advice, and guidance on any questions you have around infant feeding. Early Days Workers in Family Hubs can also provide breastfeeding support on a 1 to 1 basis. We can also direct you to the other support services that are available across Doncaster including:
- Infant Feeding Specialists
- Health Practitioners
- Peer Support – Volunteer mums who have breastfed their babies and have completed training in order to offer their support to other mums.
- Loan of a breast pump
- We Support Our Mums – Local venues that are supportive of breastfeeding mums so that you can feel confident that you will be made to feel welcome.
Find out more about Infant Feeding support in Doncaster by following the link below.
Introduction to 2 Year Funding
Part of the role of the Doncaster Family Hubs is to provide support to families accessing two-year-old funding. We are inviting parents/carers to our sessions around the two-year-old funding offer. This will give you the opportunity to gain more information and ask any questions you might have.
The Family Hubs have been working closely with Early Years settings to ensure that we have the appropriate information for you around how these settings are moving forward in the current situation to ensure safe and fun learning experiences for your children. If you would like any more information on the two-year-old funding offer, please contact your local Family Hub.
Relationship Matters
It’s normal for families to argue at home, but if they are becoming a problem then help is at hand. Relationship Matters is here for you and your family if you think you’re struggling.
Whether couples are together or separated, disagreements are completely normal but evidence shows that regular conflict can have a big impact on children. The website is full of useful advice and how you can access support. It can help you see how your behaviour might be making things worse in your home. Stay calm and work it out. Visit the website on the link below.
Online Courses
Doncaster Council and other partners have commissioned a new online parenting programme for all parents, carers and grandparents in Doncaster.
The programme is completely free and can be completed on any computer or mobile device with Internet access. The programme can be accessed at any time, day or night, to fit around your busy life.
Online Solihull Approach
In Doncaster we have a Solihull Approach antenatal online course ‘Understanding pregnancy, labour, birth and your baby’, an online postnatal course ‘Understanding your baby’ and a course for parents of children aged 6 months to 19 years ‘Understanding your child’.
The online course for parents ‘Understanding your child’ was the first to be awarded the CANparent Quality Mark by the Government. It is available in several languages.
We have converted the material in our face to face groups into online courses, parents/carers can work through the online modules at their leisure from any device.
This has several advantages:
- when a mother or father is attending a group but their partner is unable to attend, their partner can access the same material online
- it increases accessibility for parents in remote areas
- it increases accessibility for men, who traditionally tend not to attend groups
- it provides an alternative for parents who do not want to attend a group
- it increases accessibility for grandparents or other carers who may not get a place on a group
- it has the potential to be used imaginatively to increase population access to evidence-based material that has been shown to impact positively on the parent/child relationship with all the advantages that that will bring across the lifespan
- it can be used as part of an early intervention or prevention strategy
- ‘Understanding your child’ course for parents also available in Urdu
Understanding your child with additional needs
This online course is for parents, relatives and friends of children who may have a physical or learning disability or who may have autistic traits.
This course is in 2 sections:
- Level 1 lays the foundation for understanding your child.
- Level 2 looks at some particular aspects of parenting: sleeping and anger management, together with more about how we interact with each other. Understanding this can make it easier to work with your child's behaviour as well as supporting their development.
Once Level 1 is completed you can progress onto Level 2 if you'd like to. A certificate can be printed off at the end of each level.
Families in Doncaster can access this course free online at www.inourplace.co.uk with the code: STGEORGE
Adult, Family and Community Learning
The Adult, Family and Community Learning Service (AFCL) provides local learning activities for adults and families in their community. Funded by the Education, Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), the service operates across the city encouraging all sectors of the community to participate in local learning activities of their choice. For more information about courses and how to sign up, click the button below.
Adult, Family and Community Learning are now delivering a range of virtual workshops for you and your family to attend. You can either take part as a family with your child(ren) or on your own for your own health & well-being. To sign up, visit the AFCL Facebook page and follow the instructions there. Once signed up you will be emailed the resources you need to take part.
Finding Family Hubs
For those of you who haven't been to one of our Family Hubs before, follow the link below to find out more. Click the button for locations, contact information and opening hours for all the Family Hubs across Doncaster.
Downloads & Resources
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