Children don’t come with instructions and things change as your child grows and develops. Even the most experienced parents need a little help and advice some times.
Whatever stage your child is at, we can help. We run drop-in sessions, short workshops and longer courses on everything from getting the right bedtime routine, potty training to understanding the teenage brain. You can find information on everything on offer in ‘What’s On’ above or on our Eventbrite page.
We offer a whole range of free drop-in sessions and bookable classes where you can find help and advice from our trained practitioners as well as meet other parents.
There are play and learn sessions Monday to Friday for the under-5s and Saturday sessions once a month. Our sessions are run using the Five to Thrive approach, which is based on five key activities that are the building blocks of healthy communication and brain development – do ask our practitioners about this. We also offer groups for dads and young parents. Find out when these run by searching in ‘What’s on’ above.
Our Birth Bumps and Baby Stuff antenatal classes which will help you prepare for your new arrival, find out more about birth, caring for you and your baby, and feeding your baby, whether you are first-time parents or as a refresher course. Find the next course on our calendar.
The Triple P (Positive Parenting Programme) offers free courses and groups to support parents and carers with children aged 0-18. There are short workshops and longer courses to suit every need and family. Click on the Triple P tab to find out more.
Parentline is a secure and confidential text service for parents and carers of those aged 0-19. It offers advice and support on a range of issues such as weaning, sleep and emotional health or how to make an appointment with our team. This is also a great mechanism to find out how to access other local services. Text 07507 331456 with your question to start the conversation – our team will be there to answer your queries from 9am-4.30pm, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).
The Early Days Booklet is produced by local NHS health visiting, midwifery and children’s services. It guides you through pregnancy and the first year with baby and has everything you will need to know. You can request a printed copy from your midwife or health visitor.
The community health teams have created a number of Padlets containing a range of information for parents at different stages of their child’s life:
Action for Children have created Parent Talk which provides free and confidential online chat support for parents and carers in the UK. They offer a welcoming and inclusive space for all, whatever your family arrangement. Their experienced parenting coaches will listen to your worries and work with you to find solutions. If appropriate, they may suggest ideas for where to get extra support.
The BBC Bitesize Parents’ Toolkit is the place for mums, dads, carers, and the whole parenting community to find stories, expert advice and fun activities that will help you support your child in a changing world.
The NHS Start for Life website has everything you need to know to support your child’s early learning and development in the first 2 years.
Parentkind webinars will inspire, empower and equip you with the knowledge to be the best parent you can be. Tackling a wide range of topics, their webinars are designed to share insights on how you can support your child with learning and life experiences, strengthen your understanding of education and school life, and foster solid parent-child relationships along the way.
Gingerbread is a free advice and support service for single parents. Meet other single mums and dads on their online forum or in their local and digital groups. If you need advice, their information pages, webchat and helpline provide expert guidance on a wide range of topics.
Parenting is a journey and it’s normal to face challenges along the way, asking for help will only make you stronger. We can support you in your journey to a stress-free home, help you to meet other people and share what you’re going through. The Triple P (Positive Parenting Programme) offers free courses and groups to support parents and carers with children of any age, from 0-18. There are short workshops and longer courses to suit every need and family.
Triple P is the flexible, practical way to develop skills, strategies and confidence to handle any parenting situation. When it comes to raising children and teenagers, there is no guidebook, ‘Triple P’ gives parents simple tips to help manage the big and small problems of family life. Problems like toddler tantrums or teenage rebellion, self-esteem issues, bedtime battles, managing behaviour, anxiety and aggression. Triple P can help you deal with them all – and more.
The Positive Parenting Program responds to the needs of parents – giving you simple and practical strategies to help confidently manage your child or young person’s behaviour, prevent problems developing and build strong, healthy relationships.
Triple P courses help you to:
Once you’ve completed a Triple P course, it should be easier to:
Triple P courses and workshops are a FREE service, aimed at families with children aged 0 to 18 years, through a range of programmes delivered by our Family Hubs and Children’s Centres for 0-5 year olds and with the Early Help team for 5-18 year olds.
The programmes contain a variety of discussions, video clips, worksheets and booklets for you to take away. Our aim is to empower and equip parents with key skills to better deal with the everyday and, on occasion, extreme parenting challenges. Some programmes and workshops are delivered online, whilst others are face to face, there are also options for online self-led learning.
The Triple P – Preparing for Baby provides a place where you can meet others and prepare yourself for parenthood. A friendly and supportive 4-week in-person course designed to help you feel confident in your new role as a parent. You’ll learn simple tips and strategies to build a strong, positive bond with your baby – plus, you’ll get 4 follow-up calls to offer extra support tailored to your family. Babies are welcome too, and we’ll provide a light lunch for you to enjoy with other parents!
Suitable for families who are pregnant or have a baby under 12 months old.
The Triple P – Preparing for Baby course includes 7 modules which will support you on your parenting journey, preparing you for parenthood. The course can be completed in your own time in the comfort of your own home. All you need is a phone, tablet or laptop and access to the internet. Families will also have the support of a named Children’s Centre practitioner for help and support along the way, as needed.
Suitable for families who are pregnant or have a baby under 12 months old.
The Online Triple P – Positive Parenting Program’s allows you complete the course whenever and wherever suits you, at your own pace and to focus on the areas that matter to you and your family. The simple, practical strategies have been proven to work around the world, helping parents raise happy, confident children, set family routines and rules that everyone can follow and balance work and family life with less stress.
Suitable for families with children aged 3-18.
Stepping Stones can help you:
Suitable for families with children who have a special education need (SEN) or disability and are aged 3 years to 12 years
Fear-Less Triple P is a cognitive-behavioural parenting intervention that supports parents to help children manage their anxiety more effectively. The program encourages parents to generalize strategies to all family members, not just the child of concern. It aims to help parents to set a good example of coping with anxiety, coach their children to become more emotionally resilient, and develop a toolbox of strategies and choose the most effective to respond to their child’s anxiety. The program can be completed in six group sessions.
Suitable for families of children aged from 6 to 18 years who have low to moderate levels of anxiety that cause significant distress or impact on their everyday functioning.
This is a 6-week programme to support parents where their children are especially challenging (violent/ aggressive) and all the usual strategies for managing behaviour do not seem to work. It is a therapeutic group which offers alternative strategies tailored to particular personality types of both young people and parents and challenges parents to reflect on how their response can affect the outcome of situations.
Suitable for families with children aged 8-17. To access this course, you will require the completion of an Early Help Assessment (EHA) or being supported through the Team Around the Family Process (TAF).
These short two-hour long workshops are relaxed and informal; you can contribute as much or as little as you want. Most are delivered online and allow you to learn more about why problems occur and how to tackle these issues in a positive and supportive way, helping your child to learn new skills. Share tips and ideas with our practitioners and other parents and find the best way forward for your child and your family.
Struggling to get out of the house with the kids, let alone go shopping? Our ‘Hassle-Free Shopping’ workshop will allow you to discover clever tips to engage your child in shopping experiences, making it easier and more enjoyable for you as a parent. We’re here to support you in creating a stress-free home, connecting with others, and sharing your experiences.
Suitable for parents and carers of children aged 18 months to 5 years
Struggling with mealtime meltdowns? Want to make family dinners fun and stress-free? Join us for our “Hassle-free Mealtimes” Workshop – a relaxed, supportive session designed to help you create a positive mealtime experience for your little ones.
Suitable for parents and carers of children aged 18 months to 5 years
Is there a lot of drama and tears in your home before bedtime? Is your child is refusing to go to bed or stay in their own bed or coming into to your bed in the middle of the night? It can be exhausting for the whole family when bedtimes are a problem. This workshop gives you some useful tips to develop a positive bedtime routine and teach your child to fall asleep and stay in their bed until morning. Learn why these issues arise and the skills children need for a better bedtime routine and choose the method that works best for your family to transform bedtime into a peaceful experience!
Please note there are two workshops, one for parents with children 18 months to 5 years and one for children aged 5-12.
Struggling with your child’s behaviour? Join our ‘Dealing with Disobedience’ workshop! Learn to set clear expectations, communicate effectively, and reduce tantrums. Discover common forms of disobedience, understand why children struggle to follow instructions, and develop a personal plan with positive parenting strategies to prevent and manage disobedience.
Please note there are two workshops, one for parents with children 18 months to 5 years and one for children aged 5-12.
Struggling with your child’s aggression, do they lash out without thinking? Join our workshop to learn how to reduce it, manage big emotions, and create a calmer home. Learn how to reduce aggressive behaviour and teach your child how to manage their big emotions, support sibling squabbles and have a calmer home.
Please note there are two workshops, one for parents with children 18 months to 5 years and one for children aged 5-12.
Discover how teenage brain development affects behaviour and learn strategies for parents to support their teens during this critical time. The teenage years are a critical period for brain development and has major implications for later development. This workshop describes the changes that occur and how this time affects behaviour. It gives parents and carers the tools and knowledge to help teenagers manage this period of transition.
Suitable for parents and carers of children aged 12 and above.
Curious why your teenager resists you? Join our 2-hour workshop to understand their mindset and learn how to get them back on side! This discussion group will allow you to share experiences and ideas on dealing with tricky teenagers. Understand why teens can be uncooperative and learn strategies to encourage politeness and cooperation. Discover techniques to develop a plan for motivating your teenager at home.
Suitable for parents and carers of children aged 12 and above.
Fed up with the arguments in your home? Come along to our 2-hour workshop and find ways to communicate more positively as a family! Join our discussion group to share and learn from experiences of conflict with teenagers. Discover why these conflicts occur and explore positive parenting strategies to teach teens how to get along with family members and resolve issues. Learn effective ways to manage family-wide conflicts and create a harmonious home environment.
Suitable for parents and carers of children aged 12 and above.
For families with children under 5 years old call 0300 323 0245 or email admin@ecpbedford.org.
For Families with children and young people aged 5-18 email triplep@bedford.gov.uk.
To book a course or workshop, use the contact details above or visit our Eventbrite page.
Family Hubs and Children’s Centres can support you and your family with more bespoke help when needed. For those with under-5s we can offer our Parents as First Teachers course which will help you understand how to support your child’s play, child development, parenting behaviours, developmental topics, brain development, family culture and perspectives and family support.
We also have an amazing family support team who will listen and find the best way to work through your family’s individual needs. Please contact us on 0300 323 0245 or email admin@ecpbedford.org to find out more.
For parents with children with additional needs or disabilities we work with the Child Development Centre to offer quiet stay and play sessions. These are aimed at children and families who may find other stay and play sessions too loud or overwhelming, or families who have concerns about their child’s learning and development. Run by an Advisory Teacher from the Early Years Support Team and staff from the Children’s Centre (term-time only). Please contact us on 0300 323 0245 or email admin@ecpbedford.org to find out more.
FACES are a local charity which provides support for families in Bedford Borough, including practical and emotional support in the family home. They have a variety of different projects to help with challenges faced by parents, including SEND support and specialist support for dads. Please call them on 01234 270601 for more details or to discuss.
The Bedford Borough Early Help team can also offer a range of bespoke support matched to your family’s needs, whatever the age of your children. You can access their support by completing an Early Help Assessment (EHA). The Family Hubs and Children’s Centre team can support you with this as can your child’s school.
If you find you need more help with your pre-school aged child then our Family Hubs Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist may be able to help. She offers support through our ‘Everybody Ready’ programme which helps families and children aged 3-4, who are not yet socially or emotionally ready to start school or be separated from their care givers. Please contact us on 0300 323 0245 or email admin@ecpbedford.org to find out more.
The Bedford Borough Early Help team can also offer a range of bespoke support matched to your family’s needs, whatever the age of your children. You can access their support by completing an Early Help Assessment (EHA). The Family Hubs and Children’s Centre team can support you with this as can your child’s school. Early Help is about taking action early and as soon as possible to tackle problems emerging for children, young people and their families. Early Help means providing support as soon as possible to help families cope with difficulties and working together with other services to prevent bigger problems emerging. Support can come from a range of services and organisations, for parents, children and young people of any age.
If you are concerned about your child’s development or feel they have additional needs or a disability then the Early Years Support Team may be able to help. They provide bespoke assessment and support to children under 5 years with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND), their families, and Early Years Settings from a specialist team of Advisory Teachers and Specialist Nursery Nurses and Early Years SEND Advisors, based in the Child Development Centre (CDC) in Kempston. Support is based within the CDC and Bedford Borough community and can include developmental play sessions, modelling, in-home/setting training and specialist stay and playgroups. Please email eyst@bedford.gov.uk or call 01234 718123 to find out more.
FACES also offer the Caring Dads Programme which offers intensive help for dads who have displayed unhealthy, hurtful, abusive and neglectful fathering behaviours. It supports them to improve their relationships with their children, develop strategies to manage their frustration and find ways to reduce parental conflict. To access the course you will need a referral from a professional who is supporting your family. Please ask them to contact us on 0300 323 0245 or email admin@ecpbedford.org to find out more.
