parent and baby: Birkenhead

K is a mum in a Peep Mini Explorers group at a Children's Centre, led by Sophie from the Foundation Years Trust in Birkenhead. Her feedback is a great example of the value of sharing ideas about children's development, but also the importance of supportive relationships - between parent and child, practitioner and other parents:

"I’ve been attending Peep sessions since my little boy L was 10 weeks, now he’s 16 months!

I knew absolutely nothing about Peep beforehand. Hand on heart, I believe that attending these Peep sessions has made me the parent I am today.

They taught me that certain behaviours weren’t ‘naughty’ but actually developmental. That everyday things are an adventure for him, no matter how little! And that everything can be fun, and how he can learn through fun!

L has made some little friends for life, as have I. The Peep sessions have supported me and taught me the importance of supporting him, praising him, providing him with opportunities and how to encourage his learning and development. They’ve shown me that L doesn’t need ‘expensive’ experiences to learn, but actually low cost or free opportunities are just as useful, like a trip to the free fun day at the local urban farm where we can sing nursery rhymes and practise animal noises with the animals!

I find being a parent the most amazing and rewarding experience of my life, but I also have ‘hard’ days as does every parent. In group, it’s so nice to talk about those hard days with other parents and Sophie, with no judgement just support. I was so hesitant initially about going to a baby group - what if L got upset, or I needed to breastfeed and wasn’t comfortable, or I was judged -  but this group was the first I attended and it’s changed my parenting experience. Sometimes, life as a mum can be hard or lonely, but this group really does make a difference."

June 2019