Hitchin Partnership.org

Hitchin Partnership C.I.O

Hitchin Partnership provides a family support service to schools in Hitchin and the surrounding villages. We work alongside families giving practical support and user friendly parenting strategies.

The team is experienced in supporting families where children have Special Educational Needs and Disabilities and provides advice on friendship and bullying issues.

This includes looking at family routines, addressing attendance and challenging behaviour.

Through funding from schools, the support of local community groups and fundraising we provide practical help in times of hardship and crisis. Our service prides itself on joined up working between all settings from Children Centre's through to Secondary Schools which means the whole family is supported to ensure the very best outcomes. This in turn helps families build confidence with parenting approaches, providing children with happier and healthier lives to enable them to achieve their best.

Documents/Files:
Useful Resources (COVID-19)	256 kB

https://surveys.hertfordshire.gov.uk/s/XFEVX8/

SEE PARENTS MENU FOR HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES

A NEW GOAL FOR HEALTHY START FOOD CAMPAIGN.

Can you help the County Council reach 5,000 families who are missing out on Healthy Start food vouchers?

The vouchers were increased from £3.10 per child to £4.25 from April following lobbying from England footballer Marcus Rashford, who has now teamed up with TV chef Tom Kerridge to help provide families with recipes to make the most of the vouchers. To access 52 great recipes, based on the voucher scheme, visit Full Time: Get cooking with Marcus & Tom by visiting FULL TIME MEALS - TOM KERRIDGE

If you are at least 10 weeks pregnant or have a child under four years old you could be entitled to Healthy Start Vouchers worth £4.25 per child per week (£8.50 if under 1) to spend on milk, plain fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables, and instant formula milk. You can also use them to buy pulses and canned fruit and vegetables as long as they have no fat, salt, sugar or other flavouring added. The vouchers can be redeemed at local retailers.

If you are entitled to Healthy Start Vouchers you will also get free vitamins designed to help pregnant and breastfeeding women and growing children.

To be eligible you should be in receipt of certain means-tested benefits. Check your eligibility on www.gov.uk/healthy-start. Pregnant under 18 years olds qualify whether or not they are entitled to a qualifying benefit.

There are over 5,000 pregnant women and young children missing out on £221-£442 per child per year to spend on healthy food, so it’s important to be aware of this useful source of support.

Take-up of the vouchers is very low, around 45 percent of those eligible, so it is important to check eligibility as soon as possible to prevent missing out. Application leaflets are available from GP’s surgeries or baby clinics. Alternatively, a form can be obtained by ringing 0345 607 6823 or by downloading and printing one from www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthy-start-vouchers/how-to-apply/

To access free information about benefits and check your eligibility, visit the benefit-checker on Hertfordshire County Council’s website: www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/benefits

Please see Parents Tab/Menu for School Holidays for useful resources including links to free resources and tools for children's activities.

If you have any concerns please contact your school.

Hitchin Mental Health Recovery Team - JustGiving

HMHRT

New group started to support children’s mental health

Hitchin Youth Trust and the Rotary Club of Hitchin Tilehouse has brought together representatives from Hitchin Primary and Secondary Schools to discuss the support needed for our young people returning to school after lock-down. The plan was to bring together the skills, knowledge and expertise of local organisations to provide the best possible mental health and wellbeing support for the children. Sharing resources and collectively agreeing a way forward seemed the most efficient way to reach as many young people as possible without duplication. Local support organisations and charities were keen to be involved and a group was formed called the Hitchin Mental Health Recovery Team (HMHRT). The charities involved are Hitchin Partnership CIO, Grit, Stand-By-Me, Phase, Tilehouse Counselling, NESSie and The Letchworth Centre for Healthy Living.

Feedback via the school representatives guided the team to put together a staged support plan to provide support to adults (staff and parents/carers) first to enable them to support the children.

The team has been fortunate to have secured funding from Hitchin Youth Trust, the Rotary Club of Hitchin Tilehouse and NHDC to be able to put parts of the initial support in place with online groups and activities for staff and children. Feedback has been positive – examples of some of the comments from the children: -

“It had helped me find coping mechanisms and have a safe space to talk about everything. It gave me something positive in lockdown”.

“I am now able to cope better with lockdown and it helped me open up about my Mum, they made it really easy for me to talk”.

However, with new lockdown we know there will unfortunately be an increasing need for mental health support for children, students, teachers and parents.

David McIntosh, Chair of the HMHRT thanks all the organisations involved and their support to date for this much needed help during the pandemic. Additionally, he said “School leaders, teachers and support staff are doing an extraordinary job right now. While they are trying to catch up on lost learning time, they find themselves helping pupils, and some families come to terms with the impact of the pandemic. Many may have anxieties and worries of their own, but they put them to one side and put the young people first. We want to say thank you”.

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