Spring 2019

Parent Post Welcome Oyin!

A warm welcome to our new School Family Worker, Oyin Kalejaiye who joined us during January 2019. Oyin brings a wealth of experience from her

previous roles to help support you and your family and is an asset to the team.

If you would like support from a School Family Worker, please ask your child’s school to make a referral to us and then we will be in contact with you.

If you would like further information about anything advertised in this newsletter please

contact Nicola or Jo on 01707 387702.

What are School Family Workers?

The School Family Workers are employed by the Welwyn Garden

City and Hatfield Schools Partnership to support families across 32

schools across WGC and Hatfield.

We can help support you with a range of concerns you may have. No

problem is too big or too small and the help we provide is dependent

on your needs.

Our School Family Workers have a wealth of knowledge regarding

services available to support families. Some of the difficulties we

can help you with are:

* Parenting strategies: e.g. managing challenging behaviour or

sleep patterns * Assisting parents of children with additional

needs * Changing schools (transition) * Loss or bereavement *

Financial concerns * Housing issues * Smoking, drugs and alco-

hol misuse * Family breakdown * Being in an abusive relationship

We have a wealth of knowledge about all issues that affect families.

If you feel you would benefit from the support of a

School Family Worker please contact your school

(please see list of schools we support) and ask them

to make a referral.

The WGC and Hatfield Schools Partnership supports families with

children attending the following schools:

Applecroft, Birchwood Avenue, Commonswood, Creswick, De

Havilland, Essendon, Green Lanes, Harwood Hill, Holwell, Holy

Family, Homerswood, Howe Dell, Oaklands, Our Lady’s,

Panshanger, Peartree, Springmead, St. John’s Digswell, St John’s

Lemsford, St Mary’s Welham Green, St Philip Howard, St Michael’s

Woolmer Green, Templewood, The Ryde, Watchlytes, Waterside

Academy, Welwyn St. Mary’s, Knightsfield, Monks Walk, Onslow St

Audreys, Ridgeway Academy and Stanborough.

Lead School Family Worker: Nicola Fisher

Administrator: Jo Fortune

Tel: 01707 387702

Web: www.wgc-hatfieldschoolspartnership.com

@WGCHPartnership

If you would like to advertise or subscribe to receive this

newsletter directly please email:

jfortune@stanborough.herts.sch.uk or call the office on

01707 387702.

Coffee Morning for Parents and Carers to drop in for a chat with a School

Family Worker

Free of charge, no booking, All welcome!

Welwyn Garden City

The Parish Room, St Francis of Assisi Church, Church

Road, WGC, AL8 6QJ

9.45-11am—Fri 1st March & 29th March 2019

Hatfield

The Hub, White Lion House, Town Centre, Hatfield,

AL10 0JL

9.15-11.30am—Fri 15th February and/or

1-3pm—Friday 15th March 2019

For more information please contact the SFW office

on 01707 387702

Courses, Groups, Workshops and Training for Parents/Carers

Protective Behaviours Programme

An interactive and fun filled 6 week course for Mums, Dads

and Carers:

What it means to feel safe—how do we know?

Feelings, Thoughts, Behaviours and the links

Problem solving skills

How to support our childrens anxiety

Why do we get triggered ? Our ‘unwritten rules’

How to build and maintain an effective support network

Communicating effectively with our families

Strategies to stay in control of ourselves

What is behind anger and how this impacts behaviour, choices and consequences

When: (Mondays) 9.30-11.30am, 25th Feb—1st April 2019

Where: Creswick Family Centre, Sir John Newsom Way, WGC, AL7 4FL

To book your FREE place contact Natural Flair at:

Tel: 01992 446051, email: admin@natural-flair.com or register

online at: Www.natural-flair.com/course-booking

Siblings First Sessions

For brothers, sisters & parents of

children with additional needs

The Families in Focus Siblings First project will improve the emotional well-being of siblings who have brothers or sisters

with additional needs and benefit the whole family.

Children will learn how to have a voice so they can under-stand and express their feelings and concerns. This will build

more positive, stronger more connected relationships with their parents and siblings.

Two small groups, one for siblings and one for parents in the building at the same time.

Siblings Age 5-10 years must be accompanied by a Parent to all sessions

There will be simple fun family homework tasks (approx.10 mins)

Children with additional needs will need to be accommo-dated elsewhere and parents will need to find alter-

native care.

Where and When: Wednesday’s 4 - 5.30pm, 27th Feb, 6th, 13th, 20th & 27th March 2019

Southfields School, Woods Avenue, Hatfield, AL10 8NN

To Book or for more info, please email Francine at Fran-cine@familiesinfocus.co.uk

Or call 07867 510027 www.familiesinfocus.co.uk

Healthy Relationships

Healthy Relationships is a programme for young

people aged 11-16 yrs (school years 7-11) who

have experienced domestic abuse or have been

in , or witnessed, an abusive relationship.

The 11 week programme supports the young

people to talk about and understand their experi-

ences, reduce self blame, teaches them to keep

themselves safe and manage ways of expressing

their emotions.

To attend the programme , the young person

must not still be living in an abusive environment.

When: Thursdays 28th Feb—23rd May 2019,

3.30-5pm

Where: Stanborough School, Lemsford Lane,

WGC, AL8 6YR

Please contact Nicola or Cheryl for an application

form via 01707 387702 or email:

nfisher@stanborough.herts.sch.uk or

cbodrozic@stanborough.herts.sch.uk

Life Skills Courses in 2019

90 minutes x 6 week courses available that help

with general wellbeing and cover a wide range of

subjects. All supported by experienced and quali-

fied facilitators in a relaxed and friendly atmos-

phere.

WGC— All courses run Thursdays @ 11.00 -12.30

Anger Management—20th Feb to 27th March

Self Esteem—3rd April to 8th May

Anxiety—22nd May to 26th June

St Albans— All courses run Mondays @ 10.30-12

Self Esteem—25th Feb to 1st April

Anxiety—8th April to 20th May

Depression—3rd June to 8th July

To book a place please contact Mind in Mid Herts

WGC Office: 01707 326065

St Albans office: 01727 865070

or email: admin@mindinmidherts.org.uk.

Fun things to do

Feb Half-Term Holiday Activities

Activities suitable for children aged 4+, ses-

sions last one hour, no need to book. All activities start at

10am, 11.15am, 1.15pm and 2.30pm. £3.50 per child

Tues 19th, Weds 20th & Thurs 21st Feb– Art and Craft Fun

around Fabric Design and Printing

Toddler Morning—Teddy & Me—Thurs 28th Feb

(10am to 11.30am)

Toddler workshop , listening to stories, making something

together , Visit the mill and museum.

£3.50 per toddler (Includes entrance to mill/museum), Drink

and biscuit, coffee or tea for adults.

Mill Green Museum & Mill, Mill Green, Hatfield, Herts, AL9

5PD

Tel: Mill Green Museum - 01707 357850

Families First Portal

Families First Portal is a website which can help you find:

Information, advice and guidance on local and

national services for families, parents or carers

Childcare options and much more

Many of these services are free for families to access

Visit the website to find out what is available for you and

your family.

www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/familiesfirst

Help and Support

The School Family Worker website:

www.wgc-hatfieldschoolspartnership.com

Citizens Advice Bureau on: 03444 111 444 or www.whcab.org.uk

Family Lives: For parenting support www.familylives.org.uk

Telephone helpline 0808 800 2222

Young Minds: 0808 802 5544 (Mon-Fri 9.30-4pm) for parents/carers concerned about their child’s mental health and emotional

wellbeing.

Children’s Services: 0300 123 4043 for any concerns about the

wellbeing or safety of a child.

CAP: For support with debt and financial worries 0800 328 0006

Kooth: www.kooth.com Free safe and anonymous online

support for young people aged 10-25years.

Resolve: www.resolve-online.org 01707 690739 Working with

you to break the cycle of drug or alcohol misuse.

Victim Support Hertfordshire—0300 303 0165 Offering

support to victims of crime.

Support

Support group for Parents of Children with Autism/ADHD and related conditions (SPACE)

Space is a Hertfordshire based charity supporting parent/carers of children and young people on the Autistic Spectrum,

with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or a related condition. Our group has been running since 2007 and

we became a registered charity in 2017. We meet up several times a month in term time and have either a speaker or a

coffee & chat session. Our meetings are held in Bishops Stortford, Cheshunt, Hatfield, Hertford, Hoddesdon, St Albans, Stevenage, Ware

and Welwyn. We also organise and host workshops run by various organisations and arrange social events.

Welwyn Garden City - 10am to 12, Welwyn Bowls Club, 288 Knightsfield, WGC, AL8 7NQ

28th February: Tanya Dance - SENDIASS

28th March: Hannah Mann Smith - Transition

25th April : SPACE - ADHD Services

Hatfield— 10am to 12, Green Lanes Primary School, Hatfield, AL10 9JY

15th March: Rachel Lambie - NESSie

17th May : Polly Kerr - Education Law

Cinema Autism Friendly Screenings:

Sun17th Feb @10.15am— How to Train your dragon 3

Sun 24thFeb @10.15am—The Lego movie 2

For further information and booking please contact: ODEON

Hatfield

The Galleria, Comet Way, Hatfield, AL10 9TF

Tel: 0800 138 3315

Please keep in touch with what support is available in

your area at:

http://www.dspl5.co.uk/

Helping you get healthy the Beezee way!

Lots of FREE programmes designed to help you and

your family make small changes which make a big

difference.

Take a look at our courses and contact details:

beeziebodies.com/sign-up-below/