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Home-Start Better Start

January 2017 to June 2024

Home-Start Better Start is a peer support intervention, providing emotional and practical support to families with 0-3 year olds who are finding parenting challenging.

Non-judgmental, compassionate and confidential support is provided in the home by volunteer peer supporters who have lived-experience as parents/carers, and really care about helping other families live happier lives.

It was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2017 to 2024 by Home-Start Bradford District.

How this project was delivered

Families were assessed by a Family and Volunteer Coordinator and matched with an appropriate trained volunteer. Families received weekly visits from their volunteer peer supporter to provide extra help around parenting, their own or their children’s wellbeing, and practical household skills.

Volunteers were carefully selected for their parenting experience, friendliness, practical approach and understanding, and brought a flexible offer of support to families enabling them to bring about the changes they wanted to see in their lives. The volunteers also connected families with other services.

The project was deliberately flexible and non-prescriptive, both in the nature of the support offered and the length of engagement with each family.

Feedback

"What a super, powerful and valuable organisation Home-Start Bradford District is! I feel so much gratitude to them as they have just completely turned my life around for the better. My world was very dark, horrible and black and white and I can now see things in vibrant colour."

"Volunteering with Home Start-Better Start helped me in several ways, both personally and professionally. The experience that I gained, such as providing practical, social and emotional support to families, helped me build my skills and confidence in this area of work which helped me to gain paid employment."

"It hasn’t felt like I’ve been accessing a service, it has always felt nice and informal. Amanda has been like a friend to me and another parent that I can share my parenting concerns with. I had moved to a brand-new area and it felt very intimidating. Amanda eased my fears right from the start and her knowledge of the area really put me at ease."

"Through supporting families, not only have I grown in confidence, but I am learning new approaches on how to deal with things. I am also less anxious and even though I will be nervous meeting new families, I know that the support we provide as volunteers works and makes a massive difference!"

Background, impact and findings

Further reading

Download the 'project on a page'

Download this snapshot of Home-Start Better Start, with headline stats, background, impact and learning (PDF).

Read the Home-Start Better Start final evaluation report

This report provides an overview of project performance and findings from an implementation and before-and-after outcome evaluation by the Better Start Bradford Innovation Hub.

Find out more about Home-Start Bradford District

Home-Start Bradford District is an independent charity committed to promoting the welfare of families with young children and providing volunteer-led support in families’ own homes.

Impact Stories / 1st June 2022
Tanya's confidence boost thanks to volunteering

Tanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.

Impact Stories / 30th April 2021
Parents providing peer support to other families - online training with Home-Start Better Start

Zara, a mum of four children in Bradford, describes her experience of stepping out of her comfort zone to provide peer support to other families in her area.

Impact Stories / 13th December 2020
Why 'Home-Start Better Start' is the perfect name

Phoebe took the time to talk to us about how she felt her Home-Start volunteer has helped her during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Impact Stories / 2nd June 2020
Home-Start Better Start volunteer support during lockdown

How Home-Start Better-Start helped mum of two Phoebe*

Impact Stories / 10th February 2020
How Home-Start Better Start helped me

When 35-year-old Aisha* gave birth to her second child, she felt that the world was completely against her, he felt very alone until support came in the form of Home-Start Better Start volunteer Tanya Marshall.