Home Start is a brilliant charity that gives practical help and support to families who have at least one child under five, but are struggling to cope with difficult times.

Home Start works with parents on a ‘one to one’ basis in their own homes, responding directly to the family’s individual needs. Trained volunteers, who have often gone through similar problems to the families they are helping, are the key to Home Start’s success. Volunteers, like Marita, get 8 weeks of training and are carefully matched to the families they work with, to make sure parents get the best possible help.

After meeting some of the staff and volunteers at Home Start’s offices in Leicester, I talked to parents who have benefited from their support. They told me that before they’d got involved, they’d been struggling to cope, feeling lonely and depressed, or lacking confidence to do even very basic things.  However, the Home Start volunteers had been “a lifeline . One mum said “they give the simplest help and the best help”. “I don’t know what I’d do without them” said another.

It is absolutely vital that we maintain the help provided by Home Start and not let the Conservative-LibDem Government’s cuts to Leicester City Council’s budget could put these services at risk.

If you think you might need help and support from Home Start, or are interested in becoming a volunteer, you can find out more information on their website. You can also visit their office at 8 – 10 West Walk, ring 0116 2549937 or email elaine {at} home-start-leicester.org(.)uk

You can read more about my visit in the Leicester Mercury by clicking here.