Parent Champions Wolverhampton dedicate over 600 hours volunteering

On Thursday 5 September, we were delighted to join West Midlands mayor Andy Street as he visited Parent Champions in Wolverhampton. The scheme has been running since 2016 and has seen parent volunteers support families in the local area with our unique and established peer-to-peer model.

Parent Champions Wolverhampton provide vital information about childcare and family services to fellow parents in the local area, including details about free childcare entitlements for three and four-year-olds and eligible two-year-olds. The group have also encouraged local parents to make use of the Strengthening Families Hub and Headstart Wolverhampton, a mental health charity supporting both adults and young people.

Since joining the National Network, Parent Champions Wolverhampton have won four national awards and have dedicated over 600 hours volunteering in the area. Andy Street praised the huge difference the scheme has made:

“It’s been brilliant to meet the Parent Champions group in Wolverhampton and I’ve come away with huge respect for the volunteer coordinator Reeta Shemar for pulling this together, and for each of the Parent Champions I met. Congratulations to all the team here and I’m hoping we may be able to see similar schemes in other boroughs across the West Midlands.”

Becoming a Parent Champion also enables volunteers to build on their own development. Being involved in the scheme has helped Parent Champions boost their employability and their self-confidence.

The Parent Champions were also joined by Lizzie Williams, Programmes Manager at Coram Family and Childcare, who manages similar schemes all over the UK.  Reflecting on the day, Lizzie commented:

“I am delighted that since joining the Parent Champions National Network in 2016, the Parent Champions Wolverhampton scheme has had a huge impact for families in local communities through this parent-to-parent model.

The Parent Champions should be very proud of their achievements. The recognition from the Mayor is well deserved and with his help I look forward to supporting new Parent Champions schemes across the West Midlands.”

If you are interested in setting up your own Parent Champion scheme in your local community, get in touch.