It’s 9am on Monday, the start of a new week! After logging on and checking my inbox, I see I’ve received a text from one of the families I support, so I give them a call. It was Mary, wanting to tell me that she won’t be able to meet up with her volunteer Lizzie this afternoon as she needs to take her son to the GP. I check in that her son is ok (he has asthma) and reassure her that that shouldn’t be an issue, as she’s given us plenty of warning. I then give Lizzie a quick call to let her know before heading out for a family visit. 🏠
The family I’m visiting today is based in Tulse Hill. They referred themselves to our service as the mum is new to Lambeth, has three children under 3s, and is struggling to adjust to life as a single mum after a recent painful divorce. As I arrive at the family’s house, the mum greets me with a smile. She thanks me for coming round and explains that she’s been feeling really very low, as she’s been finding it difficult to look after three young kids on her own and in an area she doesn’t know. I tell her I can relate, as I’m a single mum myself, and explain that I have a volunteer in mind who would be well placed to show her around Lambeth, accompany her to free play groups and offer a listening and empathetic ear. Once I leave the family’s home, I quicky message the Home-Start Lambeth staff WhatsApp group so that my colleagues know that I’ve left the family’s home safely and that I’m making my way back to the office.
Back in the office I read over last week’s ‘volunteer diaries’. These are notes and observations that volunteers write up and share after every visit. When going over the diary entries I can’t help but smile. Volunteers have been going the extra mile, supporting families in areas they hadn’t initially sought support in, such as budgeting and healthy eating. As a result, families have been giving us feedback that they are feeling more confident as parents and more optimistic about their family’s future. After texting volunteers to thank them for their great diary entries, I glance at my watch and realise it’s lunchtime! 🍽️
It’s a nice day, so I go with my colleague Sallie to eat our lunches in the sun. We talk about the impact that the cost-of-living crisis has been having on our families’ ability to go out with their kids this summer. We chat over ways to address this: we have a financial wellbeing training for volunteers planned for the Autumn and our service offers vouchers for free fruits and vegetables, but it’s tough out there.
After lunch it’s time to go back to work and update CharityLog – our database – with notes about this morning’s family visit. Once all notes have been stored, I give a volunteer, Susan, a call to discuss her availability to support the family I visited this morning. Susan seems happy to hear back from me and says she’s excited to start supporting her first family. Before hanging up, I ask Susan about her daughter’s birthday party last Saturday. Her daughter had a great day and all the kids enjoyed the ‘pin the tail on the elephant’ activity that she organised! Susan is feeling really proud of her efforts and this is so nice to hear. 🐘
By this stage it’s already 3pm, so I check my inbox again to find 2 new referrals: one from Solace for a survivor of domestic abuse who’s just moved to Lambeth with her 9-month-old, and one from a midwife for a new mum who’s been recently diagnosed with post-natal depression. It’s important that I acknowledge referrals as soon as possible, so I quickly reply to their emails and add the referrals to our referrals’ list.
Then it’s time for our weekly Coordinators’ meeting! We start off by reviewing new referrals and discussing which of the coordinators would be better placed to take them on. We then review our current caseloads. We talk over our families’ progress and the things that we still need to help them with. Bouncing ideas with my colleagues always helps with problem solving – pooling all that local knowledge is always helpful!
It’s been a productive day and is now time to head home to my own family. My daughter has been attending a cooking class at the local children’s centre and I’m looking forward to the enchiladas she said would be on the menu! 😋
Abigaile