Posts

Tell us about maternal mental health care

Tell us about maternal mental health care

Pregnancy is a major life event for any family. It can be joyful and fulfilling but also challenging. Healthwatch England is launching a national survey to understand if care works for new mothers and birthing parents and what needs improving for people who develop mental health difficulties relating to their maternity experience.

With one in four women experiencing mental health problems during pregnancy and in the first year following the birth of a child, support from maternity services can significantly impact their mental health and wellbeing.

Who do we want to hear from?

  • We want to hear from you if you have been pregnant in the last two years and have experienced mental health difficulties before, during or after giving birth.
  • We are interested in the experiences of women from ethnic minority communities and LGBTQ+ birthing parents.

Everything you share is confidential and will help us and the NHS understand what they need to put in place to better support people using maternity services.

Share your story

Find out more about Healthwatch England’s research

This piece of work has now finished.

Parent Workshops

Parent Workshops

Online Parenting Workshops from Escape Family Support

Escape Family Support is running some parenting workshops, for parents with children between the ages of 9 -18 years of age. All workshops take place on Fridays between 10am and 12pm.

If you are interested in attending or would like further information, contact Angie Turnbull on 07812983611 or email: angie.turnbull@escapefamilysupport.org.uk. Please book as soon as possible as places are limited. If you need support to get online to access the workshop the team can help.

Workshops

14th May 2021 – Understanding why my child misbehaves
• Understand children’s behavior
• Discuss and list the needs we all have
• Identify the needs a child is trying to meet with a certain behavior
• Distinguish what is acceptable/unacceptable behavior
• Practice challenging unacceptable behavior, paying attention to feelings and underlying needs

21st May 2021 – Promoting positive behaviour
• Understanding influences on children’s behaviour
• To gain knowledge of positive parenting
• Encouraging and developing skills in our children
Setting goals for change

28th May 2021 – Managing misbehaviour
• Learning new strategies to promote positive parenting
• Using a behaviour chart/contract
• Gain knowledge of strategies to manage misbehaviour
• Understand the purpose of challenging difficult behaviour

4th June 2021 – Sibling rivalry
• To look at parent’s relationship with their siblings when they were children
• To discuss what causes conflict with their children
• To understand the impact this has on the family
• To work together for a way forward

11th June 2021 – Creating confident children
• To gain an understanding of self esteem
• To discuss low self-esteem and high self-esteem
• To gain an understanding of low and high self-esteem
• To look at how parenting has changed over the past twenty years

18th June 2021 – Setting boundaries
• To explore why we need boundaries for our children/teenagers
• To encourage parents to look at boundaries they had as a child
• To look at setting boundaries at different ages
• To discuss children/teenagers need rules to be safe

25th June 2021 – Parenting a teenager
• To reflect over parents’ teenage years
• To understand how it has changed for our teenagers today
• To understand changes from a child to a teenager
• To gain an understanding of where to go for support for parents and teenagers

Visit our Children and Young People’s Health Information Page

Kooth Q&A

Kooth Q&A

Providing information about local health and care services is part of the core work of Healthwatch Northumberland, and mental health services for children and young people is one of our key priorities.

In June 2020 NHS Northumberland Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) commissioned Kooth, a free online mental health support service for young people aged 11-25 years.

Watch this video to find out more.

We were therefore delighted to host an online seminar on 10 March 2021 with Malcolm Connelly, Engagement Lead at Kooth who told us about how the service works and how parents, carers and professionals can signpost young people to it.

Below are the questions from the audience and Malcolm’s answers which include links to the Kooth site and how to contact Malcolm for more information.

If you or a young person you know have used Kooth, we would like to hear about your experience. Share your feedback with us.

Q&A

How can parents check the suitability of Kooth?

There are demos available to see what the site looks like from a user’s perspective however the content will look different depending on the age of the child. A demo can be arranged by emailing Malcolm Connelly (mconnelly@kooth.com). There is also information on the Kooth website and Malcolm has put together a parents’ information letter.

Kooth follows strict safeguarding guidelines and young people will only speak to trained counsellors when using the platform. Any discussion is via pre-moderated threads.

How can I get resources to share to promote Kooth?

If you work for an organisation which supports children and young people, get in touch with Malcolm to add your details to his database of contacts. There are also A4 posters and wallet size cards available. Visit the Kooth Promotion Hub to find resources to promote Kooth.

Do you promote Kooth to schools and youth groups?

Yes, Malcolm does presentations in schools and for youth groups although it is more difficult at the moment with restrictions. Malcolm is currently only able to offer virtual presentations but is hoping to get back into schools later in the year.

What does Kooth mean?

During initial discussions about what to call the platform, a group of young people took the word ‘uncouth’ and flipped it to the more positive ‘Kooth’.

What is the adult equivalent of Kooth?

Qwell. This is currently only available to teachers and support staff in Northumberland.

Is there any data to show the positive impact that Kooth is having on young people and what are the recurring themes?

Monthly and quarterly reports are sent to the CCG which commissions Kooth, however these have to be requested and authorised for anyone else who would like to see them.

Is there any reason for Kooth starting at 11 years old?

This age was agreed with the CCG and is relevant as it is the start of secondary school. Around the age of 11 or 12 children are old enough to understand more and benefit from the support service. Gillick competency is assessed (more details here).

Is Kooth safe for autistic people?

Kooth is a safe space but we understand some young people may struggle with the text-based service and are constantly working to make Kooth fully accessible for all.

You mentioned face-to-face interventions. How does that work?

This is not currently available in the North East.

Are you getting into schools at the moment with the current restrictions?

Yes, but not as much as usual. Malcolm is hoping to get back into schools regularly by September.

 

Find out more about the support available for children and young people in Northumberland.

Online event – mental wellbeing support for young people

Online event – mental wellbeing support for young people

Are you a parent, carer or someone who is looking for initial support for a child or young person’s mental wellbeing? Perhaps you work with young people and want ideas about what mental health support is available in Northumberland? Come along to our online event on Wednesday 10 March from 10.30am to 11.30am and find out more about Kooth, an online counselling and support service available to all young people aged 11-25 across Northumberland.

Kooth is a safe, confidential and anonymous way for young people to access wellbeing and mental health support through self-help resources and articles, peer support and discussion, and access to fully trained and qualified counsellors until 10pm each night, 365 days per year.

This event is an opportunity to hear more about Kooth from Northumberland’s Kooth Engagement Lead Malcolm Connelly who will give a short presentation and introduction to the service, what it involves, how to access it and what you can expect. There will be a Q&A session following the presentation.

Find out more about Kooth here.

Children’s Mental Health Week took place this year from 1 to 7 February, an opportunity to shine a spotlight on children and young people’s mental health. We supported this campaign and are currently running a survey to get feedback from young people about their experiences of mental health services. However, we understand that the work does not stop with the end of this campaign and many young people will continue to need mental health support during these difficult times and beyond.

Preliminary results from our survey show that many young people do not seek formal support for their mental wellbeing and will instead rely on family and friends, but it is important that people are aware that there are local services available that can provide support and that they know how to access them.

If you would like to come along to the event please contact Helen Brown at: helenb@healthwatchnorthumberland.co.uk, or call 03332 408468 to register.

We would also like to hear from young people who are using or have used children’s mental health services in Northumberland so we can understand what is working well and what could be improved. You can share your views here.

Parents, carers and relatives of young people who have used services can also share feedback on our website.

 

 

Back to school support from Diabetes UK

Back to school support from Diabetes UK

As schools are due to reopen in September, Diabetes UK knows that parents and carers might be worried about the safety of their children with diabetes returning to school.

To help ease these worries they have organised a ‘Back to school’ question and answer session via Zoom with a panel of experts who will help to answer any questions you might have.

The Zoom session will take place on Wednesday 12 August from 7.30pm to 8.30pm.

The panel of experts will include:

  • Dr Fiona Campbell: Consultant Paediatrician and Diabetologist at Leeds Children’s Hospital
  • Carol Metcalfe: Advanced Specialist Practitioner in Paediatric Diabetes at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital
  • James Rodger-Phillips: a Head of Department at a secondary school who lives with type 1 diabetes
  • Steve Paxton: parent of two teenagers with type 1 diabetes and Good Care In School Award assessor

The Type 1 Events team are also running further panels for parents and carers in August and September:

  • Newly diagnosed – what happens when type 1 diabetes joins your family? Tuesday 18 August – 7pm to 8.30pm.
  • Becoming more independent. Monday 21 September – 7pm to 8.30pm.

If you would like to attend any of these events you can sign up here.

All of the latest advice for managing diabetes during the coronavirus outbreak can be found on the Diabetes UK coronavirus advice page.

Events

Choices4Growth Parents Forum

Choices4Growth Parents Forum

Join Choices4Growth for their first Parents Forum, an opportunity to take some time out, speak to other parents and find support in a friendly virtual group.

The forum will take place on Monday 10 May from 1.30pm to 2.30pm via Zoom.

For more information, please email Michael at: C4G@mconnaughton.co.uk

Online event – mental wellbeing support for young people

Online event – mental wellbeing support for young people

Are you a parent, carer or someone who is looking for initial support for a child or young person’s mental wellbeing? Perhaps you work with young people and want ideas about what mental health support is available in Northumberland? Come along to our online event on Wednesday 10 March from 10.30am to 11.30am and find out more about Kooth, an online counselling and support service available to all young people aged 11-25 across Northumberland.

Kooth is a safe, confidential and anonymous way for young people to access wellbeing and mental health support through self-help resources and articles, peer support and discussion, and access to fully trained and qualified counsellors until 10pm each night, 365 days per year.

This event is an opportunity to hear more about Kooth from Northumberland’s Kooth Engagement Lead Malcolm Connelly who will give a short presentation and introduction to Kooth, what it involves, how to access it and what you can expect. There will be a Q&A session following the presentation.

Find out more about Kooth here.

If you would like to come along to the event please contact Helen Brown at: helenb@healthwatchnorthumberland.co.uk, or call 03332 408468 to register.

We would also like to hear from young people who are using or have used children’s mental health services in Northumberland so we can understand what is working well and what could be improved. You can share your views here.

Parents, carers and relatives of young people who have used services can also share feedback on our website.

Maternity services: Join our online forum

Maternity services: Join our online forum

As we will be unable to get out and about across the county to meet with and listen to people for a while, we’re holding some public online forums, and we’d like you to join us. If you are unable to take part but would like to tell us about your experiences of these services, Caroline and Lesley will be available by phone, text and email each Wednesday between 3.00pm and 4.00pm to listen, answer any questions and help with providing information about services.

The forums will take place via Zoom. Read our guide on how to use Zoom.

The subject of this online forum is maternity services, so if you’d like to share your experiences of services in the last 12 months, or those of someone close to you, please join us.

If you would like to take part please contact Lesley Tweddell, lesleyt@healthwatchnorthumberland.co.uk, or 07803 427 466.

 

Find out about our other online forums