Do you know any parents who could support other parents?
Helping your child navigate further and higher education and all the different routes into a career can be challenging. But through our Parent2Parent volunteer programme we’re helping parents support other parents through the experience. Read on to discover more…
As a parent, you want to help your child make the very best choices in life, but it can be tough to help them do that when you’re navigating systems you haven’t been through for decades yourself, or have maybe never experienced.
Our Parent2Parent Volunteer programme is designed to tackle this very challenge. Our parent volunteers use their experiences of guiding their own children through further education, apprenticeship schemes and university life to guide other parents through these milestones.
Our parent volunteers:
- Make information videos for other parents to help them navigate key moments and potential issues
- Are on hand at key events and webinars to answer questions (some of our parent volunteers will be on hand at our next What Next Sussex? event)
- Can be reached via our new dedicated email address parents@sussexlearningnetwork.org.uk. Any parents with questions regarding exams, milestone moments, university applications, student finance etc can email their query through and our parent volunteers will get back to them, sharing their own knowledge and experiences, and signposting useful resources to turn to
We know that parents really value the support they get from other parents as they are able to ask the questions they might otherwise feel unable to ask and can get honest, practical, accessible hints, tips, thoughts and ideas.
We’d now love to extend the programme and are actively looking for more parents to join. Parents don’t need any particular qualifications – just lots of enthusiasm and a few hours a month to give to this much valued work. All of our volunteers are also DBS checked.
Gaby Barry, is one of our parent volunteers and has a daughter, 22 studying to be a paramedic at Worcester University and an 18 year old son currently studying motor sport engineering at Shoreham. She says: “I didn’t go to university so I found the process of supporting my daughter through her application quite stressful and daunting at times. I’ll feel so different going into it with my son, just because I know what I’m doing and because I’ve discovered some fantastic resources along the way.
“I’ve seen first-hand just how much my children have benefitted from making the right choices, so I want to do anything I can to help other children experience bright futures and to help other parents as they support them in getting there. If anyone is considering becoming a Parent Volunteer I’d say go for it. It’s not too big a commitment but the difference you can make is huge!”
With Volunteers Week coming up from 1st – 7th June, why not use the week to publicise this opportunity to parents in your community?
And it’s worth highlighting that the benefits of this programme, and of other volunteering experiences, are two-fold. In the report Time Well Spent by NCVO volunteers talked about the profoundly positive impact volunteering had had, not only in their community, but also in their own life:
- 90% feel they make a difference through their volunteering
- 77% report that volunteering improved their health and wellbeing
- Almost nine in ten say they met new people through their volunteering experiences
We look forward to meeting, establishing and making a difference with many more Parent2Parent volunteers over the coming months. To find out more email us at parents@sussexlearningnetwork.org.uk.