Resources
Welcome to our resources section!
Little Village
Little Village has hubs in north & south London. They collect clothes, toys and equipment for babies and children up to the age of 5. They accept donations of excellent-condition, pre-loved items, which are passed on to families who need support. The items are a gift, given with love, from one family to another.
Lloyd Park Children's charity
Our baby bank supports families in Waltham Forest and beyond who are in urgent need of help. We rely solely on donations from the community, a gift from one local family to another.
Made for Mums
It’s very common for new mums to feel overwhelmed, low and even a bit weepy in the first couple of weeks after birth. So common, in fact, that there’s actually a name for it, the baby blues. And it’s not surprising: You’re knackered, you’re sore, you’re bleeding (whether you had a caesarean or not) and, instead of being able to sleep it all off, you’re faced with the 24-hour responsibility of caring for a whole new – and right now very needy – person. While the weepiness and blues should be quite short-lived, it may take a while longer before you can ditch the overwhelmed bit.
Parents in Mind
Local volunteers to support women experiencing emotional health difficulties in pregnancy.
Postnatal mental health - Talking about mental health
Sara, Holly and Kate talk about their experience of mental health problems after pregnancy and becoming mothers.
ACAS
Checking your pregnancy and maternity rights
Pregnancy Sickness Support
Our national support network is for sufferers of NVP and HG and their carers, which is growing and developing constantly and making a huge difference to women all around the country. Our leaflets and website also provide a valuable resource for those suffering. We are also working hard to raise awareness about Nausea and Vomiting in pregnancy and Hyperemesis Gravidarum with the public, the media and Health Care Professionals (HCP's) and are involved in ongoing research into the cause and treatment of NVP and HG and the psychological impact for sufferers and their families.
Guardian Society
Useful articles about perinatal health from the Guardian newspaper 2020-21
Grow baby
A welcoming and relaxing space for Hackney based children and their carers, where everyone can make friends and find support. We welcome parents, childminders, nannies, grandparents and anyone else looking after under-fives. There is always plenty for toddlers to play with and lots of chat amongst the parents and carers.
Online Information for Expectant Families
An A-Z of parental concerns.
ELFT
Contact details for an outpatient service for women during pregnancy and up to a year postnatally who live in Tower Hamlets. For women who have a pre-existing or new-onset mental illness.
Maternity Mates
Maternity Mates is currently open to pregnant women living in Newham, Tower Hamlets or Waltham Forest who do not have a suitable support network, or have specific needs or healthcare issues. Please click here to read more about the women we support, and to make a referral to the service.
Toyhouse
With 35 years’ experience of working with families through the medium of play, Toyhouse fosters attachment between parents and children, enabling them to interact together and share experiences. Toyhouse empowers individuals, families, volunteers and employees to develop the skills and resilience.
Talkchanges (Tower Hamlets)
We help people with a wide range of worries, common mental health problems and emotional difficulties.
Even though many of these problems are not unusual, they can become overwhelming, distressing and make day-to-day life a struggle.
Difficulties we can help with include:
- Low mood – depression, stressful life events, loss of motivation, low self-esteem, problems at work, relationship distress
- Anxiety – worry that is difficult to control, anxiety about social situations, panic attacks, traumatic events, obsessive thoughts and behaviours
Bump Buddies
Bump Buddies brings together pregnant women in Hackney and experienced local mums, for support and sharing through times of change.
E5 Baby Bank
The E5 BABY & CHILDREN BANK offers families in need essential items such as clothes, shoes, toys, books, food and baby equipment. All items are generously donated by the local community.
Sure Steps
Support Through Early Parenting Scheme - is a Tower Hamlets project that offers one-to-one peer-support for pregnant women or new mothers.
Unplanned Pregnancy support
Choices supports women and their partners through unplanned pregnancy, with concerns following abortion, and gives practical and emotional help with parenting. We provide counselling for women in prison, and we offer relationships courses.
Mind
Website with helpful and friendly information that explains postnatal depression and other perinatal mental health problems, including possible causes, treatments and support options. Also has information for friends and family, including support and advice for partners.
Henry
The Best Start with HENRY service in City & Hackney is supporting hundreds of local families with children aged 0-5 – from shortly after birth, right through to starting school – to provide a healthy, happy start in life for their children and the whole family.
Providing a healthy, happy start for young children helps lay the foundations for a brighter future where children flourish throughout childhood and beyond.
The Homerton Health Visiting Service
The Homerton Health Visiting Service is here to support you and your family in Hackney and the City during pregnancy, birth and parenthood. The service will now be offering video appointments in addition to face to face and telephone appointments.
Best Start in Life
Our Family Support Workers help families to tackle issues having an impact on the family. This includes issues such as domestic violence, mental health, housing, and financial struggles. Many mums find it difficult to open up about how they are feeling and continue to suffer in silence. Parents in Mind aims to improve women’s emotional wellbeing and to reduce isolation within the community, by providing a safe space to talk and good quality support from a trained volunteer.
Action on Postpartum Psychosis
Peer led organisation with lots of helpful info on perinatal mental health illnesses
The Salvation Army Ilford
Ilford Salvation Army is a Church and Community Hub based in the heart of Ilford. We run a wide range of activities, and in everything are motivated by showing God's love to the people of Ilford
The Small Project
We started giving out clothes bundles in 2015. We're a small team of volunteers who want to make sure that good quality baby clothes and equipment, which are no longer needed by one family can easily be passed on to another.