Where to go for further help and support

Getting help

Elmore Community Services

Elmore Community Services have a Parenthood Team that support young parents aged between 16 and 25 who have complex needs and are living in Oxford City. They work with pregnant mums, and young parents with children aged up to 2 years.

The Parenthood Team provides intensive support to young parents, their focus is to support families where one or both parents have complex needs and the children are in danger of being removed from their care.

They can help develop parenting skills and tackle any areas of your life that you would like to change, they will help you tackle issues in your life such as poverty, accommodation, benefits, addictions and health.

Anyone can refer to the Parenthood Team, including people seeking support, friends and family members, service providers and GPs. Tel: 01865 200130

Looked after children - Health Team

Maggie Mackenzie is the Designated Nurse for Looked After Children, making sure that the health of children in care is a top priority within the local authority and the health service. Kathryn Tolson is the Specialist Nurse along with Maggie, she provides support, advice and information to carers, social workers, health and other professionals regarding health matters. She also visits children and young people to complete their health assessments.

The team are based at East Oxford Health Centre on Cowley Road and run a health clinic on a Thursday morning at the Out of Hours Clinic You can just drop in if you want to talk to somebody.

Tel: 01865 265009 or text Kathryn on 07795 602261

Family Nurse Partnership

The Family Nurse Partnership is a programme which supports young first time mums up to when their baby becomes 2 years old. The family nurses provide support to the mums and dads to make sure the pregnancy and early years are successful for the parents and baby. They support the parents in all aspects of their lives from health, relationships, housing and helping them to get back into work or education.   

There are certain criteria that the mums-to-be must meet and the Family Nurse Partnership only runs in certain areas of Oxfordshire. You can find out about the Family Nurse Partnership and ask about making a referral and the criteria by contacting them.

Tel: 01865 265035.

Community Legal Advice

If you need advice and help about your personal situation the Community Legal Advice is a free and confidential advice service paid for by legal aid. They have advisers, who can help you with issues from claiming the correct benefits for you and your child, child maintenance and housing. Tel: 0845 345 4 345.  

Citizens Advice Bureau

The Citizens Advice Bureau offers free, independent, confidential and impartial advice about all sorts of problems you may be facing. They have local offices where you can meet with CAB advisers and pick up information sheets.  Tel: 08444 111 444

Health

The Tommy’s charity provides information about pregnancy and has lots of publications that you can order for free. They have books especially for young mums which has lots of advice for your pregnancy. You can talk to their midwives on their helpline. Tel: 0800 0147 800

Drugs

The Cranstoun Oxford Women's Service is a drug and alcohol service especially for women across Oxfordshire. It is for women over 18 years of age or over who are experiencing problems with their substance misuse. They are based in Oxford. Tel: 01865 793 880

Young Addaction is the drug and alcohol treatment service for young people – under 18s in Oxfordshire. Young Addaction provides a confidential service if you need information, advice, support or treatment. They can also offer support and advice if you have been affected by other people's drug and alcohol use. Tel: 01235 468405 or 07717 346764

Sexual Health

There is information all about sexual health services in Oxfordshire which can be accessed on one website, the site includes all sorts of information from contraception choices, STIs and help if you have been affected by sexual assault. So you only have to go to one website: 

If you think you’re at risk of having an STI there are Genito-Urinary Medicine (GUM) clinics in Oxford and Banbury where you can go for advice and treatment. You can also talk to your midwife or doctor.

There is loads of information on the NHS Choices website about making positive choices about your sexual health, the site also lists loads of local services which you can access.

Or you can call their ‘Worth Talking About’ helpline.  Tel: 0800 282930

Brook offers free and confidential information for under 25s about all aspects of sex, there is information about contraception, STIs and relationships. They have a confidential ‘Ask Brook’ service, and you can contact them on the phone, online or by text. Tel: 0808 802 1234 or text on 07717 989 023

Bonding

The Oxford Parent Infant Project (OXPIP) helps parents and their babies in the first two years of their baby’s life to help them build strong and loving attachments. They support families by working with parents and infants together, to build on the positives, boosting parent’s confidence and helping parents be led by the needs of the baby. They provides intensive one-to-one support to parents and their babies as well as group work which focuses on parenting skills, baby chatting and baby massage. Email: info@oxpip.org.uk  Tel: 01865 778034

Education, Employment and Training

Next Step provides information, careers and skills advice to help you get back into work or improve your career prospects. They can help you with things like finding learning and training that is right for you, improving your interview skills and developing your CV.

There are also Next Step offices in Oxford, Abingdon, Banbury, Bicester and Didcot.
Tel: 0800 100 900

Oxford City Council produce a very useful guide for anyone who lives in Oxford who wants to get back into work, education or training. The guide called On Your FEET, includes information about getting help with benefits or grants you might be able to claim, debt and money advice and careers advice. Tel: 01865 249811

Parenting and Relationships

The Oxfordshire County Council Family Learning Team can help professionals working with families with the development of parenting and family learning, with parenting programmes to meet the needs of your families and partnership with your parents. The team offers a range of resources and training materials to do with parenting education and family learning.

Tel:01865 815820

Home Start is a home visiting scheme for families with children under five years old. Home Start can offer support, friendship and practical assistance to parents helping you to become a confident parent. It’s free and confidential. They have branches throughout Oxfordshire, find out your nearest one on the Home Start website. Tel: 0800 068 6368

PEEP is a parenting programme which encourages you as a parent to learn together with your child, as mums and dads are their children’s first and most important teacher from birth. The PEEP Learning Together programme focuses on how to make the most of these very early learning opportunities you have in your everyday life at home – listening, talking, playing, singing, sharing books - and having fun!

The PEEP groups are run at children’s centres. Or you can contact PEEP and they will answer any questions. Tel: 01865-397970 / 395145  Email: info@peep.org.uk

Oxfordshire Play Association offers a range of services to promote and develop play opportunities for children and young people aged 0-19.  Many of OPA's services are free to all, but membership is low-cost and provides many additional benefits. The website is full of ideas .... there is a play idea of the week which gives great inspiration.

Family Links

Family Links has a programme called ‘The Nurturing Programme’ which helps families to have loving and kind relationships with each other. The 'Nurturing Programme' doesn’t tell you what to do, but it helps you to share information and ideas that you can try out and see what works well for you and your family.

The courses are usually run at your local Children’s Centre, contact the Family Information Service to find out about courses running in your area. Tel:08452 26 26 36

General help and support for parents

The Family Action charity provides practical, emotional and financial support to families, many who face difficult issues – including domestic abuse, mental health problems, learning disabilities and severe financial hardship. They also provide welfare and educational grants to families and individuals in need.

The organisation Mind provides help, support and information about mental health issues and they have information to support mums who are suffering from postnatal depression. Oxfordshire Mind has branches all over Oxfordshire offering support. Tel: 0845 766 0163

The Association for Post Natal Illness provides a telephone helpline and information leaflets for parents as well as a network of volunteers who have also experienced postnatal illness. The Association can send you out an information pack about postnatal depression.Tel: 020 7386 0868

Family Lives is a national charity providing help and support in all aspects of family life. They are there for you 24 hours a day, seven days a week through their free helpline. You can also email or chat online to their trained support workers. You can call them about any family issue, big or small!  Tel:Parentline - 0808 800 2222 (24 hours a day, seven days a week)

If you are on your own Gingerbread provides advice and support for single parents.  They have advisers who can answer your questions on their helpline and their website has lots of useful information with factsheets about all sorts of issues that are important to you and your family. 
Tel: 0808 802 0925

The National Childbirth Trust (NCT) helps to support parents and parents-to-be and also organises various activities and events. They also have local branches throughout Oxfordshire

which offer support and events from meet ups to nearly new sales! The NCT has helplines covering a range of subjects check out their website for their helpline numbers.

Contact a Family provides support, advice and information for families with disabled children, no matter what their condition or disability. Their advisers can help with all sorts of information to make sure you get the right help and support for you and your child. Contact a Family also have local Volunteer parent representatives who can help you access services in your area and offer support to you and your family.  Tel: 0808 808 3555

Oxfordshire Family Information Service provides information and support for children, young people and families in Oxfordshire. They give free information and advice on finding and paying for childcare, play and leisure activities, help for families with disabled children and family and parenting support. They also support professionals in their work. Tel: 08452 26 26 36

For dads

If you separate from your partner and you are worried about keeping in contact with your baby there is information and support through Families Need Fathers, check out their website for fact sheets and guides. They also have a helpline which is available on weekday evenings between the hours of 6 pm and 10 pm, 0300 0300 363. They have a local Oxford branch with regular meetings.

The Young Fathers Initiative website also has information to support you as a young dad too

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