Bumps, Babes, and Beyond Winter 2018/19 | Page 7

Yet to pop?

If you are pregnant, you are advised to have the seasonal flu jab, whatever your stage of pregnancy. Your surgery should have contacted you to offer it to you. Many employers offer it and you can have the flu jab in some pharmacies. So please find out.

"When you are pregnant, your immune system is naturally lower. This means that pregnant women are more likely to catch flu and, if they do catch it, they are more likely to develop complications. wever, your immune system stil functions, and the risk of complications is small. Although most pregnant women will only have mild symptoms, women at any stage of pregnancy should be offered the flu vaccine."

For more thoughts about keep your baby or children warm visit the NCT website

6

Proposed changes to Children's Centres - have your say

There is just one month left to go to have your say on the future of our local Children’s Sure Start Centres.

Surrey County Council are consulting on the proposals which can be found at: https://www.surreysays.co.uk/csf/family-resilience-childrens-centres/

The Staines, Ashford & Egham NCT Branch are concerned as the universal support currently provided (for example, advice and help for all families on things like parenting, health and education) will no longer be offered.

The other main headlines are as follows:

• In Spelthorne, they plan to reduce the number of Children’s Centres from 6 to 4 (see page 9 of the document).

• For Runnymede, they plan to reduce the number from 4 to 2 (see page 11 of the document).

• The closure of the following Children’s: Kenyngton Manor (Sunbury) and Spelthorne (Ashford Common), Sayes Court (Addlestone) and The Poplars (New Haw).

• Buckland (Staines), and Saxon (Shepperton), Addlestone Youth Centre and Chertsey Children’s Centres will have fewer less frequent services.

• Stanwell and Clarendon (Ashford Town Centre) and The Haven (Egham) Children’s Centres will remain with reduced services affecting sessions like Play and Learn.

• Children’s Centres which currently are aimed at supporting families with children aged 0-5 will instead support families with children up until the age of 11.

• Those Centres which will remain (Stanwell, Clarendon and The Haven) will act as Hubs where families can get support from other services, they will also no longer be known as Children’s Centres.

The deadline for responses is 4 January 2019. You need not complete the whole of the questionnaire and can just fill out those sections relevant to you. Please do take 5 minutes to click through and have your say. Much valued parenting support found at our local Children’s Centres is under threat.

Our response:

The Staines, Ashford & Egham NCT are extremely concerned about the proposed reduction in parenting support that could arise as a result of the proposals outlined within this consultation. Even a reduced service at Buckland Sure Start centre, for example, could see the cessation of valued sessions like Family Play and Learn. Furthermore, we fear for the future of much needed local Breastfeeding Support like that currently provided at Spelthorne and Clarendon Children’s Centres which use NCT trained Peer Supporters and Breastfeeding Counsellors. Any future models of service provision, in our view, should continue to safeguard and prioritise support for young families. The National Childbirth Trust’s vision is of a world in which no parent is isolated and all parents are supported to build a stronger society. We remain unconvinced that the changes will continue to support our aim and could mean that local parents could become more isolated as a result.