Offspring Off Shoot - Summer Holidays 2017 | Page 16

Branch Information Keeping up to date with our news Branch Diary Our email address is [email protected]. If you don’t currently receive emails from the branch and would like to do so to hear about our latest events and news, please do email and ask to be added to our list. Don’t forget, you can also check out our Facebook page for our latest news and information on events organised after this newsletter has gone to print. Not found anything to suit in the branch diary? Why not help organise a social event or meet up, or even help us raise some money to support the branch by putting on a fundraiser? Just get in touch via [email protected] and we can support you and advise on suitable dates and help with ideas. There are 300 NCT branches nationwide and Stourbridge and Halesowen are your local branch. The branch is run by volunteers and NCT practitioners. We come together for a committee meeting every 6 weeks to talk about what is planned to happen within our branch. The committee meetings are open to all so if you’d like to come and see what goes on just contact the branch via [email protected] to find out where the next meeting is. You don’t have to volunteer to attend the meeting. We ‘d love to hear your views and ideas but if you just want to observe that’s fine too. Babies are also welcome! If you were interested in taking on a more active role we do have several vacancies on the committee. Thank you to all those who give up their time for free to support the branch but especially to our committee members who do make a regular commitment to ensure the branch can continue. We are fortunate to have such a great team! We are all volunteers. The only people paid in our branch are the trained specialist workers who run antenatal and postnatal courses and breastfeeding counselling. We don’t have offices. We have an email group an d we meet every 6 weeks in each others’ houses or in a local pub. You’re very welcome to come along to meetings & see what we do. We are all parents. You don’t have to be a parent to volunteer, but using NCT services is how most of us got involved. We are old & new. Some of us have been involved since our teenagers were babies, others are brand new. We don't all live in Stourbridge or Halesowen. The branch supports parents throughout Dudley and the surrounding areas and our volunteers also cover a large area. We squeeze in our NCT work! Our volunteering fits in around our families, and the other things we do, like work, study, or home-schooling. We are not Super! Okay, so some of the things we pull off are pretty amazing for a small bunch of volunteers (sometimes with lots of helpers) —like our Nearly New Sales. But don’t let that put you off! No special powers, previous involvement with NCT or previous experience is needed to join us. Offspring Page 7