When I was first referred to Home-Start I felt completely overwhelmed as a single mum to my then one year old son. Having not long lived on the Isle of Wight after facing homelessness, we were living in temporary accommodation trying to rebuild our lives. I felt very isolated as I had no social connections and my mental health deteriorated.
As a first time parent I was struggling to establish a solid routine for my son and felt a lot of uncertainty around my capabilities as a mum. Home-Start provided me with a volunteer who instantly made me feel reassured and that I was no longer struggling on my own. She went above and beyond to help me and my son and carried on supporting us until she was certain that we were in a much better place.
The support she provided included showing me all the local stay and play groups, attending them with me until I felt comfortable to go alone. She gave me a lot of praise and motivation which I really needed at that point in life because I had no confidence or self-esteem. On my toughest days she provided me with emotional support, being a lovely compassionate person who always listened without judgment.
As well as the emotional support, she provided me with practical advice with bulk cooking, meal planning, budgeting, debt management and helping me to understand my son’s milestones through play and outdoor activities. Home-Start gave me hope and had an enormous positive impact on my life. Home-Start will always hold a special place in my heart because they were there for me during an extremely difficult time and helped me to turn my life around for the better. I will never be able to thank them enough!
