Referrers Info

It is our aim at Home-Start Nottingham to operate an open referral policy ensuring that support is available to any family with children under the age of eight years old living in greater Nottingham, the boroughs of Rushcliffe, Ashfield, Gedling and Broxtowe.

Families can refer themselves, or be referred to Home-Start Nottingham by any agency, e.g. health visitor, social worker, family support worker, CPN, Children Centres, nursery teacher, etc in consultation with the family.
We only restrict referrals where there is a lack of resources.

Please contact the office on info@hsn.org.uk or phone 0115 962 4262 for a referral form. Once you have received the form, please fill it in completely and send it back to info@hsn.org.uk. When the form is received a co-ordinator from the office will be in contact with you.
Before sending in a referral form families must be consulted, informed of the content of the referral form and show their agreement by signing the form.
All referrals received will be assessed to determine:
Appropriateness of referral.
Whether there are volunteers available.
How soon a volunteer might be linked.

If the referral does not fall within the remit of the scheme or there are insufficient resources to provide support, the referral will not be accepted and the referrer informed that Home-Start Nottingham cannot help on this occasion. If it is possible to signpost a family to another service we will do this.

If the referral is accepted, a co-ordinator from the office will contact the referrer to discuss the next steps and to explain how quickly support can begin.

Home-Start Nottingham aims to provide support to families either immediately or within a few weeks. We will take name and contact details of the referrer and ask them to contact us in a month, or we will contact them if a volunteer becomes available.

The co-ordinator pays careful attention to matching volunteer skills and experience to the needs of families. Many factors are taken into consideration, including:
The family’s needs.
The volunteer’s aptitudes, skills and experience.
Practical considerations: geography, transport and time.
Mutual interests or life experience.
What motivates the volunteer.
Issues around culture, gender, background and disability.
The success of Home-Start Nottingham support is dependent on the relationship that develops between the family and the volunteer, so co-ordinators make every effort to link sensitively and appropriately.
The co-ordinator always accompanies the volunteer on the first visit to introduce the volunteer to the family and set the ground rules for visiting. The co-ordinator will stay as long as appropriate to support the family and volunteer to get to know each other.

Volunteers provide continuous, regular support for a period of time consistent with a family’s needs. These are assessed initially and reviewed at least every three months.
Home-Start Nottingham’s aim is to encourage families towards independence so that the volunteer is no longer needed. The review process will determine how long the volunteer’s support is likely to be needed and clear plans will be made for ending the support in discussion with the volunteer and family.

Families are sometimes offered support outside the home, which complements Home-Start Nottingham’s core home visiting support, for example outings and parenting courses.
Please contact us for more information on the additional services we offer.
Parents respond to and appreciate Home-Start’s approach to support outside the home and begin to enjoy playing and learning with their children in new ways as well as widening their social networks, sharing ideas, enjoying the company of others and having fun together. They value the opportunity to offer support to others and may gain greater self-confidence, sometimes leading to new opportunities including volunteering, employment, courses or further education.