Doncaster Family Hubs are the ‘go to’ place, for families, in their local communities. We provide a wide range of useful and helpful support, services and information. We welcome families from conception – midwives are based in Family Hubs.

It’s really important it is to talk to your baby even when you are pregnant and you will be able to find out information to help you build a close loving relationship with your baby.

Once your baby has been born there are lots of fun activities that will help your child to learn and develop.

Infant Massage – Massage aids to establish non-verbal communication with your child, and enhances the early relationship you form, therefore building the child’s self-esteem and sociability.

Wriggle, Rhyme and Storytime – aimed at supporting your child with communication and language. We will read stories, share rhymes and do fun activities.

Sing and Shake – Ideas to support your child through music, movement and a range of activities encouraging early language and communication development and contributes to school readiness.

Toddler Time/Stay & Play – Welcoming fun sessions for you and your child to play and learn new skills. A healthy snack time is provided.

First Friends – A baby group aimed at babies from Birth to moving. The Community Nursery Nurse from the Health Visiting Team supports this group.

Baby Fun/Busy Babies – exploring different activities to support your babies’ development and giving guidance on any health related topics and issues.

Sensory Rooms – Some of the Family Hubs have sensory rooms which can be used free of charge. Follow the link to find out more information.

Join us at the Central Children’s Library for our weekly Book Chatter Book Play session.

We will have lots of fun with stories, songs, and rhymes and then stay and play with toys and activities, suitable for all pre-school children.

Did you know you can visit the digital library to download children’s e-books and audiobooks. You will need your library membership number and a pin code to access the Digital Library.

The Doncaster Health Visiting service consists of Specialist Community Public Health nurses, Community Nursery Nurses and other professionals who provide expert information, assessments and interventions for babies, children and families. Health visitors help to empower parents to make decisions that affect their family’s health and well-being. Your Health Visitor/Community Nursery Nurse will make contact with you at various points as your child grows to help talk you through their development. These points are:

• Within the first 14 days of bringing your new baby home
• When baby is approximately 6-8 weeks old
• Around 6 months
• Around 10-12 months
• Around 2 years 3 months

If you ever have any questions or concerns outside of these visits you can contact the team on:

01302 566776 | You can also find them on Facebook here.

The Adult, Family and Community Learning Service (AFCL) provides local learning activities for adults and families in their community. We know how daunting it can be when it comes to supporting your children with their learning, we know that you don’t always feel confident that you can do it right, so why not do a little bit of learning yourself first? We offer courses in story sacks, phonics, family literacy, supporting your child with reading and more. For more information get in touch here.

Area SENCO’s offer advice, guidance and training to nurseries and pre-schools to promote and support the development of children with additional needs including speech, language and communication. They meet termly to discuss children’s levels of development in order to identify any support a child may benefit from.

Portage is a home visiting, educational service for pre-school children with additional support needs and their families. We offer regular home visits to support the development of play, communication, relationships and learning for young children within the family. Professionals such as a Paediatrician, Health Visitor or Social Worker can make a request for the Portage Service.

The parenting team are based at Wheatley Family Hub. They offer a variety of parenting courses including a 2hr workshop on the Baby Brain and Development in the early years. Visit them here for more information on how to book.

The Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Service provide assessment, diagnosis and treatment for children and young people with speech, language, communication, feeding and swallowing difficulties. If you have concerns regarding your child you should link with your health visitor/ child’s keyworker at their nursery in the first instance.