Our co- founder, Margaret Tindall with Andrew Soper from the Space board
The work of Space NZ Trust, an organisation offering quality postnatal support to first-time parents, has recently been integrated into Parenting Place with funding from the NEXT and Tindall Foundations.
The two organisations will work collaboratively to reach more families and provide more parenting programmes to parents across the country.
The Tindall Foundation has been a long-standing supporter of both the Space for You and Your Baby programme and Parenting Place. For Space, we have provided financial support towards the national operations since 2009, donating over $1M over the eight years; for Parenting Place we have donated around $1.2M since 1997.
Says The Tindall Foundation Manager, John McCarthy. “We are excited to be supporting Space and Parenting Place to work together to build a future where quality postnatal support is more widely accessible and where parents’ roles are deeply valued in society. Together the organisations will extend the reach and impact of the Space programme and grow influence in the early years sector as a whole.”
CEO of Parenting Place, Greg Fleming adds: “At Parenting Place our ambitious dream is to see every whānau flourish in their relationships. For years we have been walking with families, starting when their children are a few months old. Now, with the integration of Space into Parenting Place, we have the opportunity to walk with parents from the time their pēpē is born, and foster strong relationships that will carry families through a lifetime.”
Welcoming a brand new little person into the whānau is both wonderful and challenging as parents adjust to a whole lot of ‘new’ – new routines, new responsibilities, and a new, precious someone to know and love. Space NZ Trust CEO, Leanne Dawson, is passionate about supporting parents as they make this life-changing transition.
“With modern society constantly evolving, bringing new pressures to the parent-child dynamic (and knowing how critically important the early years are), we believe parents are truly worth investing in”, says Leanne.
“It is with great excitement that we embark on this collaborative journey with Parenting Place to reach more families and continue to build strong foundations for parents, children and their communities.”
Space for You and Your Baby is run up and down the country in local communities. Hosted by a trained facilitator, Space takes place over 20-35 weeks, and is tailor-made for parents and their newborns. Space supports parents to understand their baby and extend their learning and development through education, play and facilitated discussions. Topics include sleeping and crying, becoming a parent, establishing attachment, brain development and early experiences, communication and language development, exploration of play, physical development and socialisation.
Watch this video about Space for You and Your Baby, and the integration with Parenting Place/