Document Actions
Right From The Start
In England and Wales Home-Start, a home-visiting scheme provided by volunteer community parents, has been offering a befriending service to families since the 1970's. Qualitative information from uncontrolled studies indicates outcomes such as enhanced maternal well-being, improvements in specific family problems, general improvements in children's development and enhanced social networks.
The aim of the study is to investigate whether Home-Start support initiated during pregnancy, and continuing for up to one year after birth, will improve maternal and child health and well-being, family social support and reduce the chance of family stress in comparison with children and mothers in families receiving existing services. A stratified cluster randomised design is used, placing schemes in either the experimental or control (delayed implementation) groups. Outcomes at 12 months include parenting, parent-child interactions, parental mental health, social support and infant health and development. Funded by the PPP Foundation, the study is directed by Professor Jacqueline Barnes, with Dr. Rob Senior of University College London and the Tavistock Centre, and Brian Waller, Executive Director of Home-Start.
