Affinity 2020 CIC and Unravel piloted the Tiny Tots College Programme. This programme combines theoretical and practical elements and is delivered to care-experienced young parents aged 25 and under across two interventions: Tiny Tots – Care Informed Parenting (pre-birth for expectant parents) and Tiny Tots – Toddlers (post-birth for children aged 0-2). The former element was created by Unravel, a specialist support company, with the involvement of psychology professionals. The latter was developed by Affinity 2020 CIC, a social enterprise which is focused on the care experience. The premise of the programme is to use play and communication to help build skills, understanding, knowledge and confidence around child development among careexperienced parents. The aim is to support the development of positive relationships and enable positive emotional attachment between the parent and child. It is delivered via weekly sessions over 8 weeks and includes a peer support and staff support offer.
What Works for Children’s Social Care evaluated a pilot programme with nine families which took place virtually in 2021. The findings suggested that both staff and parents benefited from theinterventions, with it helping to improve knowledge and confidence around parenting, pregnancy and childbirth as staff and parents developed positive, non-judgemental relationships. It highlighted the importance of parents having a safe space to air key issues and seek advice outside of statutory services. Another positive element emphasised was the peer support offer. It did acknowledge the small sample size, the reduced number of referrals to the programme and the short-term impact measure which limits the ability to attribute a causal impact. Nonetheless, there were clearly positive gains for families via this approach.