To be pissed off that the children’s centres where I live still aren’t open?!

[AngeloMysterioso]

My son is 22 months old (so was 4 months at the start of lockdown). Has barely been seen by any kind of medical professional since then except when he’s had his jabs- Doctors appointments are telephone calls, health visitor checks are telephone calls, and the only baby groups that have restarted where I live are the kind that are £7.50 for the pleasure of spending 45 minutes trying to keep your toddler on a yoga mat. Support for new mums pretty much vanished overnight and nobody seems to be in any hurry to bring it back.

With all the covid restrictions easing I’ve been really hoping that my local district’s children’s centres would be re-opening as normal soon, but no- they’ve just updated their Facebook page with September’s “virtual offer” of three zoom workshop sessions and “virtual baby massage”- and no mention at all of any change to the current online-only situation.

AIBU to think enough is enough now? How long do they plan on using covid as an excuse not to deliver the service they are designed and built (and paid) for? I’m expecting DC2 in December and at this point fully expect them to be walking and talking before anyone besides the immunisation nurse actually claps eyes on them.

I think a lot of councils, like a lot of businesses who are offering a substandard service and blaming it on covid, are just using covid as an excuse.

Unfortunately there is evidence of child abuse rates having gone up:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55682745

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-55352968.amp

adc.bmj.com/content/106/3/e14

Sorry if those aren’t clicky links, I’m crap at that sort of thing.

I completely agree these need to reopen as a priority.

On a slight tangent, does anybody else find that their lockdown baby is a little too trusting of strangers?
My DD was nearly 5 months old when lockdown 1 started so just starting to recognise family and friends and not a lockdown baby as such. She's 2 next week but she'll take anybody's hand and wave bye-bye to me and start walking off!
Met up with a Scottish classmate a couple of weeks ago, DD had been asleep when she arrived but woke up just as they were getting ready to leave so she'd not spent much time with her at all. As she was leaving she offered her finger to DD who waved bye bye at me, asked my friend to pick her up and looked pretty comfortable just being carried out of the house!

@SpicyJalfrezi

It’s all very well people saying that they aren’t closing because of Covid, but that’s what we are being told.

I paid over £300 for DS to attend classes, not counting the cost of soft play sessions. Not everyone can do that.

HVs aren’t seeing us, GPs won’t let us in, so if you do need to talk, you can’t. I’ve had a really low mood at times and I have on occasion decided I’m going to bare my soul but then can’t because there’s nowhere to do it!

The Samaritans are always there and have remained so throughout the pandemic. If you need to talk

I think it's very dependant on where you live, HVs are running clinics and doing home visits in my area have been throughout covid. They've also restarted face to face post natal, infant feeding and weaning groups. It's a shame it's not the same across the board.

HVs are running clinics and doing home visits in my area have been throughout covid.

Wow Where do you live? I know several people who have given birth during the pandemic, and none of them were visted by a HV at home.

Somerset border, there's no children centres where I am though so there were no groups running for a long time. I'm sure the service varies within the county though aswell I guess just lucky where I am!

That’s very kind of you @BabyLeaf but I wouldn’t get any privacy in order to do so. There are many in a similar boat where we do actually need our GPs or HVs to be seeing people outside of the home.

My DS was born April 2020. I found my MAT leave so lonely. Some groups did start up but then the rule of 6 came in so would get cancelled. My sons red book is empty, couldn't register his birth for months. I couldn't get him weighed throughout.
I went back to work in April the week in England things started to re open. I feel so bitter about it all.
He goes to a childminder and seems to be doing ok, just feel sad I couldn't really make any new mum friends, have a moan to someone about sleep deprivation or try out normal things.
I try and be positive so at weekends I'm doing things like attending a play centre or swimming.
My children's centre is back open now but I'm working so can't attend anything.
He met his HV at 14 months and he was doing a 9, 12 and 14 month check in one appointment! Been such a strange time.
I personally wouldn't want another child to go through this loneliness again.
I still get upset about the fact my DH had to drop me off at hospital to be induced alone.. The midwifes were amazing but I wish my DH was with me.