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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

NCT...is it worth it?

47 replies

Tea1Sugar · 14/10/2013 18:26

This is my dc2 but dp's first. I never went to NCT before and felt quite isolated when dd was born as I was 22 and felt in an awkward age category compared to the older mums and then teens. So in the respect of meeting local couples seems great, but is the £300 worth it?

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HorryIsUpduffed · 14/10/2013 19:15

You can join in with local nct events without doing the classes, or becoming a member. It can be a really useful support network during and after pregnancy.

Then there's the bargainous nearly new sales...

EmB1715 · 14/10/2013 19:21

We're currently in the middle of our NCT course. It's been a great experience so far, learnt so much and we've met some lovely couples of varying age (we're 23 and don't feel out of place). Also, we booked our course for £23 due to our income.bracket. I don't think many people realise you can negotiate fees that way, so it's worth looking into that.

ShatterResistant · 14/10/2013 19:24

Best 300 quid I ever spent. My NCT group has been wonderful, and I never felt isolated. 8 months in, we still meet once every couple of weeks. I'll do a refresher if I have another baby (also an option, by the way.)

YomAsalYomBasal · 14/10/2013 19:28

I think it's a massive waste of time and money but only you can decide if it would be beneficial to you

SaucyJack · 14/10/2013 19:33

I wouldn't bother.

I choose new friends based on whether I like them, as oppsed to the functionality of their vaginas.

IrisWildthyme · 14/10/2013 19:33

I think it was a hugely beneficial use of money for me and well worth it because I'm crap at making friends normally and I would have been hugely isolated without the NCT group. The actual course isn't much cop though.

BonaDea · 14/10/2013 19:39

I think it is is worth it to meet folk locally, better than just meeting people at groups etc because you see each other regularly before birth and so have time to bond before all hell breaks loose in your life!

If your dc1 was quite some time ago and you didn't do nct you might learn quite a lot but be warned it is hugely focused on birth rather than baby care (mind you, you're an expert by now, eh?). You'll also find your DH will learn a huge amount.

I meet up with my nct bunch once a week and a couple of the girls more often. For me without close friends or family very close it was a life saver.
I would recommend.

cogitosum · 14/10/2013 19:45

Well worth it for me. The friends I've met have been great and were invaluable during the first weeks (emails at 2am!) so groups wouldn't have worked.

ch1134 · 14/10/2013 19:46

I'm also trying to decide whether or not to NCT. The thing is, everyone I've talked to who did it has said it was worth it, mainly for meeting people. The comment from SaucyJack isn't helpful because, if like me, you've moved into a new area, meeting people full stop can be hard, let alone being picky about who you meet!
But still, it's a lot of money, and I do feel funny about paying so much supposedly to be told about something so natural... I'm so undecided I've reserved a place but not paid and my reservation has expired! So I'll watch this thread and see what others say.

Beans1977 · 14/10/2013 19:50

Well worth it for me too, over a year on I still see all the girls every week and we go out once a month.

We were moving to a new area so for me - and my DH who goes for beers with the other Dads - it was a great way to meet friends.

Since then I've obv met other mums at playgroups etc, but for me having friends on my doorstep with bubs the same age as my DD has been brilliant.

BroodyAndMoody · 14/10/2013 19:53

Just finished our NCT course, learnt loads and the other couples were lovely. May not be best buds for life, but definitely a great support in the here and now.

bangersmashandbeans · 14/10/2013 19:57

Yes yes yes!
I didn't with DD and really regretted it so did a refresher with DS. It's a lot cheaper and all the other mums have one or more children. Without getting too emotional I can honestly say I've met some girls who are becoming my best friends (and I wasn't short of friends before) and we have such great fun with the older kids; the babies; and just the grown ups too. I know it's just my opinion but do it! Refreshers are about half the cost by the way.

GreatJoanUmber · 14/10/2013 20:13

Go for it!
Almost 5 years later, and we still meet every week (now with our second children as the 'original' lot have just started school).
You do learn a little bit about birth, baby care etc; but the support is invaluable. Having people to talk to who are in the exact same position... And for the kids, growing up together and becoming firm friends - it's just great!
I also liked the postnatal coffee mornings where our whole group was invited to another NCT mum's house, and we could exchange our horror stories and feel a bit more normal while someone else made us a cup of tea.
I think it's absolutely worth it.

Xmasbaby11 · 14/10/2013 20:35

Yes, do it! Ours was £160 and well worth it. Some useful info, chance to ask questions, but most importantly potential friends going through the same stuff as you. I already have friends, but it was great to make some who were on maternity leave at the same time. We were meeting up before the births and then several times a week during mat leave. I know there are groups you can join with the baby, but you may feel quite fragile in the early months and not feel like making new friends

AnythingNotEverything · 14/10/2013 20:41

Absolutely! Ours wasn't £300 though - more like £150. You can save £60 by opting out of joining the NCT when you book too.

I already have a 13 yo but this baby will be DP's first. We both learned a lot - I didn't realise how much I didn't know last time or had forgotten (I was ping and it was a long time ago!).

We did two full Saturdays and one evening class about breast feeding the facilitator was absolutely none judgemental, but very pro informed choice. She also tailored info to me (as how it might be different for a second birth) and a lady in our group who had diabetes and was likely to be induced.

The group are a lovely bunch and I hope to stay in touch with them - we're currently having ante natal coffee weekly and have a whole group meetup booked once all the babies have arrived.

The anecdotal evidence is that the NCT classes were better than our local NHS ones.

YomAsalYomBasal · 14/10/2013 20:46

So is the nct effectively a matchmaking service for new parents?! But not much cop as a course...

DramaAlpaca · 14/10/2013 20:46

Our group was great & a wonderful support. A few of us are still in touch and our "babies" are now turning 20!

Shruggy · 14/10/2013 20:53

I have recently turned down a place as the price I was quoted was well over £300 and I don't agree that's an acceptable amount of money for what you get. Everyone I know has said the courses were good for meeting people, yes, but the rest not worth it.
There should be local free classes available to you through your hospital. I plan to investigate that, pregnancy yoga and hynobirthing which I feel will be more beneficial and still a way of meeting people. However if you struggle to make friends and feel isolated then it might be worth forking out for if you can afford it.

poocatcherchampion · 14/10/2013 21:48

on reflection at 18mo I think it was worth it and actually mostly for the course. the friends were good but we petered out as soon as most people went back to work and I dont really miss them but I am glad I knew something about birth and breastfeeding and baby care. and not just from a book. Dh and I also enjoyed it as a couple.

NumberTwoDue · 14/10/2013 22:09

Do it if it's local to where you live. We did NCT to meet people because we moved across the country when I was pregnant. Our classes were in the north of our new city and we live in the south. It's not a million miles away if you don't have a baby but I found it too much of a trek once DD was here and dropped out of meet ups. In contrast my NHS antinatal classmates all live in the same area and two years on eight of us see each several times a week, our kids are friends and we're all in various stages of second-child parenting/pregnancies. (Disclaimer: I also got on better with the NHS lot and found these classes a lot more realistic than the NCT ones, which were a big hippy and didn't really give me a realistic picture of labour, breastfeeding or parenthood)

EmB1715 · 14/10/2013 23:01

It must depend on your course leader because we're finding the course really informative, balanced and eye-opening (and I'm fairly clued up already!). We feel like we can make informed and personal decisions together now. I have heard the quality varies so maybe we've just been lucky?

SaltySeaBird · 14/10/2013 23:17

The course was quite good but it was a very small group of just five couples. We've not managed to get all five of even just the females together since the babies were born and that was over a year ago!

They were nice enough people and some of us see each other occasionally. I know somebody else whose group never met up again once so while some people do make best friends for life it isn't the same for everyone and set your expectations accordingly!

slightlysoupstained · 14/10/2013 23:40

If it's partly for your DP it might be worth considering whether the local NHS classes in your area have many men attending. In my area, they were all in a weekday morning so given that a lot of employers won't give dads time off for antenatal classes there were fewer men.

Doesn't mean the info won't be useful, but less opportunity for chatting to other nervous dads-to-be.

mustardtomango · 15/10/2013 00:05

I would say yes... We paid I think £280 and honestly they've taught us heaps, way more than I thought they would and easily enough to justify the money (first time parents though, with no experience of other classes).
We had 8 couples and must have met about 8 times?
I feel prepared and pretty sure I wouldn't be so confident if we hadn't done it

PinkWitch803 · 15/10/2013 05:30

We have chosen to stick with NHS classes but mainly because I have heard good things about the classes close to me and there are plenty of ways to get networking near me.

If that wasn't the case, i would consider it.

I am happy I will learn what I need from the ngs classes and I can think of so many ways to spend that money which will benefit the baby in the longer term :)

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