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Original poster

The NCT are having a laugh aren't they???!!!!

176 replies

lubella · 27/09/2006 19:17

I just applied for Ante Natal classes and the literature came thorough at £180 for a 2 day intensive course.

Before I sign up to these can someone out there honestly justify to me that they are worth it; I'm sure it said £100 on the leaflet I recieved as a member and I just feel like WTF??(&&&&!!?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
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shhhh · 27/09/2006 19:20

can't you get parent craft classes at your local hospital for free...?? We never had nct classes just parentcraft ones and dd has done well by them..!

morningpaper · 27/09/2006 19:20

Well ... What exactly do you want to get out of it?

Do you have NHS classes in your area?

Personally I would just do them, and have a lovely break on a health farm.

Or buy yourself a whole new wardobe in a size larger.

Mumpbump · 27/09/2006 19:25

I think the NCT stuff is quite expensive, but I thought some of it is membership fee (about £35 if I remember correctly). I think in reality that the main purpose in attending NCT classes is that they are very much geared towards you getting to know the people so you have a support group after the birth. I think they commonly have a reunion after all the babies are born to encourage staying in contact. Mind you, our classes were spread over a number of week so you did get a bit of a handle on the other people, not so sure how well it would work in a 2 day course!

Seashells · 27/09/2006 19:25

£180????????????

fartmeistergeneral · 27/09/2006 19:26

don't get me started on the NCT

shhhh · 27/09/2006 19:26

lol theres only so much you can learn about poo nappies and how to bathe a baby.! £180 is extreme though..

shhhh · 27/09/2006 19:28

btw the point about " meeting up afterwards.." This was an option on our parent craft classes with the nhs.

Gobbledigook · 27/09/2006 19:28

God, I'm sure it wasn't that much when Idid them. That was 5.5 years ago though.

Er, I'm sure we paid £80 or something for 10 sessions - one a week. It was worth it for me because I made great friends that I'm still friends with now. Didn't really help in terms of labour or dealing with a newborn though.

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 19:32

it was £130 last year, £180 does seem pricey. you don't have to pay a penny if you don't want to, you know, it's a charity. if you phone and say you have put £100 aside for the class i'm certain that you will still get on it.

i couldn't have given a toss about what i actually learned about in my classes, it's all in the books anyway. BUT, by the end of the weekend my DH and i felt like we had made 10 really good new friends (i can't tell you how awful we thought they were going to be [shame])...

We have all kept in touch and provided fantastic support when we've had our ups and downs with the births, the bfing, the not sleeping etc etc etc. i reckon we see each other more or less once a fortnight, and although i've made other 'mum' friends through other activities i don't feel as close to anyone else really.

advert for the NCT over. it's not about the classes, ime, it's about getting to meet people who are as boring and self-interested as you are when you are pregnant and a new mum. Hurrah.

lemonaid · 27/09/2006 19:33

Varies a lot by area, I think.

Depends on how confident you are about getting to know lots of other mothers in your area with babies the same age. That's the big thing you'll get from NCT classes. Mind you, the people I'm still in touch with I met at the hospital classes (because the NCT had a somewhat creative idea of what constituted my local area, and the others in my group weren't really very near me).

essbee · 27/09/2006 19:33

Message withdrawn

FillyjonktheBananaEater · 27/09/2006 19:35

ah go on, FMG (WHY, for the love of god, pls, why btw?

We can "start^ together

NCT = +

Still, cheaper than the personal ads, I suppose.

Full of very enthusiastic types with sleek hair and boots, i always found

loler · 27/09/2006 19:41

I agree with most of what's been said already - my NHS ones were OK but not at all designed to get you to talking with anyone else. I felt I missed out on a group of friend with same age babies by not doing NCT - at the time I was on an NCT downer as had very bad experience with an NCT nutter mum! Since have found out that some really nice people are involved and have piggy backed onto a friends pre natal group - we still meet once a week.

Original poster
lubella · 27/09/2006 19:45

Thanks for your responses guys - It is REALLY difficult to figure out if this will be worth it and the money is a real issue for me as I have had to be careful with planning and saving for this baby.
I just don't want to leave thinking - well I haven't met/ bonded with anyone and I am nearly £200 short for it. I guess there is no way of knowing for sure.

OP posts:
Freckle · 27/09/2006 19:47

Each to their own, I suppose. Some people have a view of the NCT without ever having any specific, direct experience of them.

My own experience is that I did a 2 day intensive course (over 2 consecutive Saturdays) and I made some fantastic friends. We are still friends and meet up regularly nearly 13 years later. We have been there for each other through subsequent pregnancies and births. Our children all know each other and get on pretty well (well, as well as boys get on with girls and vice versa when approaching teenage years ). We did also learn a lot about childbirth, etc, although I suspect we forgot a lot of it at the time of the actual birth. Personally, I found the information I acquired on the course actually came into its own on my second and third births.

There are a lot of misconceptions about the NCT. I would suggest that you ignore a lot of what you hear and go along and find out for yourselves.

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 19:48

filly, that is totally what i thought it was going to be like (having met NCT friends of a pal of mine and been horrified at their unblinking bourgeois piggery) but either she was unlucky with her lot or i was lucky with mine. either way, phew!

Socci · 27/09/2006 19:52

Message withdrawn

aitch71 · 27/09/2006 19:52

actually lubella, in our local group the classes are over-subscribed so they also have December Mums, November Mums etc groups which meet up as well. there's a bit of a crossover between the ante-natal groups and the month groups so everyone gets to know each other.
perhaps you could ask if they do the same thing in your area, which would mean you could save your money. (although ime it's money very well spent).

Pruni · 27/09/2006 19:53

Message withdrawn

Socci · 27/09/2006 19:53

Message withdrawn

Socci · 27/09/2006 19:54

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SoupDragon · 27/09/2006 19:54

IIRC from my NCT days, they don't make a profit on the antenatal classes.

FillyjonktheBananaEater · 27/09/2006 19:58

at aitch.

I actually did an 8 week NCT course. The people I met were nice, actually. Most of them not my type. Not enough lentil weavery for me

I dunno, I guess I generally run screaming from any collection of middle class, smooth-haired cliquey women who are familiar with...um...some non-specific ideas about baby routines...um...

And £180 is a mahoosive price to pay to meet shiny haired women. Because, IME, NCT info is no better than you'd get by going on MN or reading a book or whatever. My NCT teacher gave birth 25 years ago and had bascially made no effort at all to keep her knowlege up to date. Not sure how she maintained her registration...

ja9 · 27/09/2006 19:58

no, they do make a profit. our nct classes provide maj of the funding for our branch. might be worth noting that fees vary hugely from region to region so might be worth checking out the other areas around about you...

FillyjonktheBananaEater · 27/09/2006 20:00

another point, too

the nct will put you in touch with around 8 women with kids (probably) born the same month as yours. They might be a car ride away. All our were seriously far away, in deepest suburbia and I don't have a car, and buses don't venture into those parts, AFAIK.

M&T groups will give you all that, but will also be local and let you pick and choose a bit.