From left to right: Dr Josephine Bleach, Director of NCI’s Early Learning Initiative, Tracey and baby Daisy, participants of the Community Families Programme, and Aidan Farrelly, Social Democrats TD for Kildare North.
On Wednesday, February 12th, 2025, NCI’s Early Learning Initiative welcomed colleagues and key stakeholders to Mayor Square to celebrate the official launch of ELI’s Community Families Programme.
Learn about the origins of the Community Families Programme:
In 1983, the Eastern Health Board developed the Community Mothers Programme in Ireland. It was adapted from the Childhood Development Programme developed by Dr Walter Barker of Bristol University. At its peak, the Community Mothers Programme was delivered across 17 different communities in Ireland, providing support to 3,500 families each year through home visiting. In 2015, NCI’s Early Learning Initiative introduced their ABC 0-2 Home Visiting Programme following guidelines set by Community Mother programmes.
In 2019, a National Review of the Community Mothers Programme was published. The review was conducted by the Katharine Howard Foundation (KHF) and the Community Foundation for Ireland (CFI) with the active participation of the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Tusla Child and Family Agency. The key recommendation of the National Review was that a Standardised National Programme Model should be developed along with a strategy to ensure the sustainability and future development and governance of the updated Programme.
After funding was secured from the Sláintecare Integration Fund and from a private donor for the development project that would implement this key recommendation, from early 2020 until late 2021, this development project was undertaken leading to the creation of Community Families. This became the name that was chosen for the Standardised National Programme Model.
Alongside this development, funding was secured from Community Foundation Ireland (CFI), for the development and implementation of a CRM system to support service management, oversight, and quality assurance of the Programme.
The implementation of the Community Families Programme is supported by the National Oversight and Support Group (NOSG) with representation from the Health Service Executive (HSE), Tusla, National College of Ireland (NCI), and the Katharine Howard Foundation (KHF). The NOSG is co-chaired by Tusla's National Lead for Parenting Support and the HSE’s Programme Manager for the National Healthy Childhood Programme. There are seven sites currently transitioning to the Community Families model of home visiting, with hopes for expansion to further Community Health Network Areas as funding allows. Local delivery is funded by Tusla and/or the HSE that oversee and support quality delivery of services and integration under a Service Level Agreement (SLA). The current active sites are; ELI Dublin Docklands, Kerry, Laois/Offaly, Limerick, Longford/Westmeath, North and South Tipperary.
ELI’s Community Families Programme:
NCI’s Early Learning Initiative has developed a range of innovative programmes to improve the educational aspirations and outcomes of children and young people. The team offers support, guidance on health, wellbeing, and developmental milestones for young children. It is almost the 10-year Anniversary of ELI’s ABC 0-2 Home Visiting Programme, so moving to the Community Families model is a very exciting, natural progression, and the team is very proud of how the how the Community Families Programme benefits families as "Parenting can be a lovely time but also a lonely time."
At the official launch that took place in NCI’s Mayor Sqaure, attendees had the opportunity to hear from a panel of parents who have taken part in the programme. It was a fantastic chance for everyone to learn about how these families felt supported by the Programme. Attendees also got to hear Community Families Programme Coordinator; Grace Flynn speak about the Programme’s aims as well as its significance.
Among attendees was Aidan Farrelly, the Social Democrats TD for Kildare North. As one can imagine, there were fascinating conversations going on throughout this event, as the Community Families Programme launch brought a room full of people who are passionate about supporting children and empowering their families together in one place, and Aidan had the chance to share his thoughts about how, ideally, this kind of family support would become more widespread throughout the country as there are so many families who would hugely benefit from participating in this kind of programme.
“It was a privilege to attend the launch and to see the full spectrum of the Community Families Programme. Seeing the children there and hearing their parents and staff speak about their involvement in the programme, was fantastic, and it stood out as it showed the community impact that this programme has. Hearing these families share how the support has changed their lives in many ways reaffirms my belief that this should become a widespread programme.
I believe that the Government should support the roll out of the Community Families Programme on a national basis, especially when you consider the cost analysis. It won’t cost a lot to run this programme compared to the amount of good it will do for children and their families all over the country. I will be strongly encouraging ministers to support this programme. Thank you again for the invite. I am looking forward to hopefully working together more in the future.” ~ Aidan Farrelly, Social Democrats TD for Kildare North.
"Aidan has been working with young people in his community for many years. It is excellent to have people like Aidan at events like this, because his experience in this field means that he is somebody who has a great understanding of the potential for transformation that the Community Families Programme offers." ~ Dr Josephine Bleach, Director of NCI's Early Learning Initiative.
About the Programme:
The Community Families Programme aims to provide an integrated programme of intervention and support for children, their parents, and families from pre-birth to three years of age. The Programme's primary focus is a home visiting service that will support and nurture the relationship with children, parents, and families. The Programme aims to improve children's overall development through the empowerment of parents, and it is designed to focus on nutrition, health care, and overall child development.
The role of the Community Families Home Visitor:
Families will be visited in their homes by our trained Home Visitors for up to an hour on a weekly basis. As the child becomes older this may move to once a month. The Home Visitors work with the family to strengthen the parents’ skills and build self-esteem, as doing so will enable them to believe in their own capabilities and parenting skills. A weekly report is written by the Home Visitors to record the child’s development.
"We are delighted to celebrate the launch of the Community Families Programme and building on the work that our 0-2 Home Visiting team has done for the last 10 years, work which has provided very beneficial support for families. We are looking forward to continually supporting children and empowering parents through home visiting in the future." ~ Grace Flynn, ELI’s Community Families Programme Coordinator.
At National College of Ireland, we’re delighted to support ELI as they launch this new Programme. We understand the importance of lifelong learning, and through all the fantastic, and crucial work that ELI does to support children and their families, we can see how when people feel empowered and supported, their self-confidence blossoms as they develop the skills they need to be able to pursue any goals and thrive. Huge congratulations and well done to the entire ELI team on a brilliant launch event.
For more information about NCI’s Early Learning Initiative, you can visit ELI’s homepage.
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