Parents
This page is for anyone looking for advice, support, or information, whether you're a mother, father, prospective parent, grandparent, carer or you have parental responsibility for a child.
More pages and links will become available as we develop the pages. We welcome your feedback and views about the content and any suggestions you may have.
- Activities, leisure and play
- Adoption and fostering
- Childcare
- Disability
- Starting Life Well Service
- Financial support and advice
- Health and wellbeing
- Information for grandparents
- Keeping children safe
- Legal rights and guidance
- Parenting and family support
- Parent participation information
- Prisoners' families
- Schools, learning and development
- Sure Start Children's Centres
- Youth Service and Connexions
There are lots of fun activities right across the city from sports to music, dance to play and drama to crafts. Find out what’s happening in your local area for children and young people on the city council's service directory or visit the WUU2 directory for older/teenage young people. The council’s leisure pages provide information on council-run sports and leisure facilities, libraries, museums and galleries, arts, dance and local parks.
Find out about the different types of formal childcare provision in Salford. Formal childcare includes services such as day nureries, pre-school playgroups and registered childminders, formal childcare providers support parents who are employed or looking to return to work or study. There is also lots of useful information and guidance on choosing and paying for childcare.
If you have concerns or complaints about a childcare provider, please email details to SLW@salford.gov.uk.
You may also be interested in working in childcare.
Visit the new disabled children web pages to find out about the what support, care and advice is available for families and carers. This includes information on the Aiming High for Disabled Children programme, short break care, finance and benefits, play and leisure activities, care and support services, and parenting forums.
Can help with all your enquiries about early years services for disabled children, including childcare, funding, play schemes and family support. Email SLW@salford.gov.uk.
There is a real need for more foster carers and adoptive parents in Salford. Children need a caring and supportive environment in which to grow up and those who are placed with loving foster carers and adoptive parents really blossom and prosper. To find out more please contact the Family Placement Team on 0161 799 1268. The adoption and fostering webpages provide lots of information, so you can see if either is right for you. You can also request an information pack.
- For impartial information and advice on money matters please visit the government's Money Advice Service website and their Parent's Guide to Money for new parents.
- Directgov has lots of information in relation to financial support for parents and children, including child benefits and children's trust funds. There is information on the Sure Start Maternity Grant, and maternity/paternity entitlements. Changes introduced by the new government mean the Sure Start grant will only apply to your first child as of April 2011 and child benefit will be frozen for three years from April 2011. Child trust funds will also be phased out.
- Our help with childcare costs page has tailored information for working parents, student parents, those returning to work or training and for parents of disabled children. This includes the free childcare and early education offer for all three and four year olds in Salford and the newly launched two year old scheme.
- Child Maintenance Options Service - Find out about your child maintenance options and making the arrangement best suited to your circumstances. Call 0800 988 0988 (Monday to Friday from 8.00am to 8.00pm or Saturday from 9.00am to 4.00pm). They also provide practical information and support for parents living apart of separating.
- Salford City Council has dedicated information to help residents affected by the economic climate, including job advice, help and support, money, housing and business advice, visit Better Off in Salford. You can also call the Recession helpline on 0161 909 6524.
- For free, confidential and independent advice there is Salford Welfare Rights and Debt Advice Service. Call the welfare rights advice line on 0800 345 7375 (Monday to Friday from 10.00am to 12.00pm) or the debt advice line on 0800 345 7323 (Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 1.00pm to 4.00pm).
- Salford Citizens Advice Bureau - telephone advice line 0844 826 9695 (Monday to Wednesday from 10.00am to 3.30pm). There are local offices across Salford offering face to face support. Email/online advice is also available.
- Steady Readies Project - practical support to equip you with the skills to understand and manage your finances. Includes support to open a basic bank account, help working out a household budget, information about credit unions.
- Affordable loans for people who live and work in Salford - Moneyline Greater Manchester call 0161 736 6500 (Monday to Friday from 9.00am to 5.00pm). For the River Valley Credit Union call 0161 832 1998.
- Stop Loan Sharks - Have you or anyone you know been offered a cash loan without paperwork? Been threatened when you couldn't pay? Had a loan which keeps growing even though you are making payments? If yes, you may have been bitten by a loan shark. For confidential help and advice contact 0300 555 2222.
- Speak Up Salford - all about children's speech, language and development. Telephone 0161 212 4015 or email speakup@salford.nhs.uk. Visit the how to help pages to find out how you can help your child's talking and communication skills. The Language Development Team also work in the community and hold drop-in sessions at children's centres.
- Language Development Team - Do you have a young child? Would you like some ideas on how to give some extra help to your child's talking, speech sounds, play, listening and attention?
- Parentchannel - free website for parents of five to 19 year olds that offers expert advice on parenting through a collection of helpful short videos. Ideal first step for parents.
- Change4Life - tips for healthy children and families. Change4Life aims to help families eat well, move more and live longer, happier lives. Contact them on 0300 123 4567.
- Healthy Start Vouchers - Free milk, fruit, vegetables and vitamins if you are pregnant or have a child under four years old and you claim certain benefits. Call 0845 607 6823 or use the online eligibility checker.
- Eatwell Plate - If you want to get the balance of your diet right, use the eatwell plate. The eatwell plate makes healthy eating easier to understand. Also includes practical advice on what to feed babies, children and teenagers.
- NHS Baby LifeCheck - is an interactive website for parents and carers of babies aged between five and eight months. Find out ways to keep your baby happy, healthy and safe. There is also the Teen LifeCheck for 12 to 15 year olds.
- Domestic abuse - Are you experiencing abuse from someone you know? Do you know someone who you think is being abused? Visit the domestic abuse pages for practical help and advice and useful local contacts. Alternatively, call the freephone 24-hour national domestic violence helpline on 0808 2000 247, which is run in partnership between Women's Aid and Refuge.
- NHS Salford - find your nearest hospital, doctor, dentist, pharmacy, opticiain or walk-in centre, as well information on your health and wellbeing. You can also visit your local Gateway Centre in Eccles, Walkden or Pendleton. The new state-of-the-art buildings offer residents health and council services all under one roof. There is a new Royal Manchester Children's Hospital on Oxford Road in Manchester. All the services at the Pendlebury hospital have now moved.
Visit the grandparents' page to find out about BeGrand.net, the new website especially for grandparents. It provides information and advice on everything from activities with grandchildren to legal rights and issues around friends and family care. Other links include the Grandparents' Association and the government's commitment to supporting grandparents.
Find out ways to get help and support if you're worried about a child or if you're struggling to cope. Plus there are lots of practical suggestions about keeping children safe in and around the home, on the road or on the internet. Find out about Salford's anti-bullying strategy and ways to support your child if they are being bullied.
Find out about your duty as a parent, including truancy, exclusions, child employment, children in entertainment and home teaching. Download the 'Is it legal? A parents' guide to the law' below. You can also visit the Children's Legal Centre website or call their Child Law Advice Line - 0808 802 0008 - which provides children, parents, carers and professionals with access to accurate legal advice regarding their rights and support services. Monday to Friday from 9.00am to 5.00pm.
Children's rights - Every child has the right to be treated with respect, dignity and justice. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty that grants all children and young people (aged 17 and under) a comprehensive set of rights. The convention came into force in the UK in 1992.
We want children and young people in Salford to have the best available support to improve their lives and fulfil their potential. Parents and carers are the most important people in helping young people to achieve this. The different responsibilities and challenges involved in being a parent or carer make it one of the hardest things most people will ever do. All parents and carers need support and guidance to help them to do the best job they can.
Parents and carers requiring extra help to manage their child's challenging or aggressive behaviour can attend specialist parenting programmes. Parenting programmes are accessible to families with children aged two to eight years through the Webster Stratton Incredible Years groups. Parent Support Workers deliver Triple P parenting programmes to parents of children aged eight to 16 years.
To find out more information about the parenting courses please email Parenting@salford.gov.uk
There are eight community committees in Salford, one for each neighbourhood area. They support the residents in Salford and make decisions about priorities for the area - be it providing youth activities; improving a local park or improving road safety. Community committees have been set up to ensure local residents can influence decisions about their neighbourhoods. Contact your local neighbourhood management team to find out what's planned for your area and how you and your family can have your say.
Action for Prisoners' Families is the national voice of organisations supporting families of prisoners. The Prisoners' Families helpline is a free and confidential service for anyone who is is affected by the imprisonment of a close family member or friend. Call free (including mobiles) on 0808 808 2003 (Monday to Friday from 9.00am to 8.00pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10.00am to 3.00pm). Alternatively, you can email info@prisonersfamilieshelpline.org.uk.
For additional information and support you can also visit Prison Advice and Care Trust (PACT). PACT is an independent charity which runs the family friendly visitors' centre at HMP Forest Bank. Visitors are offered a warm welcome, information and support. For more information please call the visitor's centre on 0161 925 7000 ext 2134. Children visiting HMP Forest Bank can now play in the new play area inside the visits hall. Trained playworkers are on hand every visit, Tuesday to Sunday. There are also extended 'family day' visits where prisoners and their families can play together for the whole day. Call the play coordinator on the above number to find out when the next family day is planned.
Schools, learning and development
- Admissions and transfers - Find out about school admissions and transfers for nursery, primary and secondary school places.
- Parentchannel - free website for parents of five to 19 year olds that offers expert advice on parenting through a collection of helpful short videos. Ideal first step for parents.
- Special Educational Needs (SEN) - Find out about the process for assessing Special Educational Needs and the support on offer. You can contact the SEN Team on 0161 778 0410. The Parent Partnership Service is available to all parents/carers of pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) who live in Salford.
- Family, Adult and Community Learning - provide free course for adults and families where you can learn new things, have fun, meet new people and get a qualification.
- Financial support - Find out how to apply for free school meals, bus passes, school transport and student support.
- Salford Ethnic Minority and Traveller Achievement Service (EMTAS) - providing support for traveller children and children whose first language is not English. You can contact EMTAS on 0161 921 2202.
For further information on schools and processes within Salford please visit Salford LA - includes school terms dates, school governors, Building Schools for the Future programme, strategies and initiatives, school inspection reports, educational trips and visits and much more.
Sure Start Children's Centres bring together childcare, early education, health, family support, training and employment services for families with children under five years old. Their services are available to you from pregnancy right through to when your child goes to primary school. They’re somewhere your child can make friends and learn as they play. You can get professional advice on health and family matters, learn about training and job opportunities or just socialise with other people. To find out more about children's centres in Salford please go to the webpages, which include the core offer of services available at each centre and the individual activity timetables. You can download the new leaflet too, which includes a map and contact details of all the children's centres in Salford.
Salford Youth Service is an informal education service, working with young people aged 11 to 25 years. Its role is to support young people's personal and social development as they move on from childhood, to become responsible young adults. There are youth centres across the city which offer a wide variety of opportunities for young people to get involved. The youth service also has specialist projects for young people, e.g. smoking, sexual health, young fathers and a disability youth groups. Connexions works with schools, colleges and other organisations to provide information, advice and support to all young people between the ages of 13 and 19 (up to age 25 for young people with learning difficulties and disabilities).
Downloadable documents
- Is it legal? A parents' guide to the law (Adobe PDF format, 1.7mb)
- Parenting handbook: A guide for parents and carers (Adobe PDF format, 4.1mb)
If you are unable to view documents of these types, our downloads page provides links to viewing software.
Who to contact
- Name
- Starting Life Well Service
- Address
- Children's Services
Second Floor
Unity House
Swinton
Salford
M27 5AW
Map to this location - Telephone
- 0161 909 6508
- SLW@salford.gov.uk
- Additional information
- Text : 0797 191 3293
This page was last updated on 22 December 2011
