A baby bank and drop-in event at Shildon Civic Hall brought together more than a dozen organisations on Wednesday 20 May — because for many local families, the alternative is two bus journeys away, writes volunteer community journalist, Henri Birkholz.
By half past eleven, Shildon Civic Hall is already busy. A mother studies a leaflet about housing support. A woman with a baby boy on her knee laughs with a volunteer. Twenty families in the space of half an hour — and more are still arriving at the door.
The event, organised by Shildon Town Council and Shildon Alive, is one part baby bank and one part community drop-in. Tables of recycled baby clothing fill the centre of the hall. Around them, more than a dozen organisations line the walls alongside nappies and essential baby items, free to take. Lauren Robinson, Community Engagement Officer at Shildon Alive, explains why it needs to exist at all. “Shildon doesn’t have a family hub.”
The nearest family hub referral point is Ferry Hill. “If you’re from Shildon, you’re referred to Ferry Hill,” says Lauren. “Ferry Hill is two bus journeys away there and back — around about a tenner for a fare.” For families already stretched, that cost alone is enough to keep support out of reach. Lauren and her team began to understand the full scale of the problem through smaller pop-ups they had been running across the town. Families were arriving for clothing and leaving with questions nobody could answer on the spot. Housing advice. Nursery applications. Basic navigation of services that, for many, felt completely out of reach.
“I was shocked to see that I could have got help,” says one mother, nodding toward the stroller beside her, “because I didn’t — not with her.” Her daughter is nearly three. First time around, she knew nothing of services like these. This time is different. Her son has nappies and clothes stocked up to his second birthday, all sourced through Shildon Alive. She has already texted a friend, urging her to come down.
For her, the support adds up to something more than clothing and nappies. “Money that would have gone into that,” she says, “I can use to keep my home for them.”
For families who don’t know where to start, Shildon Alive is often the first call. “We’re often the first stop and a friendly face for someone to come in if they don’t know where to turn,” says Laura Cook, outreach and support worker at Shildon Alive. The Family Hubs team offer something longer in duration — relationships that stretch from pregnancy through a young parents programme and back again, years later, with a second child. Everything is free, removing the financial barrier that stops many from accessing support elsewhere.
The remaining tables cover ground that might seem unexpected at a baby event. The Community Specialist Dental Service has brought a visual display showing parents how much sugar is concealed in snacks they assumed were healthy. Healthwatch County Durham is collecting experiences of local health and social care to pass on to commissioners. Energy advice and housing support fill the remaining tables — each one addressing a gap that no single service could cover alone. It is exactly what Lauren had in mind. “We realised through listening that we needed something more like a conference style.”
By the time the doors closed at one o’clock, families had left with more than clothing.
Shildon Alive is a community organisation based in Shildon supporting local families. For more information, visit www.shildonalive.org.uk
Henri Birkholz
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.
