It Takes A Village To Raise A Child

‘They grow up so fast!’

‘Time passes so quickly!’

Cliché’s yes, but so very true.

Families, whose children I have been fortunate and privileged enough to look after since birth, all say this to me at some time and I certainly feel this with my own children. So many of the clothes and paraphernalia that we have for our children are very quickly outgrown and often no longer needed. Please do take a moment to read below and see if you are able to help with any items you no longer need for your family.

‘It takes a village to raise a child.’

Little Village, like many other charities, are needed more than ever right now. This charity is particularly resonant for me as a parent and paediatrician as it helps very young children and their families in a very practical way.

Little Village is a ‘baby bank’, which is like a foodbank, but for clothes, toys and equipment for babies and children up to the age of 5. Since it launched in 2016, Little Village has supported 8,000 visits from families across London and it helped nearly 3,000 children in 2019.

Families are referred to Little Village via a network of professionals such as midwives, health visitors and social workers from over 500 organisations. The families it helps are facing a range of challenges – homelessness, unemployment, low wages and domestic violence. 1 in 4 of the families Little Village supports are homeless or living in temporary accommodation.

Building a #VirtualVillage.

With the advent of coronavirus, Little Village has had to temporarily close its doors to families and completely redesign its whole operation to become what it is calling a #VirtualVillage. It is continuing to operate an emergency delivery service to those families most in need – to mums who are about to give birth, mums of new-borns and families with no items or clothes for their children.

Here is a link to the Little Village website where you can find out more about the good work they do.

https://littlevillagehq.org/

Wishing you all the best,

Dr Yiannis