0141 332 4632Children, Young People and their Families
This project is in partnership with Sight Scotland, Freedom and Joy, Food Heroes and Heather Burns Baby Yoga. The Powell Trust funds our family advocacy work. You can find out more about our partner organisations through the links at the bottom of the page.
What the project offers
This project provides:
Support for under five years of age
- Family wellbeing support
- Talking Tuesdays – a virtual drop-in session
- Messy play for pre-schoolers
- Baby massage and baby yoga
Support for children and young people
- Coaching young people, both in groups or one-to-one
- Socialisation groups
- Practical cooking sessions
What you can expect from our support
Family Advocacy Support
Visibility Scotland offers family advocacy and support to parents of children with visual impairment living in the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Lothian areas. Our dedicated Family Advocacy Worker can help with referrals, contact agencies on your behalf, and answer any questions you may have.
By being your first point of contact, Visibility Scotland aims to ease the stress of dealing with many different professionals and organisations.
Messy Play (pre-school)
Messy Play incorporates exploring food through play to build positive relationships with food for children and families while learning and having fun together. Food Heroes, two Specialist Dieticians, deliver the session. They will be ready to support you during the sessions with any queries you may have about diet and health for your child.
The sessions take place at our Queen’s Crescent offices in Glasgow and West Lothian.
Watch the video below to find out more about Messy Play.
Baby Massage and Baby Yoga (pre-school)
Working with Heather Burns, a trained therapist, we offer baby massage sessions to the 0-5s with a visual impairment. We learn a range of baby massage moves, starting with the least sensitive parts first (legs) and working up to the head and face massage. These sessions also include baby yoga/ stretch.
At these sessions, families have the chance to meet and speak with other parents/caregivers who have a child/or children with a visual impairment and share experiences.
Talking Tuesdays
This is an online, 45-minute virtual drop-in session that offers a relaxed, safe, confidential space for parents and carers to meet and chat.
Led by a qualified counsellor and coach from Freedom and Joy, and a Visibility Scotland or Sight Scotland team member, we provide a supportive network with other parents to share challenges and advice.
Food classes for young people
Visibility Scotland runs practical cooking sessions for young people aged 12 – 25 from our accessible teaching kitchen at Queen’s Crescent. Our specialist dietician partners, Food Heroes, deliver the sessions. These sessions focus on getting young people and families cooking together. These sessions will:
• Increase awareness of healthy eating from a young age
• Increase maths, reading and language skills
• Develop essential life skills
• Support physical wellbeing
• Support mental wellbeing by building intergenerational relationships
• Increase attention span and focus
Socialising
Freedom & Joy also provide group workshops for children and young people, split into age-appropriate groups for 12-17s and 18 – 25s.
The sessions focus on socialising and discuss some of the challenges young visually impaired people face as well as identifying solutions.
These groups will be supportive and offer a unique environment to forge friendships, build confidence and empower the group to share new experiences.
These sessions take place at our Glasgow offices but are open to those who can travel.
How to book
To find out more about our services or to book a space at one of our sessions, contact Visibility Scotland on 0141 332 4632 or email families@visibilityscotland.org.uk
Partner organisations
You can find out more about the organisations partnering with Visibility Scotland to deliver this pilot project at the links below:
