Navigate video transcript

00:00-
Lorna: My name’s Lorna and I’ve got a 5-year-old son called Jack.

00:05 -
Lorna: Jack was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder in 2018.

00:10 -
Lorna: Things came to a head really at the beginning of the last summer holidays. Jack doesn’t deal very well with change in routine. I was really concerned at that time and I didn’t really know what to do to try to support him.

00:23 -
Lorna: I saw an advert for the Navigate service online, we were struggling a bit as a family at the time so I clicked on the link to try to find out more.

00:33:-
Bev: It’s a 6 session service for parents of disabled children. What we do is provide support for the parents, so emotional support especially as it’s for children who are on the pathway to a diagnosis or they’ve been diagnosed with a disability within the last year.

00:51:-
Bev- Lorna was struggling with the behaviour at home. A lot of these parents tuck themselves away.

They concentrate so much on their child who has so many additional needs, it takes over their life.

Over the period of 6 weeks we spoke she made lots of decisions and I think it just helped to have somebody she could speak to.

1:16:-
Lorna: Bev gave me quite a lot of different types of support, she gave me some practical solutions. That was really helpful. But, also what I found the most important was that Bev gave me a space to talk about my needs.

1:30:-
Lorna: As a parent of a child with special needs, you spend so much time trying to work out what the child needs that you neglect yourself and actually Bev really reinforced that I needed to be ok in order to care for Jack.

So I thought maybe there might be slight changes, but the amount of change was that happened within that short period I would never have expected from any service if I’m honest.

1:58:-
Bev: It’s a fantastic service. Everybody who works on the service has some sort of lived experience. There is so little support out there for parents, sometimes they just need someone to talk to and we’re there to talk to you, we’re there to support you, and we’re there to listen, so please apply if you feel it’s for you.

2:17:-
Text and Voice Over: Navigate is a 6-week one-to-one mentoring service, providing support for parents and carers of disabled children.

To find our more or apply visit scope.org.uk/navigate

Scope = Equality for disabled people.

Navigate: emotional support for parents

Navigate is a national mentoring service, that provides online emotional support for parents and carers of disabled children who are finding out about their child’s additional needs.

Eligibility

Navigate is open to any parent or carer who:

lives in England or Wales
has parental responsibility for a child under 18
this child is on a pathway to diagnosis or has received one in the last year

About the service

Navigate is a programme of up to 6 sessions with a personal adviser, who will help you to talk about your feelings and concerns.

The service will help you with:

organising your thoughts and feelings
practical advice and suggestions
coping strategies and insights
taking positive actions and helping you with emotional wellbeing

Your personal adviser

You will get weekly catch ups with your adviser online and by phone. Your adviser will work with you on a one-to-one basis, helping you to:

explore your needs and personal goals
agree your action plan, and
provide you with support, if you need it

Beverley [adviser] has been amazing and speaking to her is like getting a warm hug. Not only does she offer me options of things to try to suggest organisations who may help, she just makes me feel like she really cares about me.

Lo - Navigate customer

Accessing the service

You can apply online or get a referral from the helpline.

Apply online

Current waiting list

14 weeks is the current waiting list time for speaking to an adviser. This is due to high demand on the service.

Orientation calls

All eligible applicants will get an orientation call within 2 working days of your application.

This is a conversation with our Customer Co-ordinator to talk through your support needs. From this conversation we can gauge how we can support you best. This can include pointing you to information or other organisations for support. As well as speaking to one of our advisers.

Making adjustments

We can make adjustments, if you need them. These include:

accessing video calls with British Sign Language interpreters
using Skype instant messenger (text chat)

Reaching the end of the programme

At the end of the 6 sessions, you will look at what did or did not work and rate your overall progress.

Depending on availability, you may get to choose to start again with new goals.

It's not suitable for everyone

Your adviser cannot help you with:

This service is online or by phone. If you prefer face to face meetings, this service may not be for you.

Office opening times

The Navigate office is open weekdays, 9am to 5pm.

Appointments with your adviser can take place outside of these office hours, and include weekday evenings or Saturday mornings.

Award winning

Navigate won a Social Care Wales Accolade 2020 Award in the “Building bright futures with children and families” category.

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