Caboolture program for young mums is ‘life changing’
One of Caboolture’s most outstanding programs for young pregnant and parenting women is changing lives but there are hopes for more funding to expand the support
Moreton
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When 18-year-old Caboolture peer support worker Molli Robinson first heard about the Caboolture Young Mothers for Young Women (CYMYW) program she was 16 with a baby on the way.
Within two weeks of Armani’s birth Molli had joined the program which has gone on to change not just her life but the lives of all the young mothers who have been able to participate.
“I couldn’t imagine myself being a peer support worker two years ago … it’s amazing,” she said.
Starting as a Peer Support Work in May last year, Molli is now supporting other young mums.
“I am able to help advocate for the women, be a friend as well as be there for them professionally …. as young women parenting it can be hard to have a voice … so it’s great to be able to help with everyday things and to support the mums in the program.”
CYMYW provides support to young pregnant and parenting women by connecting them with a cross-section of services but also offers a space to meet with other young mothers and key support workers including social workers, midwife care and peer support workers
She said the CYMYW program, which is managed by Micah Projects, was “very important” for the community as it provided many young mothers with an opportunity “to connect and create friendships outside the program and to break the shell” of isolation.
She said via the program, she and her partner had been able to move into a unit just before her daughter’s first birthday.
“I was lucky I had a lot of support from my family and my main struggle was with finding housing ….. or getting food or getting to the shops,” she said.
“CYMYW is amazing. It feels like another home here.”
“It just felt amazing to be with other young women. I have made so many friends and our babies have grown together.”
“A lot of women struggle with anxiety or just being social .. I am a very social person and I know I was able to help those women to talk and to have friends.”
Molli said speaking to other young women in the program they told her “they didn’t know where they would be without it”.
“When I asked them it almost made me cry to hear what they said.”
“They said they feel so supported and it is helping them to break out of their shells.”
She said the participants were amazed at the program and “definitely recommended it”.
“It should be everywhere and they should expand the funding. There is a limited number of women we can support and more funding would mean we can support more young people,” Molli said.
“It’s a life changing program. I know a few women who have had to move and have been devastated because they were out of the region we support.”
“It is definitely a program that helps you grow.”
Molli will be part of the Peer Support program until she is 21 and is currently studying to become a midwife.
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Minister for Child Safety Di Farmer visited the CYMYW program earlier this month to highlight the work of the program.
“We know parenting can be a challenge – and particularly so for young people,” Ms Farmer said.
“Early intervention programs are crucial to providing safe and stable homes for children so we are better equipping young mums with the skills they need at a time when it counts most.”
An evaluation of The Young Mothers for Young Women program by the University of Queensland found an average 75 per cent of clients had most of their needs met.
“Since the Caboolture service began, 78 children from 89 families have been supported in accessing healthcare and social support,” Ms Farmer said.
“This is a positive result confirming quality outcomes when support is provided for both mother and child.”
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Micah Projects Chief Executive Officer, Karyn Walsh said the program was an example of how cross agency and non-government organisations worked collaboratively to meet the specific needs of vulnerable young women and their children.
“We formed a partnership with the Caboolture Hospital and other local services to work together in co-ordinating professional support and services from pregnancy through to childbirth and parenting,” she said.
“The program has helped parents better understand early childhood development and has assisted them meet their personal health housing, education, training and employment needs.”
During the COVID-19 crisis CYMYW support worker Stacey Larkin said CYMCW “is doing everything it can to support families under the current health recommendations”.
“While we have temporarily reduced our face-to-face contact (where appropriate) we are otherwise business as usual,” she said.
Contact Micah Projects here.
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