IN THIS ISSUE

10 Family Things to do at Christmas The Secret Lives of 4 and 5 Year Olds at School

Can you get 30 hours of free childcare a week?

Win a Family Ticket to Rapunzel at the Hertford Theatre Christmas What’s On

Issue 77 Nov/Dec 2017 familiesonline.co.uk 2 Families Herts familiesonline.co.uk From your Editor… In this issue: It’s that time of year again and it will soon be feeling a lot like Christmas – cosy and warm with the scent of cinnamon and spice. News & Views: 4 To help you along the way we have a lovely piece by Claire Winter (yes, really!) with a list of 10 family 'must dos' for the Christmas season. You’re not obligated to do all of Christmas: 6 them, but it will give you ideas and inspiration. We also have a competition to win a family ticket to see the opening show of Rapunzel at the Hertford Theatre. Plus, all entrants not lucky enough to win will get a code for Childcare: 10 discounted panto tickets. If you are hooked on Channel 4’s TV programme ‘The Secret Life of 4 & 5 Year Olds’, Child Development: 11 our Child Development piece is an interview with Dr Elizabeth Kilbey, a psychologist from the show. The new series takes a fly-on-the-wall look at how children cope with Christmas What’s On: 12 starting school. I hope you have a lovely festive season planned - I’m off to have a peek at my Christmas pud that’s been happily steeping in brandy for months! Next Issue: No 78 - Jan/Feb Shelley Copy Deadline: 8th December Image credit: © t.tomsickova Find us in: Baldock, Borehamwood, Chorleywood, Harpenden, Hatfield, Hemel Hempstead, Hertford, , Kings Langley, Knebworth, Letchworth, Radlett, St Albans, Stevenage, Ware, Welwyn GC.

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familiesonline.co.uk 3 News & Views Dacorum Borough Council awarded prestigious bronze award

​Dacorum Borough Council (DBC) has received a bronze award from the Armed Forces Covenant Employer Recognition Scheme for its pledge to provide support to the Armed Forces community. As signatories of the Community Covenant, the Council has ‘All Different, All Equal’ promised to ensure that serving personnel, Service families, veterans, cadets and Anti-Bullying Week runs from 13th to reservists, do not face disadvantage and are 17th November this year and the theme, treated respectfully. In line with this, the ‘All Different, All Equal’ aims to promote difference and equality in schools. Council provides increased Housing support Dacorum’s Armed Forces Day event to Armed Forces personnel and their families. The idea is to help children and young people Most recently, the Council organised an event celebrate what makes them, and others, to commemorate Armed Forces Day, which unique and help them understand why it’s attracted over two thousand local residents. so important to ensure that the Armed Forces important that every child feels included at Councillor Neil Harden, Portfolio Holder for Community are provided with the guidance school and able to be themselves without fear Residents & Corporate Services, said: "The and assistance that they deserve.” of bullying. transition back to civilian life can be difficult Find out more at www.dacorum.gov.uk/ The Anti-Bullying Alliance will be supporting for serving personnel and their families so it is armed-forces-covenant. schools with a range of free activities to help them take action to prevent bullying and create safe environments for their pupils. Anti-Bullying Week will also see the ‘Power for Good’ award made to teachers, school support staff and youth workers who go How Children Eat Says a Broxbourne woman beyond the call of duty to help children with Lot about Their Personality issues such as bullying, relationships, family takes to the trees life and mental health. To get involved visit Charlotte Easton who is deafblind recently www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk completed Cockfosters’ Go Ape course alongside her Communicator Guide, Suzy Ensor, to raise funds for Sense, the national charity for the deafblind. This is not the first time that the pair have gone to great heights to fundraise for Sense, having scaled The O2 together last year. Their objective now is to take on a new challenge each year. Charlotte said: “The Go Ape challenge was a brilliant experience! We’re already looking forward to our next challenge.” Charlotte has been using the charity’s local communicator guide service, taking part in Most toddlers go through bouts of picky arts and wellbeing activities and attending eating, but infants with more inhibited Sense holidays, where people with complex personalities are more likely to turn up their needs take on new adventures as they have nose at new foods, according to researchers. the holiday of a lifetime. In a study, researchers observed how Together, the pair have raised over £500 for infants responded to new foods and new toys Sense. To donate visit www.justgiving.com/ throughout their first 18 months. The study fundraising/suzy-ensor7. To find out more visit Rates of SIDS at Record Low found that infants who were wary of new toys www.sense.org.uk also tended to be less accepting of new foods, Rates of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) suggesting early food attitudes stem from have shown another decrease in and personality. Wales according to newly released figures "From the time they're very young, some from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). infants are more 'approaching' and react The 2015 figures show a decrease of 25% positively to new things, whereas other infants since 2013 and continue the trend of record are more 'withdrawing' and react negatively to low SIDS rates in England and Wales for the the same stimuli," said Kameron Moding from second year running. the University of Colarado, Denver and author The ONS attribute the decrease to a of the paper. reduction in maternal smoking and increased “Keep trying! Research from other labs has awareness of safer sleep advice. consistently shown that infants and children Leading SIDS charity, The Lullaby Trust, can learn to accept new foods if cautions that it is important not to become their caregivers continue to offer them" complacent and following safer sleep advice Moding said. L to R: Clark Mullen (Sense Communicator Guide remains as vital as ever. For more information visit Service Manager); Suzy Ensor (Communicator For safe sleeping advice visit www.sciencedaily.com Guide); Charlotte Easton www.lullabytrust.org.uk

4 Families Herts familiesonline.co.uk A Mum’s Meningitis Story

Francesca was only three weeks old when she I remind myself every day how blessed I am contracted meningitis. We were still getting to to have two beautiful, healthy children. know her as a new little person, so when the The charity, Meningitis Now, is working constant crying began I thought she was just towards a future where no one in the UK starting to vocalize her needs. dies from meningitis and those affected get When her temperature rose, we took her to the support they need. It funds research into an out of hours doctor who examined her and vaccines and prevention and raises awareness assured us the temperature would drop. We so that people know what to look for and went home but she refused to sleep in her cot what action to take if they suspect meningitis. so she slept, on and off, on me. When we woke They help to rebuild futures by providing to feed Francesca her temperature had soared support to people living with the impact of to over 39°c. I phoned for an ambulance and the disease. we went to A & E. Francesca screamed all the For more information about the decease way there, it was heart-breaking. and how to protect against it visit www. On arrival she was whisked away for a urine MeningitisNow.org. Freephone helpline 0808 test and lumbar puncture - I was not allowed 80 10 388 (9am - 5pm Monday to Friday). in the room and the thought of my tiny baby having that done, all alone, was horrendous. The doctors admitted her to await the result of the lumbar puncture. They noted how mottled her skin was and that her high temperature was the result of an infection and antibiotics were given. As Francesca’s condition stabilised, her temperature dropped and, she continued to feed normally - we were lucky. The next morning an army of doctors arrived to tell us the words that no parent wants to hear - meningitis. Because of her symptoms the medics were reasonably sure that it was viral, but we had to stay in hospital until the test results were ready. Her condition never deteriorated and, after two days, when we got the confirmation that the meningitis was viral, we we're allowed to go home. It was an unbelievably frightening time for our family but it could have been much worse and, as already mentioned, we were the lucky ones. At the time of writing there have been no long-term effects from the illness. Francesca has now turned one and is growing into a beautiful and happy little girl.

familiesonline.co.uk 5 Christmas 10 Things Your Family Must Do this Christmas By Claire Winter

6. Check out a Christmas Light show. Stately homes and gardens are lighting up with festive brilliance across the country. Christmas at Kew has its annual show, where the garden is illuminated by 1 million twinkling lights along a mile-long trail (kew. org/kew-gardens/whats-on/christmas-at-kew). Blenheim Palace in Oxford will also be lit up, so you can see the Capability Brown designed grounds in all their glory (blenheimpalace. com/whats-on/events/christmas-at-blenheim. html) Look out for ‘Light up the North,’ an annual series of lighting festivals across Northern England. ‘Illuminating York’ is one of the most popular ones and this year they will be opening up some of the city’s most famous buildings at night, where there will be cutting edge lighting installations. 7. Deck the Halls. Put on some Christmas tunes and decorate the house as a family. Get all the decorations out and have fun making your home all Christmassy. Collect some greenery from 3. Bake with the kids. the garden or whilst you are on a walk. The Every day we get closer to traditional holly and ivy looks great draped Christmas the children (and Make festive gingerbread men with the over a mantelpiece or around a doorframe. adults) get a little bit more children. The smell of baking, ginger and You could also get the kids to make their own cinnamon immediately evokes the scent of decorations - card, glue and glitter is all excited. Here are some great Christmas. You could also be ambitious and you need! ideas to get in the festive mood bake biscuits to construct a gingerbread house too. Don’t worry you can also cheat and buy 8. Go and see the Christmas lights. with the whole family. a readymade set from supermarkets like Asda, If you’re on budget this a great way to get Aldi and Lidl! into the festive spirit without having to spend 1. It wouldn’t be Christmas without 4. Make reindeer food. a fortune. Most towns and cities also have a Panto. a festive switch-on, where a local celebrity Oh no it wouldn’t! Many families make it Generate excitement about the arrival of or panto star turns on the lights and there is a tradition to watch a festive show. There Father Christmas and his reindeer by making usually some free entertainment too. Check are lots of local pantomimes listed in the a special food for Rudolf and friends. You out the Christmas Lights Switch Ons listing in What's On section. If Panto isn’t your thing can pre-make it and have it ready to sprinkle What's On to find your nearest event. on the lawn or hallway on Christmas Eve, so you could take a trip to the big smoke and 9. Help others. watch ‘Pinocchio’ at the National Theatre. Santa and his friends know where to go! Mix They have bought the rights fr