TAKEFREE ME HOME ® Herts RECRUITING NOW Successful ‘business mum’ is seeking 5 working partners to work part-time IN THIS ISSUE from home, alongside & without compromising family commitments or current career. What’s On Christmas If you have a supervisory, managerial, sales, marketing, recruitment or self- employed background, or you wish Festive Family Traditions to develop an extraordinary lifestyle please call Diana Page No More Nappies! 01235 533362 • 07747 086518 Issuefamiliesonline.co.uk 89 Nov/Dec 2019 familiesonline.co.uk1 For more event information go to: @HemelHempsteadBID @HemelBID Tickets on sale now willowsactivityfarm.com Frederick Warne & Co. Limited and Silvergate PPL Limited 2019. All rights reserved. PB01624 2 Families Herts Herts Also, for an advent calendar of I hope you have a lovely festive Hello! a diff erent kind, turn to page 15 season planned – I’m looking for our Acts of Kindness Advent forward to a well-earned rest from Welcome to the November/ Calendar. See how many you can what has been an incredibly busy December issue of Families perform and in doing so bring a year, and indulging in lots of festive Hertfordshire Magazine. smile to the face of family, friends, food! neighbours and strangers! See you in 2020! Christmas! – that special time of As with every December there’s a year is just around the corner and packed Christmas schedule across to get you in the mood we have a the county with festive markets, Dale fantastic feature on festive family Santa’s grottos, Christmas lights traditions. The article has some fab switch-ons, pantos and more, ideas you can introduce to your so make sure you take a look in Christmas that I’m sure will create What’s On for the pick of local cherished family memories events. (page 7). Tel: 07958284983 In this issue: Email: [email protected] Web: www.familiesonline.co.uk News & Views 4-6 Editor: Dale Harry Design: 45 Degrees Design & Print Christmas 7 /Families_UK Listings editor: Karen Porter /FamiliesUK Early Years 8-9 • We reach over 45,000 engaged • We have a high repeat booking rate, Market your readers each issue so advertising with us works What’s On 11-14 business with • Distribute from schools, tuition centres, leisure attractions trusted, infl uential, visible Advent Calendar 15 Families Herts and more 07958284983 Do you have experience working with children with additional needs? You will have the skills to be an amazing foster carer. EVERY CHILD DESERVES A #ChanceToThrive We need more foster carers with the skills to care for children with additional needs. If you can help, give us a call on 0800 917 0925, or visit our website for more information www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/chancetothrive Find us on socials: @HCCFosterAdopt / #ChanceToThrive Families Hertfordshire (FH) is part of the Families Print Ltd, a franchise company. All franchised magazines in the group are independently owned and operated under licence. Families® is a registered trademark of LCMB Ltd, Remenham House, Regatta Place, Marlow Road, Bourne End, Bucks, SL8 5TD. The content of FH is fully protected by copyright. Every care is taken in the preparation of this magazine, but Families Print Ltd and FH cannot be held responsible for the claims of advertisers nor for the accuracy of the contents, or any consequence thereof. News & Views Enjoy the Make it a Bing magic of Christmas! If you’re short on ideas of what to get Christmas your little one for Christmas this year then a Bing cuddly toy is sure to bring a smile to their face – particularly if they’re a with a letter fan of the show. Based around the much-loved character from Santa from the hit CBeebies production, the talking Bing with Hoppity has over 15 fun phrases for children to enjoy. Bing’s favourite toy Hoppity Voosh wears All children love to receive a letter addressed to them in a soft red cape and can be detached from Bing. Press Bing’s the post, but what could be more special than a letter from hand and watch his button softly glow as he talks to Hoppity, Father Christmas? Here are two ways of making this happen. giggles or sings as the music plays. The toy is approximately 36cm in length from top of ears Royal Mail letter to Santa to feet and is suitable for children aged 10 months and over For children to receive a FREE letter from Santa via the Royal (£29.99). Mail children must post their letter to Santa by Friday 6 December. Envelopes must have either a fi rst or second class stamp and be addressed to Santa/Father Christmas, Santa’s Grotto, The Tiger Who Came to Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ. The letter must include your child’s full name and address. For more information on letters to Santa from the Royal Mail go to: Tea hits the screen this www.royalmail.com/christmas/letters-to-santa Christmas NSPCC Santa letter Children can also receive a personalised reply from Santa via his elves at the NSPCC in exchange for a minimum £5 donation to the charity. The letter is ordered online and must be placed by 9 December. For more information: https://letterfromsanta.nspcc.org.uk/letter-from-santa If you are pregnant or a parent/carer of a child under 19 your local family centre would love to meet you. What happens at a family centre? Hertfordshire’s Family Centre Service brings children’s centres, health visiting and school nursing together to provide The Tiger Who Came to Tea, the classic children’s book by a joined up service for children, young people and their families Judith Kerr, will come to TV this Christmas adapted as a half- from pregnancy through to when a child reaches 19, offering a hour animated fi lm for Channel 4. range of activities and services to help them grow and develop. It will feature a star-studded cast of voices including Benedict Cumberbatch, David Oyelowo, Tamsin Greig, Why should you register your family? David Walliams (pictured) and Paul Whitehouse. • By registering with a family centre you and your child/children can The role of Sophie will be played by 7 year old Clara Ross, have fun, meet new people and learn together through activities. who will be making her TV debut. • If you need help and support, the family centre will try and give you For anyone that doesn’t know the book, it tells the tale of what you need. the tiger that shows up at young Sophie’s front door and • To give you the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of the family proceeds to eat the family out of house and home, even centre and help shape the services on offer. going so far as to drink all of the water out of the taps, For more information and to register visit before declaring: “Thank you for my nice tea. I think I’d better go now,” and departing. www.hertsfamilycentres.org Chloe Tucker, Commissioning Executive, Channel 4 Drama said: “The Tiger Who Came to Tea is a timeless classic, and we hope this fi lm will capture the same special place in every family’s imagination watching it.’’ Market your business or event in Families Herƞ ordshire Magazine and reach over 45,000 readers in the area. Call 07958284983 4 Families Herts News & Views Reduction in school breaks is ‘unhealthy’ for children School break times are much shorter than they were two decades ago meaning children are missing out on valuable opportunities to make friends and develop social skills and exercise, according to research by the Nuffi eld Foundation. The study looked at how school breaks have changed over 25 years comparing data from over 1,000 Picky eaters still primary and secondary schools. It found that despite the length of grow up healthy the school day remaining much the same, break times are being squeezed with reported lunchtimes of 35 minutes Picky eating in toddlers is a well- even further with potential serious or less. documented phase when children implications for children’s well-being According to the authors, break don’t want to try new foods and/or and development. times are important for children to get show very strong preferences. Afternoon breaks have been virtually physical exercise – a particular concern It can create much worry for parents, eliminated; they are now only available given the rise in obesity, and to develop and has created a whole market to 15% of primary school children and important social skills that are not for advice, guidance and tools to 1% of secondary schools. There is also learned in school lessons. More info: encourage young children to try lots of a clear trend to shorter lunch breaks www.nuffi eldfoundation.org new tastes and textures. But researchers from the University of Bristol using data from a study of children between the ages of 7 to Step Up for Safe Streets 17 have found that instead of being UK Road Safety Week 2019, which takes Safe Streets and learn about, shout harmed by their diets, children who place between 18 and 24 November, about and celebrate the amazing had been picky eaters at age 3 were will encourage road users to ‘step up’ design-led solutions that can help end growing normally as adolescents with a and play a part in the creation of a safe suff ering on our roads. healthy height and weight. and healthy future on our roads. The focus is on how intelligent The researchers claim the study Every 20 minutes someone is killed or design can stop human error from shows that even children who are seriously injured on a British road, yet causing death or serious injury on the picky as pre-schoolers usually eat well each of these tragedies is preventable.