‘Helping parents to do the little things that make a big difference’

Peeple is a charity that supports parents and children to learn together – to help all parents to give their children the best start in life and to narrow the gap in attainment between children from rich and poor backgrounds. We do this by developing interventions, including the Peep Learning Together Programme, by training practitioners and by delivering frontline services to families in our local area of Oxford.

In the 25 years since we began, Sure Start has come and gone and, although the research underpinning our work has been consolidated, the inequalities which led to Peeple being established have grown. Since March 2020 they have been further amplified by the Covid pandemic.

In response to Covid, and like many organisations, we adapted our training so that it could be delivered online – and explored ways that families could be supported remotely with the Peep Learning Together Programme. We have learnt so much from the creativity and determination of practitioners around the country as they have reached out to families in the most difficult of circumstances.

Technology has been embraced and a variety of digital apps have been used to increase accessibility and inclusion at a time when families felt particularly isolated and vulnerable. Using technology has allowed partners and family members to join in with Peep sessions or to access the material in their own time.

Much of what we have learnt during the last two years will be of value in our work beyond Covid – which, sadly, will be needed more than ever.  Doing the little things which make a big difference has been hard – impossibly hard – for some. The consequences could be far reaching; the benefits of healthy early development last more than a lifetime; they influence how we parent our own children.

Based around the ORIM framework
The Peep Learning Together Programme (LTP) training is for practitioners who work or plan to work with parents/carers and babies/young children and who contribute to strong parent-child relationships, increased parental knowledge and confidence in how to support their child's learning and play in day-to-day life and children’s personal, social & emotional development, communication and  language, early literacy, early maths, and health and  physical development. 

The training equips practitioners, often working in the statutory early learning and childcare and health and social work sectors or voluntary organisations to:

• engage and support parents to build on what they already do to enhance their baby's or child's early learning and communication (contributing to school-readiness), through talking and playing as part of everyday life 
• explore practical ideas, strategies and resources, using the comprehensive and flexible Peep Learning Together Programme 
• deliver universal or targeted sessions with parents and children together – in person or online: one-to-one, groups or drop-ins.

The programme is based around the ORIM framework (Opportunities, Recognition, Interaction, Modelling), developed by Professors Cathy Nutbrown and Peter Hannon from the University of Sheffield. We use it to help practitioners to see how parents already support their children’s learning by:

• giving them opportunities
• recognising their achievements and helping them to take their next steps in learning or independence
• interacting with them in all kinds of ways
• being a role model.

All parents do these things, but some do them more often and with more intention than others. In this programme ORIM helps practitioners to explain to parents why they are already doing a brilliant job – and to use this explanation to help them do more. It is a great starting point because parents don’t feel judged, they feel valued.

LTP covers five strands of learning: Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Lan­guage, Early Literacy, Early Maths, and Health and Physical Development. It can be delivered by trained practitioners to groups of parents, one-to-one with families, integrated into drop-in sessions as part of a universal offer – or targeted to families who meet specific criteria.

All parents and carers should have the support that they need in their crucial role in shaping their child’s future – and we are committed to playing our part in ensuring that support is available to every family when they need it.

Please visit us at Peeple or contact info@peeple.org.uk for further information