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The Village is all about giving women a space to explore & embrace motherhood together, because motherhood was never something we were meant to do alone. While our generation of parents are privileged to have access to plenty of information on parenting, this can sometimes leave us feeling overwhelmed, unsure or isolated. With talks on topics relevant to motherhood, small group discussions and plenty of time for casual conversations, The Village provides a space for women to connect with other mums in their community, exploring and sharing their journey of motherhood together. We know mums love their little ones, but also appreciate a chance to enjoy a hot cup of tea and uninterrupted conversations, so we provide an onsite creche during all Village sessions.
Welcome to your new home at The Village! We can’t wait to get to know you!
All of our mums and kids are a valued part of our Village community.
The Village is a place to just be you. You are welcome, no matter what (even if you rock up in your PJs with your toddler’s breakfast in your hair!).
Your kids will enjoy their own morning of fun with our Village Creche staff and volunteers.
This might be your only chance in the week to enjoy a delicious, uninterrupted morning tea. You’re worth it! Enjoy!
Usually, one of our Village team or a guest speaker will share their experience or expertise with us. Every now and then we’ll do things a bit differently and explore themes in other creative ways. Examples of topics we might cover include relationships, mummy guilt, thankfulness, vulnerability, being kind to yourself, photography and family identity.
Village mornings will always include plenty of time to explore our day’s topic together, led by our team of Village Group Facilitators. This is where we get to know each other and hopefully where friendships start!
Whether they become lifelong friends, or just friends for a season, you will meet many women to share your motherhood journey with. Doing life together weaves a beautiful richness into our everyday.
In our society, we are privileged to have access to so much information on parenting. While a privilege, this can sometimes be overwhelming. There is so much advice on what we should be doing as mums, yet far less opportunities to talk about the experience of motherhood. At The Village, we believe that mums themselves are just as important as the job they do. The Village provides space to have real conversations, to journey together through motherhood, sharing the joys, the struggles and everything in between.
In The Village sessions we’ll explore a variety of topics relevant to motherhood. The Village is not just to provide you with parenting information, though we hope our sessions are helpful. Our primary focus is to support and connect women throughout their parenting journey. A significant part of how we do this is through small group discussion.
Small group discussion creates opportunities to further explore issues covered in talks. Sometimes the topics will be light and other times we will be talking about deeper issues. We believe that small groups create a sense of safety and comfort that is often not as strong in a larger group. We also believe that having the opportunity to develop real relationships with other women who are on a similar journey is so valuable. This is why we value our small discussion groups so highly and provide significant time to connect in this space.
Each discussion group is facilitated by one of The Village team members. Our team has participated in group facilitator training as well as mental health first aid training to ensure you feel safe and valued in your group.
We know how much you love your kids. And we know that sometimes, even though you really need a break, it’s hard to leave them. That’s why at The Village Creche we work hard to make sure your child settles well into their own morning of fun.
The Village Creche is a safe and nurturing space, available for children from 6 months to 5 years. The Village Creche workers are screened for suitability and given appropriate training. The Village Creche is run according to the Parkerville Baptist Church Creche Policy and all creche workers carry a current Working with Children Card. If you have any questions regarding the creche or would like to view the Creche Policy, please speak to the Creche Coordinator or email Rachel.Philp@parkycare.net.au
Before you arrive at The Village Creche, please clearly label all belongings, and make note of these items in the sign in/out book. Usually, the only thing your child will need is a drink bottle, so you may choose to take the rest of their belongings with you to avoid any confusion. It is also helpful if dummies are clipped to your child. Sticky labels and/or a marker are available at The Village Creche sign in desk if you forget to label your items prior to arrival.
Morning tea of in season fruit will be provided for all children. Please do not send food in bags unless an arrangement has been made with the Creche Coordinator due to allergies. Please ensure allergies are noted each session when signing in your child. For younger toddlers & babies who may not be ready to enjoy the fruit, please provide other suitable morning tea as required. Please note the Village Creche is a nut free environment.
We know how tempting it is to peek in on your child during Village sessions. Often, if they happen to see you and/or hear the door open, they think it’s time to go when it is not. If your child needs you, you will be called out of The Village session. You will be notified if your child cries consistently for 10 minutes or if an injury is sustained. You will also be called if your child requires a nappy change. If you are called out to The Village creche, please attend to your child immediately.
Quiet infants are welcome in The Village session with their mums. Once babies become more active (typically around 6 months) we encourage mums to start transitioning them into The Village Creche. Please remember and respect that other mums have come to The Village to engage and listen without distraction from little ones.
We understand how much mums don’t want to miss out on The Village, but please don’t bring sick children (including older siblings) into The Village Creche as this exposes other children to illness. For information on when you should keep your child home from The Village Creche, please see The Village Creche Coordinator.
Tips for settling your child into The Village Creche
We kindly request that you don’t come back into The Village session with an unsettled/noisy child. Please remember other mums have come to have a break, and it can be very distracting while they are trying to listen to a talk/participate in discussion.
The Village is only possible thanks to generous grants and donations. Supporting mums in our local community.
Donate NowTo register, simply download our registration form or email The Village Coordinator through the form at the bottom of this page.
Download PDFThe Village relies heavily on volunteers from group facilitators to creche workers. We’d love to hear from you.
Volunteer NowNo, The Village is for every mum or mother figure (eg. foster mums, grandparent carers). We have mums with children of all ages in The Village community. Many of our mums have young children and/or primary school aged children. Our team of Village volunteers even have teenagers and grandchildren! While occasionally a topic may be more suited to mums of younger children, we try to focus on topics that are universal to all mums in our community.
Yes, you are more than welcome to join us at The Village if your children are at school or being cared for elsewhere.
At this stage, The Village sessions are limited to Tuesday mornings during school term. Sometimes we will organise a less formal catch-up at the park during school holidays. As connections form and friendships deepen, we have seen women choosing to catch up at other times during the week for coffee & playdates. The Village is all about providing a space for connection with other mums in the community.
A donation of $10 per session will help us towards covering the costs of childcare and morning tea. If this is not within your budget, we are grateful for any donations that will help us continue providing all that we do through The Village.
Yes, all donations of $2 and above are tax deductible.