DORPIP (Dorset Parent Infant Partnership) is a group that aims to help local families to ensure their children can flourish through attuned parenting, early bonding and healthy attachment, in order to give them the best possible start in life.

Dorset Community Foundation has funded DorPip several times, including the provision of grants as part of the Dorset Coronavirus Community Fund, which supported the continuation of therapeutic and support services for new parents in Dorset, during the pandemic.

DCF also funded DorPip, as part of the Wessex Water Community Fund, which helped it set up a community group to provide a space for families to meet weekly and help provide integral support for their infants’ development.

CEO Vivian Allen said since the pandemic the groups has seen demand rise steadily. She says: “Main care givers are telling us that increased feelings of sadness, anxiety and isolation are making it extremely difficult to feel bonded and attached to their infant which has led to infants being less able to settle, have increased sleep disruption and digestive issues – signs of increasing stress.”

She said many families are still feeling the effects of the isolation caused by the lockdowns. “Nationwide health professionals have identified five main areas of risk in which Covid-19 has affected infants – less responsive parenting, traumatic experiences, material deprivation, indirect health risks and lack of social interaction,” she said.

“Our groups aim to restore human connectivity to establish a strong community among new parents and their children.”

 

Contact DorPip on: contact@dorpip.org.uk.

Click Here for DorPip’s Website