As a small team of staff and volunteers, we’re incredibly proud of the transformative impact our services have on families experiencing neonatal care across Greater Manchester.
Since Spoons began in 2015, we’ve supported well over 5,000 families through peer-to-peer support, community groups, individual therapy, and our family support service.
We’ve also created volunteer opportunities for almost 100 parents with neonatal lived experience, and supported hundreds more to be involved in co-production to help improve neonatal services.
In addition, we’ve improved the wellbeing of the parents who’ve received trauma therapy. This therapy is offered to Spoons parents, taking into account their NICU experience, and aims to address their trauma at as early a stage as possible, to prevent post-traumatic stress disorder.
Our founder Kirsten said: “We’ve changed and grown over the years, but our core values haven’t. We’re proud to still be a charity led by lived experience, and we’re endlessly thankful to the neonatal community who’ve stood by us and supported Spoons for the last ten years.”
We’re always touched to receive positive feedback from the parents we’ve supported. Here’s what some of them had to say about the impact that Spoons had on their family…
“I have found by attending the groups and therapy arranged by Spoons that I have come some way to dealing with his birth and time on NICU. I honestly can never thank Spoons enough for helping me find the light while navigating the darkest of storms.”
“The team at Spoons helped me to feel more informed, like I wasn’t alone and also provided reassurance in what was a challenging time.”
“I knew Spoons would be the group I would turn to, to ask questions and to share my feelings, knowing they would be understood and validated. Spoons has been a guiding light for me. They’ve shown me so much support and compassion.”
