What’s your idea?

FamilyChange: An online community for Scottish parents where they can get support from both professionals and other parents on a range of issues centred around change within the family unit, such as divorce/separation, relationship issues, the introduction of a new step family, bereavement, etc. Professionals from voluntary sector organisations specialising in family mediation, parenting skills, relationship counselling, child counselling, family group conferencing and more would engage with, support and signpost parents online.

What’s the social need or challenge your idea could address?

All families go through a period of change at some point, be it divorce or the introduction of a new step family. Often parents need additional support through these periods of change but they do not know who to turn to in a crisis. FamilyChange would provide a safe community where parents can ask professionals from a range of family support agencies about the most appropriate service for their needs. This approach will mean that more families get the correct support sooner rather than later. Allowing parents to communicate with each other on the site too means that vital peer support is built into the community.

What’s really new about your idea?

While online communities for parents are by no means new, the difference with this approach is that the site would be also used by professionals from various agencies, such as Relationships Scotland, Scottish Marriage Care, Children 1st, Barnardos and more. This would mean that, as well as peer support, parents using the site would get guidance from trained professionals. I believe this is a unique approach.

What inspired you to come up with your idea in the first place?

I currently work as a Development Manager for Family Support Partnership Lanarkshire - www.familysupport.org.uk - and many of the parents we work with tell us they wish there was more parenting support and advice available online from real people rather than simply on static websites. It takes a big leap for parents to contact a support agency and many now turn to the interent as their first port of call for advice.

We run an online chat function on our own website which is extremely popular but it would be great if online person-to-person advice could be offered to parents across Scotland by various agencies in one place. While each major family support charity has its own website there isn’t a single place where all of this knowledge is collated and where parents can speak to professionals about their situation.

From 1-5, what stage of development would you say your idea was in?

1 - early stage.

This is still very much a concept right now, no work has been done to get the FamilyChange site started. Early discussions with partners from parenting and family support organisations has been positive about the idea of an online community where parents can get advice from professionals and I feel they would buy into the concept and allow staff/volunteers to participate.

What can we do for you?

I’d need a Geek, Funder and mentor, in that order.

This idea was submitted by Ross McColloch. 

Ross McCulloch manages the development of an innovative charity triptych - Family Support Partnership Lanarkshire.  The partnership brings together a wide range of counselling, mediation and support services for children and families. Ross is also the founder of ThirdSectorForums.co.uk, an online community where social entrepreneurs and non-profit types learn, debate and connect. He has worked across the public, private and voluntary sectors in areas such as community planning, economic regeneration and children’s rights. Ross sits on the Big Lottery Fund’s Fair Share Trust Scotland Panel, which has channeled some £6.1million to community groups across the country.