Cindy Prince couldn't wait until her daughter Chaniel was three months old.
That meant Prince could start participating in Project Parent North (PPN), a local program that supports parents raising their children.
Chaniel, now almost eight months old, was in the care of the Ministry of Children and Families practically since birth because of issues Prince had in her past and the only way Prince could see her daughter for certain was during the twice-weekly full days at PPN.
"And now Chaniel is back in my care so it's helped me get her back," said Prince.
The program tries to eliminate all barriers to participation, so there is transportation available as well as meals and snacks provided.
"We provide parent education and support," said Jenny Plouffe, manager of parent services for Northern Health, about the program that's been in Prince George for almost 30 years.
"The program basically provides services to families for five months and it's a highly integrated program."
The program is offered to anyone with a child between three months and five years old, including those who self-refer to Project Parent North.
"We see couples come in, individuals, grandparents who are parenting again and aunties, so we see all kinds of people," said Plouffe.
"It's for anyone who feels they need it."
Families are referred by their physicians, public health nurses, from the Child Development Centre, Speech and Language, other community agencies and the Ministry of Children and Families (MCFD), which provides the funding for the program while the contract is held by Northern Health.
"The longevity of the program has proven that the hands-on, long-term support of families is really what helps them integrate," said Plouffe. "We believe that parent education and helping them enhance their child's development is really important."
Parents are also assisted with things like developing secure parent-child attachment, learning effective positive discipline while providing consistent structure and routines, added Plouffe.
On a typical day, families arrive at Project Parent North at 10 a.m. and make the choice between two play areas, a quiet indoor setting or a playground in the back of the building.
There are two early childhood educators on site that have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to child development, Plouffe said.
Parents, with their family worker in attendance, then have an opportunity to work on those skills like providing positive reinforcement and setting limits and following through, said Plouffe.
At the end of the morning, there is circle time so children and parents can learn songs and nursery rhymes and parents learn different ways of interacting with their children.
Then it's time for lunch where everyone sits at a table, something some families don't do, said Plouffe.
"This provides the opportunity for them to help children understand etiquette at the table where they have to stay in their chairs and have conversations and set limits," added Plouffe.
After lunch, children are looked after by staff while parents go to their educational programming. Once snack time is over, the day concludes at 3 p.m.
Five months seems like a long time but it takes time for change to take place.
"It's a process," said Plouffe.
There is an opportunity to continue with Project Parent North because different challenges present themselves as a child grows. Prince knows she will access the program again soon, as Chaniel continues to develop. Prince is on the waiting list for September.
"It's been really good," said Prince of Project Parent North. "It's awesome. If you have any problems with your child you can talk to staff about it and they will help you figure it out. There's a parenting class for an hour that's pretty informative."
The twice-weekly program offered a way for Prince to get to spend time with her child while learning life and parenting skills to become the person she wishes to be as the mother of Chaniel.
"It's really wonderful how they work with the kids there. It's fun because you get to interact with other families. It's a really good program and it's all around awesome."
