Benalla’s Tomorrow Today Foundation received an award for Outstanding Work in their COVID-19 Response at the National Community Foundations Australia Forum held in Geelong last week. This is the first time in three years that the National Forum has been held. The Forum brings together those involved in community foundations – to share stories, inspire each other and hear from leading experts.
Tomorrow Today’s Early Years team, whom many Benalla families know through the much-loved Parents Early Education Partnership (PEEP) program, received the award for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic. In non-COVID times the PEEP program runs multiple, face-to-face facilitated playgroup sessions with parents and children every school day. When the pandemic hit, in-person group sessions were no longer possible. Rosie Koop, Tomorrow Today’s Executive Officer, recalls: “When the lockdowns started and group gatherings were prohibited, we knew we needed to find new ways to support families. We started with live online sessions, then pre-recorded segments featuring early childhood experts, uploaded onto a PEEP Facebook group page. For a while these were popular but the success of PEEP depends on strong human connection. As the lockdown dragged on some families told us they felt isolated and lonely. We realised we needed to try harder.”
In response, the Tomorrow Today Early Years Team made regular phone calls to PEEP parents to check on their wellbeing. Parents were offered one-on-one ‘Walk and Talk’ sessions. These were very popular and provided parents with the company and support of a PEEP facilitator during an hour of exercise, often pushing a pram with toddlers in tow. When playgrounds were closed and social opportunities like playgroups, organised sport/recreation and story time at the library were suspended, the Early Years Team prepared children’s activity packs and delivered them to the local park for collection or arranged home delivery for isolated families. One parent described how the PEEP team helped them through that difficult time: “We were so grateful that the program continued during a time when not much else did, it helped us to stay connected with other people. I felt less isolated”.