Loughborough Child Contact Centre
About Us
Our Centre
The Loughborough Child Contact Centre offers supported contact – that means it’s suitable for families where no significant risk to the child or those around the child have been identified.
The Contact Centre is open every Saturday from 1.45pm – 4.00pm. We offer 12 sessions of contact for each referral as the service we provide is viewed as a stepping stone to moving on to unsupported contact.
To help with this transition, we also offer a ‘Meet and Out’ service which we discuss with both parents to reach agreement about details. The handover takes place at the Contact Centre and the non-resident parent then takes the child out returning by 4.00pm. Some families use this very successfully.
Adult Relationships
Adult relationships can remain difficult after parents separate. Yet, the majority of children want – and need, to maintain a relationship with parents and other relatives who are important to them. Not all separated parents find it easy to achieve this. Trust may have broken down. Communications may have become difficult. If so, it may seem almost impossible to make arrangements for a child to spend quality time with the parent or relative they no longer live with. This is where we can help.
Child Contact Centres provide a safe neutral place for children to meet the mother or father who no longer lives at home with them. We also have grandparents arrange to meet up with children. We won’t take sides. We simply operate in the best interests of your child.
The Centres are equipped with your child in mind, providing toys, games and facilities that reflect the diverse needs of children affected by family breakdown.
Over 4,000 volunteers and staff work in these Centres throughout the UK, and over 20,000 children use them each year. The Centres are overseen by the National Association of Child Contact Centres (NACCC).
The basic elements of our service
- Impartiality
- Our volunteers are available for assistance but there is no close observation, monitoring or evaluation of individual contacts/conversation.
- Several families will be together in one large hall.
- Encouragement for families to develop mutual trust.
- No detailed reports made unless risk of harm.
Although there needs to be at least one parent with your child at all times while at the Contact Centre, volunteers can deal with the handover of your child so you do not have to meet your ex-partner if you do not wish to.
You don’t need to pay to use the Contact Centre.
NACCC Accreditation
The Loughborough Child Contact Centre has been operating for over 35 years in Loughborough, Leicestershire. The Contact Centre has recently had its accreditation renewed by the National Association of Child Contact Centres.
NACCC Accreditation is recognised by CAFCASS and the judiciary as the standard required, ensuring the needs of children and families come first. It involves the successful completion of a portfolio of evidence (assessed as proof that services have achieved these standards) and a site visit by a NACCC approved assessor.
All NACCC child contact centres which offer supported contact undergo an accreditation process which is renewed every three years. Accreditation demonstrates that the centre is working to the national standards for supported contact.
Charitable Status
The Loughborough Child Contact Centre is registered with the Charity Commission [Registered Charity No: 109570]
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