June 18, 2024 • 12 mins
Welcome to a special episode of One Set of Footprints, an Argyle Community Trust special, where we showcase the incredible work of community groups at the Mandan Sports and Community Hub. In this episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Kirstie, the passionate leader behind Baby Sensory Groups in Plymouth.
Kirstie shares her personal journey of how she transitioned from being a participant to running Baby Sensory, a transformative program for babies aged 0-13 months. She discusses the numerous benefits of the classes, from promoting hand-eye coordination to encouraging social interactions among parents.
Discover the variety of themed activities, including the popular 'Magic Box,' and how these sessions are meticulously designed to aid in a baby's development. Kirstie also touches on the importance of engaging fathers in these activities and her efforts to make Baby Sensory accessible to all, including potential collaborations with local schools to support vulnerable families.
Don't miss this heartwarming episode filled with insights into the positive impact of Baby Sensory on both children and parents. Tune in to learn more about Kirstie's dedication to fostering a supportive community for new parents and their little ones.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Am I the only one who didn't know that the perfect plastering could completely transform a home?
With MGB plastering, quality and reliability aren't just promises, they're guarantees.
Our expert team is dedicated to bringing your vision to life,
ensuring every corner of your home reflects your unique style.
Whether it's smooth finishes or intricate textures, MGB has the skills and passion
(00:22):
to enhance every space. Ready to make a change?
Call us today at 07840136616 and take the first step towards your dream home.
MJB Pastoring. Quality you can trust.
Welcome to One Set of Footprints, an Argyle Community Trust special where we
talk about and showcase the amazing work of Argyle Community Trustee and the
(00:43):
groups that run at Managing Community Hub.
Today we have a special guest, Kirstie. He runs Baby Century Groups at the Hub
and as well across Plymouth. Hi Kirsty, it's nice to meet you.
Tell me a bit about yourself and reasons why you started Baby Century and what is Baby Century do?
Hi Matt, nice to meet you too. So my name is Kirsty.
I was, I brought both of my children to a Baby Century class when they were babies.
(01:08):
When I was bringing my youngest daughter, the current owner said that it was
for sale if anybody was interested.
I knew I didn't want to go back to my job at the time and I wanted to try something
different, and have any challenge so yeah that is why I decided to start baby
sensory and I've absolutely loved it for the last three years.
What are the benefits of baby sensory because obviously you say you came into
(01:32):
it from a parent's point of view so do you like see the benefits of the benefits
so obviously as a parent and as someone who obviously works and then sees the whole group?
Yes definitely so all of our lesson plans and classes have been carefully researched
and developed to aid the baby's learning and development so all of our activities will have.
(01:55):
For example shakers we use a lot that promotes
hand-eye coordination cause and effect if they
move their arm the shaker is going to make a noise also encourages
listening skills we have lots of
color and lots of things on canes that
we put above babies to help with their eye tracking visual development
just yeah there's so much and I
(02:17):
know a lot of my mums benefit from the classes because they've
made some of their best friends by coming to classes we every
class there's a play break so they all get an
opportunity to just chat between themselves and yeah
lots of them have become really good friends which is lovely
to see it's lovely to see it gets people socializing
as well then i get out the house and social socializing um
(02:40):
so like you say obviously the benefits from it what um
ages do you work with them so our classes
are designed for babies from zero to 13 months
come on i did see
them all coming out earlier and they are adorable so
obviously as you say and obviously different things that you work with the shakers
and everything like that i was doing some research on baby century i've seen
(03:03):
that obviously you do various activities and there are different names for your
activities i've seen one of them is called magic box could you tell us about
that and the different activities that you do yeah i'm sure so we have over 70 different.
Lesson plans that we've run in a year so if
a parent attended our classes for an entire year
they wouldn't ever see the same class twice every week
(03:25):
there's a different thing so magic box is one of our themes so we did some very
baby friendly magic trips we hid a duck under a cup to see if the babies could
find them we hid starves in boxes to see if they could take them back out again
so yeah that was just one of the many things that we run throughout the year but Yeah,
if you were to come for an entire year, you wouldn't see the same tasks twice.
(03:47):
That's amazing, by the way. Do you plan activities with a theme in mind then?
So they're all like theme minded or do you just do like general like play as well?
Yeah, so all the classes that already keep pre-planned for you by Baby Sensory.
So there's, I think, yeah, over 70 that you can pick from and you can choose
(04:08):
what order you run them in.
But as long as you're running a Baby Sensory branded lesson plan,
then you can pick any ones that you like. So as long as you're following the
plan that they've given you, you can pick whichever ones you want.
And then we do a few activities and then there's boys a play break because we
try and follow a baby's natural play rest play cycle.
(04:31):
So they have a sensory experience, then they have a break and then they come
back and do some more sensory.
So we're not overstimulating them and they're going to be happy when they leave.
Um so obviously you say about these plans do
do baby sensory staff make these
plans or is it it's not like schools where it's governed by like
government or no so baby sensory is a franchise
(04:54):
dr lynn day created baby
sensory she created all the lesson plans and
the franchises and everything that goes
into it so she's done all of her research into
every single class and she's create the lesson plans so
yeah that's what we follow do they
change regularly then so from like obviously i guess you revise
(05:16):
them year on year or do you obviously mix them up as
well yeah so normally once a year will
there'll be a new lesson plan that comes out that we are
able to run but generally the same classes
will be run year to year so there'll be every single week will be different
but the year kind of tends to repeat itself obviously yeah space obviously the
(05:38):
gate the mums you had or the mums and dads you had obviously get kids get older
and then obviously move on to school and that's how you get.
Range there isn't there i suppose there's a room like that obviously i've seen
recently you did a father's day session at mountain
maybe in a father myself have you got any plans to obviously
engage more dads into sessions because i notice it is
very female dominated like groups not just obviously baby century all baby groups
(06:04):
are i think it's quite a stereotype that come with it i'm not saying that men
aren't welcome just obviously the thing is quite a stereotype say it's mums
and that's where mums go to chat and meet and have their gossip or whatever.
No, I completely get that. Dads are more than welcome to attend our classes
and I do have lots of dads that come along with the mums.
(06:24):
Obviously, generally speaking, it's normally the mums that are awkward with
the babies and the dads are working, which is why we see more mums.
But yeah, any dads are welcome to attend and that
is the main reason why I decided to run a Father's Day
special because I know that dads miss out on a lot of what
their babies get up to because they are out at work and it's
nice for them to bond with their babies and bond with the
(06:47):
family so that was the reason i wanted to do the pharmacy plan
i think it's simply as well i think obviously
with the way maternity works obviously the women rightly said it's obviously
the ones get better have more time off work than what the men do and obviously
they've got to go and provide so i see they do miss out on that little time
i don't know which is quite sad but it's nice to see that you do a lot of Father Day events.
(07:11):
Do you do any other events or is it just like a weekly session?
Yeah, so generally it's the weekly specials but
we tend to run town time so there's obviously a long gap in the summer holidays
because the summer holiday is six weeks long so I try and run at least two weeks
in the summer holidays so that everybody's got something to do because six weeks
(07:32):
is a long time and all the baby groups shut down.
And I know it's hard for people because they look forward to come into a group.
So I always try and run a couple of weeks in the summer.
We normally run a baby pumpkin class, which is around Halloween.
It's not a Halloween class, it is a baby pumpkin class.
They're very baby friendly to introduce them to Halloween.
(07:52):
Add a Christmas special as well.
There's lots of other special classes, but I tend to include them in the term.
So not an extra so people are still getting a lot of the special classes that
they don't have to pay extra for.
Obviously you speak about cost now so obviously how much are the sessions are
they very reasonably priced for like people?
(08:13):
So classes are ÂŁ8.50 a week.
But I do offer a few different payment options because I know how hard it is
at the moment for everybody.
And maternity pay is obviously not the best. So, yeah, it's ÂŁ8.50 a week.
You can use the book for an entire term.
Or I try and always do a half-term option to break it down a little bit.
(08:37):
And this term, I've introduced pay-as-you-go. So, if you know that you can't
commit for a whole seven weeks, you can just come and go as you please.
That's amazing yeah that's a great idea so obviously
you talk about with pay as go systems and things like that
so you do do you do any i don't want
to put you on a spot here because i know it's not your franchise but do you
(08:57):
do anything for like the vulnerable like people who can't afford to come so
i actually had a meeting with marine academy primary in say judo i was talking
with them so there might be something on the horizon but we'll see but But, yeah,
I would welcome anything to do with that.
I'm all for helping people and bringing them in if they can't afford it,
(09:22):
trying to see what we can do.
I know a lot of schools can apply for grants and things to help people so that
they can offer, for example, they can offer the classes for free because of the grants.
So hopefully, yeah, I'd love to see more of that. Yeah, definitely.
So would I. That's why I asked. so it's just obviously trying
to get out there to a way a range of people as possible because obviously like
(09:47):
for me like like i was saying to you earlier about my own history to obviously
try and help is people who obviously been in foster care so you can have the
like the foster care aspect of it as well because i do really think they are
underfunded and there is a lack of.
Activities there going on for people who have been affected by
foster care or even babies that have been affected by foster
(10:08):
care to obviously have that development and seek the
benefits of the baby century what you guys do
are amazing i have talked to a few of
your parents through your facebook they are
blown away by the work you do i wasn't going to mention this on my podcast because
i'm not really here to promote you selling it but they are absolutely heartbroken
(10:29):
that you're going to be leaving here i know you did a little youtube um a little
facebook video the other day but you You have been inundated with messages from
people sometimes showcasing the amazing work you have done.
I sincerely hope you do decide to carry on with something similar to this in your career.
And I hope you do. Maybe Anisha, I was just speaking to you about.
But yeah, perfect, Kirstie. Thank you so much for coming on my podcast.
(10:51):
And I hope to see you soon. Thank you very much.
Welcome to the One Set Footprints podcast, where I share my journey through
adoption and my life story.
We will have special guests from Andy's Man Club, a men's mental health charity,
and Team Michaela, kids' cancer charity showcasing the amazing work both charities do.
(11:13):
We'll also feature special episodes with the Argyle Community Trust,
with special guests from the group they run at Mandan Sports and Community Hub
and across Devon and Cornwall.
Join us as we explore these inspiring stories and more. Kindly sponsored by
MJB Plastering Sherford.
One set footprints podcast on all your podcast platforms.
Supporting communities one step at a time.
Am I the only one who didn't know that the perfect plastering could completely transform a home?
With MGB plastering, quality and reliability aren't just promises, they're guarantees.
Our expert team is dedicated to bringing your vision to life,
ensuring every corner of your home reflects your unique style.
Whether it's smooth finishes or intricate textures, MGB has the skills and passion
(00:22):
to enhance every space. Ready to make a change?
Call us today at 07840136616 and take the first step towards your dream home.
MJB Pastoring. Quality you can trust.
Welcome to One Set of Footprints, an Argyle Community Trust special where we
talk about and showcase the amazing work of Argyle Community Trustee and the
(00:43):
groups that run at Managing Community Hub.
Today we have a special guest, Kirstie. He runs Baby Century Groups at the Hub
and as well across Plymouth. Hi Kirsty, it's nice to meet you.
Tell me a bit about yourself and reasons why you started Baby Century and what is Baby Century do?
Hi Matt, nice to meet you too. So my name is Kirsty.
I was, I brought both of my children to a Baby Century class when they were babies.
(01:08):
When I was bringing my youngest daughter, the current owner said that it was
for sale if anybody was interested.
I knew I didn't want to go back to my job at the time and I wanted to try something
different, and have any challenge so yeah that is why I decided to start baby
sensory and I've absolutely loved it for the last three years.
What are the benefits of baby sensory because obviously you say you came into
(01:32):
it from a parent's point of view so do you like see the benefits of the benefits
so obviously as a parent and as someone who obviously works and then sees the whole group?
Yes definitely so all of our lesson plans and classes have been carefully researched
and developed to aid the baby's learning and development so all of our activities will have.
(01:55):
For example shakers we use a lot that promotes
hand-eye coordination cause and effect if they
move their arm the shaker is going to make a noise also encourages
listening skills we have lots of
color and lots of things on canes that
we put above babies to help with their eye tracking visual development
just yeah there's so much and I
(02:17):
know a lot of my mums benefit from the classes because they've
made some of their best friends by coming to classes we every
class there's a play break so they all get an
opportunity to just chat between themselves and yeah
lots of them have become really good friends which is lovely
to see it's lovely to see it gets people socializing
as well then i get out the house and social socializing um
(02:40):
so like you say obviously the benefits from it what um
ages do you work with them so our classes
are designed for babies from zero to 13 months
come on i did see
them all coming out earlier and they are adorable so
obviously as you say and obviously different things that you work with the shakers
and everything like that i was doing some research on baby century i've seen
(03:03):
that obviously you do various activities and there are different names for your
activities i've seen one of them is called magic box could you tell us about
that and the different activities that you do yeah i'm sure so we have over 70 different.
Lesson plans that we've run in a year so if
a parent attended our classes for an entire year
they wouldn't ever see the same class twice every week
(03:25):
there's a different thing so magic box is one of our themes so we did some very
baby friendly magic trips we hid a duck under a cup to see if the babies could
find them we hid starves in boxes to see if they could take them back out again
so yeah that was just one of the many things that we run throughout the year but Yeah,
if you were to come for an entire year, you wouldn't see the same tasks twice.
(03:47):
That's amazing, by the way. Do you plan activities with a theme in mind then?
So they're all like theme minded or do you just do like general like play as well?
Yeah, so all the classes that already keep pre-planned for you by Baby Sensory.
So there's, I think, yeah, over 70 that you can pick from and you can choose
(04:08):
what order you run them in.
But as long as you're running a Baby Sensory branded lesson plan,
then you can pick any ones that you like. So as long as you're following the
plan that they've given you, you can pick whichever ones you want.
And then we do a few activities and then there's boys a play break because we
try and follow a baby's natural play rest play cycle.
(04:31):
So they have a sensory experience, then they have a break and then they come
back and do some more sensory.
So we're not overstimulating them and they're going to be happy when they leave.
Um so obviously you say about these plans do
do baby sensory staff make these
plans or is it it's not like schools where it's governed by like
government or no so baby sensory is a franchise
(04:54):
dr lynn day created baby
sensory she created all the lesson plans and
the franchises and everything that goes
into it so she's done all of her research into
every single class and she's create the lesson plans so
yeah that's what we follow do they
change regularly then so from like obviously i guess you revise
(05:16):
them year on year or do you obviously mix them up as
well yeah so normally once a year will
there'll be a new lesson plan that comes out that we are
able to run but generally the same classes
will be run year to year so there'll be every single week will be different
but the year kind of tends to repeat itself obviously yeah space obviously the
(05:38):
gate the mums you had or the mums and dads you had obviously get kids get older
and then obviously move on to school and that's how you get.
Range there isn't there i suppose there's a room like that obviously i've seen
recently you did a father's day session at mountain
maybe in a father myself have you got any plans to obviously
engage more dads into sessions because i notice it is
very female dominated like groups not just obviously baby century all baby groups
(06:04):
are i think it's quite a stereotype that come with it i'm not saying that men
aren't welcome just obviously the thing is quite a stereotype say it's mums
and that's where mums go to chat and meet and have their gossip or whatever.
No, I completely get that. Dads are more than welcome to attend our classes
and I do have lots of dads that come along with the mums.
(06:24):
Obviously, generally speaking, it's normally the mums that are awkward with
the babies and the dads are working, which is why we see more mums.
But yeah, any dads are welcome to attend and that
is the main reason why I decided to run a Father's Day
special because I know that dads miss out on a lot of what
their babies get up to because they are out at work and it's
nice for them to bond with their babies and bond with the
(06:47):
family so that was the reason i wanted to do the pharmacy plan
i think it's simply as well i think obviously
with the way maternity works obviously the women rightly said it's obviously
the ones get better have more time off work than what the men do and obviously
they've got to go and provide so i see they do miss out on that little time
i don't know which is quite sad but it's nice to see that you do a lot of Father Day events.
(07:11):
Do you do any other events or is it just like a weekly session?
Yeah, so generally it's the weekly specials but
we tend to run town time so there's obviously a long gap in the summer holidays
because the summer holiday is six weeks long so I try and run at least two weeks
in the summer holidays so that everybody's got something to do because six weeks
(07:32):
is a long time and all the baby groups shut down.
And I know it's hard for people because they look forward to come into a group.
So I always try and run a couple of weeks in the summer.
We normally run a baby pumpkin class, which is around Halloween.
It's not a Halloween class, it is a baby pumpkin class.
They're very baby friendly to introduce them to Halloween.
(07:52):
Add a Christmas special as well.
There's lots of other special classes, but I tend to include them in the term.
So not an extra so people are still getting a lot of the special classes that
they don't have to pay extra for.
Obviously you speak about cost now so obviously how much are the sessions are
they very reasonably priced for like people?
(08:13):
So classes are ÂŁ8.50 a week.
But I do offer a few different payment options because I know how hard it is
at the moment for everybody.
And maternity pay is obviously not the best. So, yeah, it's ÂŁ8.50 a week.
You can use the book for an entire term.
Or I try and always do a half-term option to break it down a little bit.
(08:37):
And this term, I've introduced pay-as-you-go. So, if you know that you can't
commit for a whole seven weeks, you can just come and go as you please.
That's amazing yeah that's a great idea so obviously
you talk about with pay as go systems and things like that
so you do do you do any i don't want
to put you on a spot here because i know it's not your franchise but do you
(08:57):
do anything for like the vulnerable like people who can't afford to come so
i actually had a meeting with marine academy primary in say judo i was talking
with them so there might be something on the horizon but we'll see but But, yeah,
I would welcome anything to do with that.
I'm all for helping people and bringing them in if they can't afford it,
(09:22):
trying to see what we can do.
I know a lot of schools can apply for grants and things to help people so that
they can offer, for example, they can offer the classes for free because of the grants.
So hopefully, yeah, I'd love to see more of that. Yeah, definitely.
So would I. That's why I asked. so it's just obviously trying
to get out there to a way a range of people as possible because obviously like
(09:47):
for me like like i was saying to you earlier about my own history to obviously
try and help is people who obviously been in foster care so you can have the
like the foster care aspect of it as well because i do really think they are
underfunded and there is a lack of.
Activities there going on for people who have been affected by
foster care or even babies that have been affected by foster
(10:08):
care to obviously have that development and seek the
benefits of the baby century what you guys do
are amazing i have talked to a few of
your parents through your facebook they are
blown away by the work you do i wasn't going to mention this on my podcast because
i'm not really here to promote you selling it but they are absolutely heartbroken
(10:29):
that you're going to be leaving here i know you did a little youtube um a little
facebook video the other day but you You have been inundated with messages from
people sometimes showcasing the amazing work you have done.
I sincerely hope you do decide to carry on with something similar to this in your career.
And I hope you do. Maybe Anisha, I was just speaking to you about.
But yeah, perfect, Kirstie. Thank you so much for coming on my podcast.
(10:51):
And I hope to see you soon. Thank you very much.
Welcome to the One Set Footprints podcast, where I share my journey through
adoption and my life story.
We will have special guests from Andy's Man Club, a men's mental health charity,
and Team Michaela, kids' cancer charity showcasing the amazing work both charities do.
(11:13):
We'll also feature special episodes with the Argyle Community Trust,
with special guests from the group they run at Mandan Sports and Community Hub
and across Devon and Cornwall.
Join us as we explore these inspiring stories and more. Kindly sponsored by
MJB Plastering Sherford.
One set footprints podcast on all your podcast platforms.
Supporting communities one step at a time.
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.