Mataupu
Solidarity between parents version 2.0
Good deals are always born from an initiative between friends. A formula that is particularly true for young parents! In Seine-Saint-Denis for example, four parents of students decide one day to create a Facebook group. Very quickly, requests for memberships flooded in. Today, the group has more than 250 members, who exchange information or tips: “A friend was looking to buy a double stroller for shared custody,” says Julien, founding member and father of three children. “She put the ad on Facebook. Five minutes later, another mother offered her the stroller she was looking for. People don’t hesitate to ask questions, ask for the address of a good pediatrician, or the contact of a trusted babysitter. ”
On social networks, we come together by affinities or because we live in the same place. This kind of initiative is meeting more and more success in the big cities, but also in the small agglomerations. In Haute-Savoie, the Union Confederation of Families has just launched a website, www.reseaujeunesparents.com, with a forum dedicated only to young parents. At the start of the year, there are many projects: setting up creative workshops to foster social ties, sharing friendly time, organizing debates, developing a support network, etc.
Sites dedicated to parental support
You do not want to spread your life on the Web or register on a discussion forum? Those resistant to social networks can also go to sites solely devoted to parental solidarity. On the collaborative platform www.sortonsavecbebe.com, parents offer outings to share with other families: visits to exhibitions, the zoo, the swimming pool or simply have a coffee in a “kids friendly” place. The founder, Yaël Derhy, had this idea in 2013, during her maternity leave: “When I had my eldest son, I was looking to occupy myself, but my friends were all working and I felt lonely. Sometimes in the park, I would exchange a smile or a few sentences with another mom, but it was difficult to go further. I realized that there were a lot of us in this case. The concept, for the moment essentially Parisian, is set to extend to the whole of France depending on the registrations. “Everything works thanks to word of mouth: parents have a good time, they tell their friends, who in turn sign up. It’s going fast, because the site is free, ”resumes Yaël.
Services that play the proximity card
Other sites, such as, for example, play the proximity card. Childcare assistant, Marie signed up six months ago, seduced by the idea of meeting mothers from her neighborhood. Very quickly, this mother of two children aged 4 years and 14 months decided to become administrator of her community, in Issy-les-Moulineaux. Today, it brings together more than 200 mothers and offers regular newsletters, a suggestion box, an address book with contact details for health professionals, nurseries and childminders. But Mary also wants mothers to meet in real life. To do this, she organizes events, with or without children. “I created my first ‘barter party’ in September, there were about fifteen of us,” she explains. “At the last children’s clothing sale, there were about fifty mothers. I think it’s great to be able to meet people I might never have known before, like this woman engineer who works on drones. We are able to forge real friendships. There are no social barriers, we are all mothers and we mainly try to help each other.
In the same state of mind, Laure d’Auvergne created The concept will speak to you if you know the galley of the mom-taxi, forced to make eighteen return trips a week to take the eldest to her dance class and the youngest at the theater … The site offers parents from the same municipality to come together to accompany children together to school or to their activities, by car or on foot. An initiative that creates social ties and, at the same time, reduces greenhouse gas emissions. As we can see, parents are not lacking in imagination to stick together. All you have to do is create your own group near you.