S.P.A.C.E. ADHD Group

ADHD Parent Support Group

Christmas

By

Claire’s Christmas Message

As we come to the end of the year and all the chaos that Christmas can generate, I’d like to wish a happy and peaceful Christmas to all our families. The hype, excitement and changes in routine doesn’t always suit children and young people with ADHD, so the Christmas holidays can be a stressful time.

There is no right way to be a parent, but there are definitely lots of wrong ways. Techniques that suit many children, may not work with those who are neurodiverse. Much of the parenting advice that our parents were raised with, is at best outdated and in some cases illegal! I hope that our parents trust themselves in the face of well meaning advice from friends and relatives. I hope that they recognise that they know their children, better than anybody else.

Our charity was set up by parents, who looked for support and found that what they needed didn’t exist – so they created it. If you are parenting a child with ADHD, then you are welcome to join us for our monthly meet ups or join our private online community. There is no charge and no need to book in advance. You don’t have to share medical information or provide proof of diagnosis. We are relaxed and informal and do our best to offer a warm welcome.

As a parent I went to my first S.P.A.C.E. meeting after my child was diagnosed with a condition that I’d never even heard of! I know how it feels to be scared to walk into an unfamiliar place, looking for strangers that might help me make sense of this condition. The relief I felt when I met people who understood how this one gorgeous child created so much chaos at home, and who genuinely knew how it felt spending my days fighting both with and for my then twelve year old.

I didn’t realise that night that I’d still be part of that group 20 years later, or that I’d help to support lots of other families and eventually go on to become Chair of this amazing small charity, which was set up by a lady that I’m now so proud to call a friend. That cold, dark, winter night when I walked into the Arden Arms changed my life and I know that S.P.A.C.E. has done the same for many others.

Our goal for 2025 is to continue being there for our families and to make sure that they get access to all the information they need to make informed decisions about their children. The team are here to provide information and signpost to other relevant services and organisations, but one of our biggest strengths is that through our small charity, people get to meet other other parents and carers with similar challenges.

S.P.A.C.E. were here supporting the ADHD community before it was cool. On the one hand it’s amazing that the profile of ADHD has grown and that there are lots of other organisations out there, but unfortunately not all of these organisations are as good as their marketing. We know our own worth, so we focus on our families and continue to do what we do, because being our authentic selves matters and makes a difference.

Here at S.P.A.C.E. we are constantly thinking of ways to raise awareness about ADHD. Our advent calendar is a seasonal reminder about the work we do to help provide information and support to parents and carers.

We have lots of ideas for other ways to share useful content, but at our core, we are a parent support group so we will always put our limited resources into that ahead of generating amazing content for social media. Unlike lots of organisations we don’t have financial targets. We’re an independent charity and our goal is to ensure that any local parent of a child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) that wants to get information and support knows that we exist. That’s it. We just want families to know that we’re here if they want to join us.

We’ll be at the Dog and Partridge on the second Tuesday of the month throughout 2025, so feel free to pop the dates into your brand new diaries or share our content with friends and family that may be interested.

  • ADHD Advent Calendar
    • Our advent calendar includes a new piece of information every day during the run up to Christmas.
  • Monthly meet ups for parents and carers of children with ADHD
  • Social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram.
    • We’re also on TikTok, Threads and X but don’t share a great deal on those platforms at the moment
  • Information sessions for those working with children and young people
  • Spotify playlist of artists with ADHD
    • Our Spotify playlist covers a wide range of artists covering everything from hip hop to country

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.

Claire

By

Festive Reflections

As 2015 drew to a close and we were fast approaching the school holidays, we started drafting a blog post to wish all our ADHD parents a merry and hopefully stressfree Christmas.

That time of year can be eventful, in all the wrong ways, for children with ADHD. The change in routine, the school parties and pantomime trips, mixed with the general excitement about Father Christmas, can sometimes be a little bit too much for them and as parents we generally get the receiving end of all that.

Christmas plays are a time for fellow parents to give you “that look” if your child fidgets through the carol service. The thing to remember is that they don’t know how hard it is for your child to sit still and if they knew, what we know, they wouldn’t be so judgemental.

The start of the new year and new school term can be a double edged sword. For some families the return to school is a great thing because it means that the usual routine is back,  you no longer have to provide full time referee services for your children and at the very least, our energetic bundles are out of the house.

For other families returning to school means restarting all the playground drama. It can mean that our children are now spending five days a week with the children who bully them (whilst mysteriously, rarely getting into any trouble for it.) It can mean that our children are spending their days with adults who don’t understand them and refuse to make allowances for their active minds and bodies. For some families, having our children at home means that we can control their environment and be in a position to spot the signs early and head off outbursts before they happen. For those families, the last day of the school holidays is almost a sad time because in 24 hours it all changes.

The S.P.A.C.E. group focuses on children in education because regardless of how things are at home, school is a totally different place and as parents we are always affected by what happens there, including the things we have no control over.

So here’s to all the parents whose children go to a school of over a thousand pupils and yet somehow every single member of staff seems to know yours by name. Here’s to all the parents that blushed their way through Christmas plays and carol services. Here’s to all the parents who battled their way through festive family visits and here’s to all the parents who are now back in the swing of a new term and are already looking forward to, or absolutely dreading half-term.

The S.P.A.C.E. meeting dates for 2016 are already on our website and we look forward to seeing some of you at Funky Monkey Coffee Company. Our next meeting is on Wednesday 10th February 2016 at 7.00 pm.