'She has made me feel human again': an evaluation of a volunteer home-based visiting project for mothers

This paper provides a description and phenomenological interpretation of the Sutherland Family Network, a volunteer home visiting project in the Sutherland Shire, Sydney, Australia. Home visitation is undergoing a revival in health and welfare systems. Research and experience has shown home visitation to be an effective strategy in attempts to prevent child abuse and neglect, in all its forms. Programmes utilizing volunteers are just one form of home visitation. They do, however, raise a number of industrial, socio-political and gender issues, which have been addressed in this study. Phenomenological analysis was used to describe the experiences of the coordinator, the volunteers, and the mothers who have been involved in the project. The study is based on interviews conducted with the coordinator, 10 volunteers and 15 mothers between February and July 1996. The Sutherland Family Network provides service to new mothers, of any parity, in families at low risk of child abuse and neglect. Befriending was their main role as volunteers. Volunteers were trained not to give advise or counselling. Training also ensured against volunteer exploitation. A unique approach of this volunteer project was a focus on the new mother, rather, than the children. New mothers became involved in the Network mainly due to either emotional or physical isolation, or depression. Major functions of the Network were to provide a service of friendship, and to link mothers with other community groups and professionals.