HAPpy Parenting Hartlepool (Sling library, cloth nappies & parent social)

What are the HAPpy Parenting Hartlepool sessions?

Run by HAPpy Parenting Hartlepool, a volunteer-led non-profit group, meeting fortnightly for free-to-access sessions, our sessions (also known as 'HAPpy Friday') provide support with alternative parenting styles, focusing on building strong attachments.

There are two elements to our sessions:

• We have a Sling Library where parents and parents-to-be can try on slings and carriers and loan them out before purchasing. All of our volunteers are peer support trained and have used carriers themselves.

We also have a Cloth/ reusable Nappy Library for you to look at, ask questions about and try before you buy. Nappies are just like clothes, different styles suit different babies! We have everything from single nappies to try out to complete kits with everything you'd need for full time use.

• Our Parent Social side of the sessions allow parents to come together, enjoy a hot cuppa and a chat while the children play.

We also have lots of wonderful books for you to borrow, covering everything from pregnancy to parenting teenagers.

You'll be sure to meet like-minded parents, receive parenting support and create a village with us.

Who runs the sessions?
Hello, we are HAPpy Parenting Hartlepool!

We run the Sling Library and Parenting Social session at The Women's Health Hub.

You will find at least one of us there every fortnight on Friday's, with the kettle on and slings, nappies and books to look at.

We also love baby snuggles, so you're more than welcome to enjoy a hot cuppa while we hold your baby.

What's it like at The Hub?

The Hub offers a comfortable, welcoming setting for our meets, with private space available for 1:1 support. The Hub is decorated and designed to provide a calming environment.

Older children are welcome to attend our sessions, and can play with the toys and crafts provided by the Hub - it is a very child friendly space.

The private room allows us to offer one-to-one support, a quiet breakout space, or a safe space for older children to sit.

There is access and storage space for buggies, comfortable furniture which can be arranged to suit and sensory friendly decor.

A little more about us:

Our services are aimed at parents, who are naturally in high-stress situations. We offer services to help increase the bond between child and caregiver, something which positively impacts child behaviour, helps with postnatal depression, reduces crying in babies, boosts parental confidence and can have positive effects on the child’s health into adulthood.

Benefits of Babywearing:

Babywearing helps babies with reflux, colic, and is highly beneficial in the first 12 weeks of life, keeping baby close to their caregiver in a safe, womb-like environment. This reduces stress on the baby's nervous system - humans are carry mammals and the action of carrying our young helps to regulate body temperature, stress, increases neurological stimulation, and also allows the parent to be aware of the baby's needs (eg. hunger cues can be easier to spot). This in turn reduces crying which can hugely help mothers with postnatal depression, as a calm baby is easier to care for and reduced crying reduces parental anxiety.

Parents are able to complete tasks as their hands are freed up by using a sling. Slings allow parents to go where prams are prohibitive, buses and trains are easier to navigate and it's simpler to exercise outdoors (especially where prams couldn't go) or to care for older children.

Cloth nappies:

Similarly with cloth nappies, they require a degree of awareness as they need changing more frequently than disposables. The action of changing, washing and sorting nappies becomes a satisfying task and the bright patterns can be considered a form of colour therapy!

These all sound trivial, but when a new parent is faced with an overwhelming new phase of life, these small things can make a huge difference.

A positive attachment between parent and child creates a positive foundation for life, the child is confident that their needs will be met, they are able to separate more confidently as they grow, and studies have indicated that a secure attachment in childhood creates positive health impacts in adulthood.

Finding your village:

Finding other parents who understand your parenting choices is extremely important - we aim to help build the ‘village’ lost to society. Our volunteers and users use attachment principles, but they don't have to use them all, and no one judges their choices. We have users who home school, babywear, use cloth nappies and disposable, breastfeed, pump milk or bottle-feed, potty train early, parent in non punitive ways - what is important is our users find other parents who ‘get it'. This support is vital to mental health and reducing feelings of isolation, which can occur at any stage of the parenting journey.

Join us?

Our sessions are held fortnightly on a Friday from 09:30-11am at The Women’s Health Hub, The Arches Shopping Village, Park Road, Hartlepool, TS24 7PW.

There's no need to book, just come along. Children are so welcome, and we have refreshments available.

We'd love to see you at one of our sessions sometime soon!

Contact us:

If you have any questions about the session, please reach out to us.

You can get us on email at: [email protected]

Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HAPpyparentinghartlepool

Find The Women's Health Hub on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/womenshealthhartlepool/

We look forward to seeing you at one of our Friday sessions sometime soon!

Zoe & The HAPpy Parenting Team x

9.30AM to 11AM, 06 February 2026