Family First Jersey

A quick reminder that our Coffee Morning is on Thursday 30th of July. Pop in for a cuppa and some friendly faces. 🧡

🌞 Date for your diary 🌞

Our next Coffee Morning will take place on Thursday the 30th of July.

Join us later this July for a summer Coffee Morning filled with warmth, understanding and community. If your child requires off‑island treatment, or you’ve been supported by Family First past or present, you’re warmly welcome.

We hope to see you there,
Please RSVP 🧡

💫 Family First Team Spotlight 💫

This month we want to recognise someone who rarely lets us do it the lovely Jess, our Senior Family Support Worker.

Jess joined Family First in 2020 and has been an essential part of our team ever since. She brings a calm, steady presence to families during some of their most difficult moments, and her warmth and compassion shape so much of the support we offer.

She never likes being in the spotlight and will almost certainly be embarrassed by this, but we think it’s important to say it anyway: Jess is exceptional. The way she listens, the way she shows up for people, and the way she quietly goes above and beyond makes a real difference every single day. Our families rave about Jess and her support!

Alongside her work, Jess is now in her second year of her Level 4 counselling qualification. We’re grateful to the Antoine Trust for funding this training — a brilliant example of charities working together to strengthen the support families receive when a child is diagnosed with cancer. We’re proud to work alongside them.

Thank you, Jess, for all you do. 🧡

This is Oliver.

“Almost 8 years ago, my son was born extremely prematurely at 24 weeks, and we spent three months in Portsmouth before returning to Jersey.

From the very beginning, Family First supported our family during an incredibly challenging time, helping with travel costs and keeping us connected.

Over the years, they have continued to support us with flights, accommodation and expenses whenever my son has needed care in the UK, and they will continue to support us with his upcoming surgery.

Family First have been a part of our lives for over seven years now, and we honestly don't know what we would have done without their support.

We are incredibly grateful for their kindness, generosity and the difference they have made in our lives" - Monica, Oliver's Mum

If you'd like to help us support more families like Oliver's, our donation link is in the comments.

Thank you to Association of Jersey Charities, for kindly sharing our Family First newsletter. Your support means a lot to us and to the families we support.

If you’d like to see what we’ve been up to, our newsletter is now live and ready to read! 🧡

Family First - Summer Newsletter ☀️ As we move into the summer months, we’ve seen a steady flow of families travelling for appointments, tests and treatment. Our team has been busy supporting each journey, and we’re grateful to everyone who continues to help make that possible.

🧡 We need your help! 🧡

Thank you so much to the kind people who have already purchased some of the items from our wishlist! This is going to make our next Coffee Morning so much more enjoyable for our younger guests.

If anyone else would like to help, we’ve put together a small Amazon wish list, you can choose an item and it comes straight to our office.

No pressure at all. We are very grateful for those who have already supported us so far. If you would like to contribute a little something for our next Coffee Morning please click the link below to our wishlist.

💛 Wish list:

Check out my list on Amazon

Some families assume Family First is only here for the most serious situations.
It isn’t.

A single overnight stay for routine tests counts the same as a longer, more complicated trip.

A short flight for one appointment is still a flight, still a cost, still something we can help with.

We hear from families managing all kinds of circumstances.

Some need support over many years.
Some only need help once.

There’s no severity test before reaching out, no form asking how serious things are. We do not need you to explain your situation over and over to different departments.

You contact us, explain what’s needed, we will support and work to source funding through our partnerships with the Grace Crocker Family Support Foundation, Jersey Children’s Charity and Friends of the Jersey Neonatal Unit.

If your situation feels too small to mention, it probably isn’t. Those are exactly the moments we want families to tell us about.

If you know a Jersey family navigating any kind of off‑island care, big or small, please let them know we’re here for them.

If you would like to know more about how we can support families in Jersey, please visit our website www.familyfirst.org.je

🧡We need your help! 🧡

We’re getting ready for our Family Coffee Mornings during the summer holidays and would love a few new arts and crafts bits for the children.

If anyone would like to help, we’ve put together a small Amazon wish list, you can choose an item and it comes straight to us.

No pressure at all. Every little thing really does make a difference for the families who join us.

💛 Wish list: https://amzn.eu/05MxjFp9

Thank you as always for your support!

Check out my list on Amazon

The bag by the door is the small one this time.

Just the essentials.

The appointment letter,
A change of clothes,
a snack for the flight.

Nothing like the first time, when you packed for every possibility you could think of.

You know this trip very well by now.

The appointment itself is short.

Routine, the consultant says, which is its own kind of relief.

By early afternoon you're back at the airport, waiting for the flight home.

Your child is more interested in the vending machine than anything else that happened today.

It wasn't always like this. The first trip felt enormous. This one barely registers by dinner time.

For a lot of Jersey families, this is what off island care eventually looks like.

Not every trip or every story, but a great deal of them.

They’re calm, manageable, and part of how things are now. We can help to support your family navigate your child's off-island treatment with tailored support whatever your needs.

We are there to help regardless of circumstances, for the the small routine trips as well as the big unexpected ones.

🌞 Date for your diary 🌞

Our next Coffee Morning will take place on Thursday the 30th of July.

Join us later this July for a summer Coffee Morning filled with warmth, understanding and community. If your child requires off‑island treatment, or you’ve been supported by Family First past or present, you’re warmly welcome.

We hope to see you there,
Please RSVP 🧡