Home-Start South Leicestershire helps families across Harborough District who have very young children, and who are facing difficulties and challenges that are making the already complex and exhausting role of parenting even more difficult, and where children are vulnerable or disadvantaged.

Whether families are facing illness, emotional stress or financial worries, things can seem pretty bleak in these last months of winter.

That's why we created our annual Snowdrop Appeal a few years ago, to help families feel a ray of hope that things can get better, and that there's help out there for them.

By reminding everyone about the first signs of spring, the lovely snowdrops that raise their proud heads above the damp and cold soil from January to February, and by encouraging everyone to go out and spot as many as they can, we hope to bring cheer to families' lives. And on top of that there's lots of evidence that going out in nature and walking have significant improvements on your mental and physical health, both for adults and children.

Our Appeal target this year is focused on those families facing the most hardship due to financial challenges which are made all the worse by the ongoing cost of living rises. We will use the funds raised to provide regular, warm, safe groups for parents and their preschool children to come to, with songs, stories and lots of play, where children can smile and parents can feel emotional relief.