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Mum's the word - Louise Ford with son Felix

YOU move to a new area and you're not sure what facilities are out there for you and your baby. What do you do?

Well if you're Louise Ford you set up a web forum to find out.

Louise, 29, of Ronald Park Avenue, Westcliff, recently moved back to Essex from Chicago. She grew up in Basildon and went to school in Westcliff, but when she returned with her husband Kester and eight-month old son Felix, a few months ago, she found that things had changed.

"I knew the area as a youngster, but not as a parent at all," Louise explains. "I found it quite difficult to make friends and meet people.

"It's a lot easier when your children start school because you can meet other parents there, but when they're younger it's much harder.

"You can go to parent and toddler groups but it's hard to know what they're like and it can be a bit awkward if you don't know anyone."

Louise first consulted the internet to find out where she could take Felix, but found that the local listings were often out of date.

That prompted her to take matters into her own hands and set up her own site.

"There are tons of websites out there that are parenting forums, where you can chat to other mums online, and lots that list various activities, but not really any that I felt combined the two."

So just over a week ago, she set up Essex Mums, a web forum which allows mums from the area to share information, advice and build friendships.

Around 40 members registered in its first few days, and Louise hopes its numbers will continue to grow.

"It's been a really positive start," says Louise. "A lot of people have been posting things most days, which is a good sign."

"From looking on the internet it's clear to see that mums are very keen to share information with each other in this way. So hopefully we can build a local network of mums."

The forum can be found at http://essexmums.freeforums.org

1:27pm Thursday 27th March 2008

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