Motherhood is a full time job and one for which there has traditionally been very little training available. The Community Mothers Programme, overseen by the Eastern Health Board, has been running since 1988. Mothers from the local community are given four weeks' training in parenting skills and philosophy before going into the community where each one visits approximately five first and second-time mothers per month, providing peer support and a listening service. The community mothers themselves meet once a month to provide each other with support and there is a regular meeting with a local family development nurse.

New mothers can often feel bewildered by the conflicting advice coming at them from all sides and their confidence in their role as the primary participant in the child's upbringing can be undermined. The programme encourages them to find their own solutions to parenting problems and thereby gain confidence in their own judgment. The Community Mothers are able to adapt the programme to the needs of their own community. The fact that new mothers are being aided by their peers means that the programme is non-threatening and all the participants learn from the experience. They are also provided with information on nutrition and health care. There is a series of highly visual information leaflets containing clear, concise suggestions on feeding, weaning and ways to enhance the child's physical, mental and emotional development.

Liz Sheehy, originally from Sandymount, has worked as a community mother in Ringsend for five years. She remembers how isolated she felt as a first time mother and when she heard about the programme she thought it was exactly what she could have done with at the time. Working as a community mother has been a learning experience for her and has helped her to feel more a part of the local community. Many of her colleagues have found that the programme has given them the confidence to go back to work, do a course or set up initiatives like breast-feeding support groups or parent and toddler groups.