Parentline Plus could fold if cash is not found

Each year, Parentline Plus supports 2,500 families in Southampton and the rest of Hampshire, providing a range of help on parenting issues.

As well as running workshops and special projects, the charity offers one-to-one support to families, some of whom have been referred for specialist help from family support workers.

If more money is not found soon the charity says it is unlikely to make it to the end of the year.

Area manager Leanne Hubbard said: “We are trying to do everything we can to keep going, but the fact is we might well not make it to the end of the year.

“The feedback we had was that, because the money we bid for was for ongoing costs to maintain the existing work we do and not new ones, we were unsuccessful.

“I don’t see why we need to provide new services if the ones we have are well-used and what parents want.”

The charity has bid for £80,000 to fund projects specifically in Southampton and meet the annual running costs of the charity.

In all it costs around £100,000 a year to keep the Hampshire branch of the national charity going.

Along with various projects, workshops and support work, the money also pays for six staff and family support workers.

“The worst case scenario is that we wont be here this time next year,” added Leanne.

A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said that the grants were specifically designed to support new and innovative projects that support parents and families.

He added that Parentline Plus had been successful in applying for funding grants in previous years.

In 2007, Hampshire was branded the poor parenting capital of the country after it was revealed that 602 parenting orders were handed out to parents in the city over a six-year period.

The orders are handed down to parents of nuisance and unruly children in a bid to stop their antisocial behaviour through attending courses, workshops and support projects such as those provided by Parentline Plus.