The PANDAS Foundation partners with iCandy to support more parents and carers than ever before.
iCandy, renowned UK-based luxury pushchair and nursery goods manufacturer known for its commitment to supporting families, has kindly partnered with us here at PANDAS, to help with our work providing free mental health support for parents, carers and their networks, and we are so delighted to have them as our supporters and partners!
Bradley Appel, Joint-CEO of iCandy says
“We’re honoured to partner with The PANDAS Foundation, an organisation that plays an essential role in supporting the mental well-being of parents and carers. At iCandy, we believe every family member deserves compassion, care and understanding, and we’re proud to contribute to making these critical resources more accessible. Together with PANDAS, we hope to help break down the stigma surrounding mental health for parents and carers, particularly for fathers, so that no one feels alone on their journey.”
iCandy’s parternship is officially launched on 19th November, which is also International Men’s Day. PANDAS is proud to support Dads and male carers with our services, an important area as, sadly, the mental health of Dads can be very stigmatised. Fathers play a critical role within families and whilst attention is paid (quite rightly!), both physically and from a mental health aspect for mothers during and beyond the maternity period many fathers’ mental health is not acknowledged or considered and is often overlooked. The PANDAS Foundation and iCandy are proud to help break these stigmas and encourage more fathers and men to seek the mental health support they need and deserve.
Annie Belasco, CEO of PANDAS says
“We are delighted to be working with the wonderful iCandy as a business partnership. From early stages of meeting the team we know that they have a person centred and heartfelt approach to their customers. As a partnership, we hope to offer an alignment and breath of fresh air to the public, making their parental journey less daunting, offer hope and support and to spread more awareness understanding and to ensure that parents, careers and networks feel less alone”
PANDAS knows from speaking with Dads and male carers via their support services that they may feel guilt or shame for seeking support. According to the Institute of Health Visting (2021) Approximately 10% of fathers experience perinatal mental illness, and 25-50% of fathers will experience perinatal anxiety or depression when the mother also has a perinatal mental illness.
“Dads have not gone through the physical trauma of childbirth so might not want to ‘complain’ about feeling awful after what their partner has gone through. Dads must be on it from minute one to make sure everything is in place for mum and baby. It’s a lot of pressure and can be completely overwhelming”. (PANDAS Service user)
iCandy’s support of £10,000 will enable PANDAS to grow its support services even further, to better support more parents, carers and their networks than ever before.
How we can support you
How you can help us
