Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks: Helping your little one with toileting and independence

TSWA Management July 25, 2025

Helping Your Little One with Toileting and Independence

This free webinar in the Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks series explores helping your little one with toileting independence. It will cover:

🧻 Understanding the Journey: Learn what toileting readiness can look like for children.

🧻 Toilet Training Tips That Work: Discover gentle, consistent approaches to toilet training that build confidence and preparedness for both you and your child.

🧻 Practical Support for Everyday Life: Explore simple, real-world strategies to manage setbacks, encourage routine, and make toileting part of your family’s daily rhythm.

Please join us for this insightful webinar presented by Karina Caldwell, continence physiotherapist with the Western Kids Health Team on:

📆 Thursday, 7 August

⏰ 1pm

Registration is essential.

Have a say

TSWA Management July 25, 2025

We feel it is essential to hear from our community about what they love about the things we do and where they see opportunities for new things in the future. We’ve opened up a short survey to help support this process. If you have been part of any of our programs, care packages, playgroup, webinar series, special occasion gifts, World Prematurity Day celebrations we would love to hear from you!

Survey

Helping Tiny Talkers Thrive

TSWA Management March 16, 2025

The next webinar in our free Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks series is coming up very soon. Helping Tiny Talkers Thrive will be hosted by speech therapist Amelia and paediatric physiotherapist Nicole Pates from Western Kids Health.

📆 25 March

⏰ 2pm

💻 Live webinar

We welcome you to register to attend and submit a question to be answered on the day.

Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks

TSWA Management February 18, 2025

New program alert!

We are thrilled to be bringing a new offering to the table in 2025. Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks will be a series of monthly webinars on topics of interest to the community.

Bringing your baby home from the NICU is a huge milestone—one that comes with excitement, but also new challenges. You want to support their development, but between feeds, naps, and everyday life, who has time to “add in” play?

✨ Here’s the secret: Play doesn’t have to be something extra. It can be part of what you’re already doing! ✨

In this free webinar with Tiny Sparks & paediatric physiotherapist Nicole Pates (@nicole_kidsphysio), we’ll show you how to:

✔️ Make daily routines (like bath time & mealtime) playful for babies and toddlers under 3 🛁🍽️
✔️ Use simple tricks to boost connection & communication 🗣️💛
✔️ Turn “must-dos” into FUN moments 🎶✨

📅 Date & Time

📍 Online | FREE | 27th February at 2pm

👶 Perfect for parents of NICU graduates aged 0-3 years!

Spaces are limited—RSVP now!

Christmas 2025

TSWA Management December 23, 2024

A Christmas spent in hospital is an incredibly challenging time for families, especially those who are separated from their family or friends. Having first hand experience of Christmas in NICU our team have been providing special occasion gifts not just for Christmas, but other occasions too, since our inception in 2013. This year was no different.

We were super grateful to have two lovely volunteers who used their corporate volunteer days to come along to Tiny Sparks HQ and pack a whopping 325 Christmas gifts! Whilst the largest Neonatal Units are located in Perth some country hospitals do have dedicated bed space to care for baby’s needing some additional care and attention after birth. Our programs ensure that every family, no matter their location receive the support they need.

Our Christmas gifts are generously supported by the small Perth family run business Foote & Flame with stockings generously sewn and donated by the Tiny Sparks Crafty Collective.

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Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for
high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

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NEXT SPARK AWARD

about 3 weeks ago

Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks: Helping your little one with toileting and independence

about a month ago

Have a say

about a month ago

Join a Focus Group - EOI Open

about a month ago

Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks: Fussy Eating in Toddlerhood

about a month ago

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World Hearing Day We can’t emphasise the importance of newborn hearing screening enough! The earlier you are aware of hearing loss, the more success early intervention is. A staggering 5% of the world population require intervention for hearing loss.

This past week we were contacted by a family with a heartbreaking story. We can’t share their story with you, but they did pose a question we can share. ‘What would it take to ensure every family admitted to NICU receives a Care Package in WA each year?’ Each year around 4,500 babies are admitted to a Neonatal Unit in WA. To fund a Care Package for each of these families we need to raise $180,000! We started this program back in 2014 and were delivering just 10 packages a month. The program has grown and grown and we are now delivering just over 100 packages per month but we need to see that number more than triple, so no family goes without! Please help us, help more WA families by making a tax deductible donation. https://www.justgiving.com/tinysparkswainc

Shout out to little Lewi (ex 27 weeker, now in year 2) Lewi was told 7 month's ago that he was going blind in his left eye - which has been an ongoing issue from birth. After 7 months of eye patching for 2 hours a day, his eye sight is now 'perfect'. So for the next 3 months at least, he is eye patch free. They do not expect his sight to change again. It’s been a hard 7 month's, with lots of tears, arguments, questions but he has done the hard work and it has paid off. Lewi wanted to share his story so he can inspire any other Tiny Sparks that may be going through a similar journey. (And their mums and dads too) Dont give up he says "it will be worth it in the end" Love Lewi x

Many organisations we partner with have been impacted this morning. It is unclear what the longer term outlook is at this stage. If you wish to stay connected with them please look at their websites. You can find ours here: https://www.tinysparkswa.org.au

Our volunteers deliver around 100 Care Packages each month! Providing essential items to families in Neonatal Units and supporting women admitted for long term hospital bedrest to prolong their pregnancy.

DEVELOPMENTAL PLAYGROUP - ENROLMENT OPEN Many of our tiny sparks have incredibly challenging starts to life. The interventions they receive to save their lives can have life long consequences, but just who will be impacted, and how these consequences may unfold is largely unknown. Our Developmental Playgroup seeks to provide early support from suitably trained developmental experts in the fields of physiotherapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy to provide advice and guidance to families in a play based setting. Enrolments for Term 1 are now OPEN! Enrolment is open to any child in WA aged 6m actual age to 3 years of age who was admitted to a Neonatal Unit after birth. Neonatal Unit admission can be for any reason including but not limited to premature birth, sick full term, or surgical requirements. The cost of this program is heavily subsidised by our fundraising efforts and generous donors. Enrolment can be completed via our website: https://www.tinysparkswa.org.au/shop/dpgt420new-6fwty

From all of us to all of you wishing you a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Stay safe, make some memories and enjoy each others company 🎅🏻🎄💜

For many years we have run our annual Christmas Quilt Drive and in spite of COVIDs attempts to derail everything in 2020, humanity prevailed! Many sewing groups ran with this project including the remarkable Get Scrubbed Group and our own Crafty Creators. Since the delivery cut off we have been busy sorting, packing, posting and delivering to 26 hospitals around the state. Our final delivery was made this morning to Bunbury Regional Hospital. Along with the Christmas quilts, stockings and cards, hospitals also received ‘Baby’s 1st Christmas 2020’ ornaments thanks to the ongoing generous support of local family run business, @footeandflame . This year we distributed a staggering 544 gifts for Christmas in maternity, Neonatal and Special Care Nursery beds all over WA! Huge thanks to volunteers Christine H, Elke, Zach and Xavier for generously giving their time to assist with collation and deliveries. To our drop off points Margaret, Jenny, Liesl, Briana, Sandra and Christine L thank you for opening your homes for drop offs. Melinda thank you for hosting the stocking sew along and answering lots of questions. To everyone who coordinated family, friends or an organised sewing group we thank you! Thanks to you, Christmas in hospital this year will be a special time for so many. Thank you all for helping to make this possible 🙌🏻💜🎄

The Interact Club at Willetton Senior High School voted to support Tiny Sparks WA with the funds made from a fundraiser, Spring Cool Down, where they sold drinks, ice creams, and icy poles to students. Interact is a youth branch of Rotary International and comprises of students between the ages of 12-18 who participate in regular fundraising and community service activities for both local and international charities. Last year, they were able to donate over $10,000 to various incredible organisations. Club Secretary Angela says, ‘We recognise your organisation's invaluable efforts in improving the wellbeing of mothers enduring high-risk pregnancies and children born sick or premature who require neonatal unit care. You have all helped positively impact many lives, and we admire and respect your hard work.’ Funds donated by the Interact Club will support our Care Package program. The students were asked to provide a message of support to the recipients. Their cards will read, ‘This care package has been sponsored by the Interact Club of Willetton Senior High School. We hope this supports you and your family during these difficult circumstances.’ Thank you Interact Willetton 🙌🏻💜 We are so grateful for your generous contribution! 📸 Picture supplied by Willetton Senior High School

International Volunteer Day 🙌🏻💜 “Volunteering is at the very core of being a human. No one has made it through life without someone else’s help.” - Heather French Henry As a 100% volunteer run organisation we truly value every single person who contributes their time to further our mission, to improve the health and wellbeing of Western Australian families enduring high-risk pregnancy, infants requiring neonatal unit care and the associated childhood impacts; including the communities supporting them. Thank you all 💐🙌🏻💜

TWITTER FEED

Tiny Sparks WA

RT @drbretty: 4 realz #neotwitter, this takes like 3 minutes to complete👇 Help prioritize the most important questions to answer… https://t.co/mhMp4Scs9E
Dec 15, 2022, 7:42 PM
Tiny Sparks WA

RT @CREStillbirth: Are you passionate about improving antenatal care in Australia? We need your help! @CREStillbirth is conducting a… https://t.co/7Kgl9pjHVu
Dec 8, 2022, 8:11 AM
Tiny Sparks WA

RT @DrColeFletch: "You'll get better at it if you do it over and over". A powerful message from Ylva Therström Blomqvist at today's… https://t.co/qiJsbj4TQJ
Dec 8, 2022, 8:11 AM

Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for
high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks: Helping your little one with toileting and independence

Have a say

Helping Tiny Talkers Thrive

Strong Starts for Tiny Sparks

Christmas 2025

Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for
high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

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Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity forhigh-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

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Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.

Tiny Sparks WA is Western Australia's premier charity for
high-risk pregnancies and babies born sick or premature.