Mother-of-three took leap to offer baby and toddler classes across Northants following redundancy
Meet the mother-of-three who took the leap to offer baby and toddler classes across Northamptonshire following her redundancy.
Tan Brient runs Sing and Sign sessions across Northampton, Towcester and Daventry, after purchasing the franchise for the latter two in 2021. The opportunity then arose to take on the Northampton branch a couple of years later.
This came after Tan was made redundant from a former HR role when she returned from maternity leave. As well as taking on Sing and Sign, Tan now works as an NHS 111 call handler which is flexible around her three children.
With an interest in sign language and having taken the opportunity to learn after having her first child, Tan knew this was an avenue she wanted to pursue.
Sing and Sign operates from Wootton Community Centre and the Elgar Centre in Northampton, as well as Pattishall Parish Hall near Towcester and Cedar Grove Clinic in Daventry.
The signing system used in the sessions is three steps removed from British Sign Language, and is a simplified version to help little ones communicate before they can talk.
Tan wants to reiterate that the sign language used is not Makaton either, though she is trained in this at level four.
Tan believes attending classes eases frustration for children as it helps them to be understood by their parents and families before they can talk.
The Sing and Sign courses were developed by speech and language therapists, as the founder of the entire business had a daughter with a speech delay. They mixed music with signing to aid her development, and wanted other families to benefit from the same experience.
Tan loves using the signs with her own children to help them communicate and she explained that it aids vocabulary when little ones do start talking.
Through nursery rhymes, bespoke Sing and Sign music, activities and games, repetition enables attendees to learn the signs – and this can be as many as 300 in classes for older toddlers. Tan is also pleased to accommodate the needs of SEND families.
“We have a lot of returning families,” said Tan. “We offer classes from zero to six months, all the way up to 30 months. It aids speech development and families find it useful.
“It is unique as it was the first baby class to use signing when it was founded in 2001. This is not a sensory class, it benefits the development of communication.”
Tan hopes to make more families aware of Sing and Sign and its benefits, as well as encouraging them to join the autumn term of classes starting in September.
With speech challenges becoming more common in children, Tan believes it is important to focus on communication development from as early as possible.