NCT Course benefits - versus Nhs free ante natal classes

Hey!

I am new here and 14 weeks pregnant!

I wanted to ask if anyone can shed some light on the benefits of the NCT classes as opposed to just taking the free ante natal classes on the NHS.

Obviously the NCT classes are quite expensive - well for us anyway as I got made redundant, and my OH is not on a high salary.

What does everyone think?

Xxx

[Hidden]

I think the NCT courses are more comprehensive. Where I live, in Leicester, the NHS course is ran over 3 evening sessions whereas the nct is over 7 evenings. They both cover the same topics but the nct must go into more depth (you'd hope so for the money anyway). We opted for the NCT as it was £220 as opposed to £400 like it is in London, but it worked out more cost effective than paying for private NHS sessions. I am starting to wonder if should have just booked us on the non-private NHS course for £70 as £220 is a lot of money when you have a baby on the way! X

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Thanks jojo! I know we are registered on the free nhs one anyway so we have that. I might just have a think whether to do the nct one too....

The NHS one is in December and the NCT one starts in January so there is no crossover.

I didn't realise they were so expensive - shows how little I know!!

When are you due? Xxx

[Hopful85]

Hey there I wish I took the NCT ones. I did all the free NHS courses I could and as a first time mum was very unprepared, for labour especially.

[Hidden in reply to Hopful85]

Thanks for this response - that is exactly what I wanted to know. I will book NCT ones for January xxx

[Yellow_shark]

I have just finished my NCT classes and throughly reccommend them! Like you I was umming and arring, so I asked loads of people what they thought. So glad I did them and worth the money. Very informative and where to find local support groups before and after birth. Also not to mention meeting other couples 😊 I was going to do the free NHS ones too, but found out weren’t even running in my area!

[Hidden in reply to Yellow_shark]

Thanks - good to get first hand reviews 😀 will definitely enroll now 😁 xxx

[Hidden]

I just stuck my head in the sand when it came to the baby being here as I could never believe we would be blessed with her so didn’t really bother with worrying about courses so I only did the free NHS one and it was good just wish they had given us some paperwork as was hard to remember everything.

I don’t think anything can prepare you as everyone and every baby is different and we just went with the flo and we seemed to get on fine (I think 😂) xx

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I know it doesn't seem real during the actual pregnancy!

I am sure you did great! 😀

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Also I know a lot of people set their heart on certain things during labour and they get disappointed when it doesn’t go the way they planned (which I totally get). I personally didn’t set my heart on anything as long as she was out safe I was happy and I didn’t have to dwell on what I didn’t get but that’s my personal preference/opinion xx

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

As yet I am totally clueless - feel the same as you - just want the best outcome of a healthy baby and healthy mother 😀

🤞🤞🤞

[Shem008]

We did both the free NHS one and the NCT one. The NHS one was quite basic and i felt that we didn’t get much out of it. The NCT one went into much more detail and gave us a lot to think about. However, be mindful that it’s very much about the positives and not as much was said about what can go wrong, some common complications etc and it’s all focussed on having choices during birth (which some of us didn’t get as we ended up in emergency situations). Out of the seven couples on the course not one of us got the entire birth experience we wanted and we felt a bit unprepared for how we felt about it afterwards as the course was all about the positives. Also, a lot of what was said gave us all a lot of confidence (especially the breastfeeding session) but once baby is here, every birth and every baby is different so in actual fact it is still a massive learning curve and not everything taught is applicable or as easy as it sounds (especially breastfeeding! Lol). BUT having said all that, the fact we did the course together and built friendships from it has been the best outcome. Who else can you message at 2am to get advice or have a rant about baby crying and your other half not even stirring?! I have found they are the most expensive friends I have ever bought but it has been worth every penny. We had our baby early so didn’t even get to finish the course (the last session was about how to look after the baby so we missed out!) but the support has been incredible. I’d definitely recommend the NCT course just for this aspect. Go in with an open mind about what you want from your birth experience and don’t get focussed on a specific birth plan and you’ll be fine and get a lot out of it xx

[Hidden in reply to Shem008]

That is great advice. I will be realistic for sure. Tbh conceiving the baby has been not as expected so prepared for the rest to be just as unpredictable.

We think we will do both courses I think so we get both sets of advice.

It does sound good to have local friends in the same situation to help.

Thanks for responding.

It will definitely be an adventure!

Xxx

[friggens31]

The NCT course was the best thing we did not necessarily for the birth prep in terms of birth plan none of us got what we planned. But for the people we met our NCT group has been bern the rock that got us through the first few tough weeks. We all talk most days and have done baby massage and baby sensory together. It is expensive but if you get a good group the support is worth so much more x

[Hidden in reply to friggens31]

Thanks - seems like everyone says the same - I don't mind paying the money if it is worth it. By the sounds of it everyone seems to agree that it is!

I am so scared of the first few months now - sounds like hell!

xxx

[friggens31 in reply to Hidden]

I think it depends on your baby my little boy had reflux and is lactose intolerant so he didn't sleep for more than an hour. He's now 3 months and sleeps 6 hours at night so if it is tough at the start just know it will get better. And once they start smiling and laughing at you it's then so worth it. Xx

[Hidden in reply to friggens31]

Ah yes that is what I wanted to hear - there have to be some positives

Well done for breaking through the difficult 3 months!

xxx

[kt_11]

We chose NCT because the NHS ones in our area were on Wednesday afternoons, which would’ve been a pain for me to be off work for and even worse for my partner who’s self-employed! They had some evening sessions but they were at the hospital which isn’t the best place to get to at that time of day.

I enjoyed the NCT classes and we met a lovely group of people who are always at the other end of a phone & we’ve met up several times since having our babies. I think my partner learned a lot & it made it feel a lot more real & exciting to him after the classes.

I think you should definitely try the NHS ones if you’re able to. They might have more information specific to the hospital you plan to give birth in etc. But if you can afford the NCT ones too I’d recommend them (we went for the ‘essentials’ course which was the cheaper one and I felt it was enough). xx