Horsham grandma hailed a ‘lifesaver’ after becoming an on-line babysitter

Helen Higgins reads storybooks to children and plays with them on-line while their parents are busy with work.

Helen, who now lives in Australia, has found her services more in demand than ever during the Covid lockdown.

But, she says, the idea came to her a year ago, way before the pandemic struck. “The coincidence, though, is amazing – and a bit wonderful,” she says.

Helen - known as Nanna - has 26 illustrated stories in her online library and children can see the pages as she reads to them.

She also plays doll’s house games with them, does arts and crafts with them, even shows them how to cook.

Helen says she has been called a virtual babysitter. “But I’m not like an online game or the television,” she says.

Her Grandma’s House (https://www.grandmashouseonline.com/) experience, she says, helps children to develop their understanding of the world and fuel their imaginations.

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