The well-being hub that’s proved a big hit with mums and babies

Kellie Kean from Eccleston had a 13 year career as a neonatal nurse, a paediatric A&E nurse and was a specialist in infant tongue tie and infant feeding.

She started Pitter Patter Tots in 2019 in the community to offer support network with baby classes, infant feeding, pregnancy and postnatal yoga.

Mums at The Nest (Image: The Nest)

Meanwhile Leanne Belshaw, 38, also from Eccleston, launched Fitness Beyond the Bump in 2019 after she was made redundant following the birth of her son.

Leanne also has an extensive career in fitness working in gyms for more than 13 years.

Leanne Belshaw and Kellie Kean (Image: The Nest)

She diversified her business following the births of her two sons and specialised in pre and post natal fitness, making it accessible for parents by letting them bring their children along.

A fitness class for mums (Image: The Nest)

During September 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, the pair decided to join forces and launch The Nest, creating a pregnancy, post natal and baby wellbeing studio.

Kellie’s Pitter Patter Tot’s classes has seen mums come together regularly in a safe and clean space to bond and have classes such as baby massage and baby yoga followed by a brew and snack to bond with other mums.

Meanwhile Leanne’s Fitness Beyond the Bump offers regular and accessible pre and postnatal workouts for parents with or without their child – making it accessible for all – using The Nest on Walmesley Road, Eccleston as a base but also utilising nearby parks.

The Nest has since diversified tailoring the classes to community demand and offering more including infant first aid, adult yoga, Jo Jingles toddler dance classes, Spanish lessons for toddlers, special educational needs classes and hypnobirthing sessions.

Looking back since the launch of business Kellie, 34, a mum-of-two, said: “We both just saw what the area was lacking and wanted to use our expertise to help others.

“I struggled with tongue tie with my children and I know that inspired me down the path I’m on now as I knew others needed support.

“Also for myself I knew from having my son and daughter that there are lots of baby classes out there that take place but sometimes it felt like you couldn’t build the relationships from signing up to regular classes and being with the same group of parents.

Kellie and Leanne, added: “The Nest is a clean, safe and inviting environment and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved here. So much positive feedback and many mums have made friends for life.

“As well as the babies getting to interact, it’s very much from my side a place for parents and grandparents to come together and form relationships too which is good for mental health.

“Fitness Beyond the Bump makes thing so fun for everyone which means no matter what stage they are at - right through from pregnancy classes to post natal, which can also be accessed alongside the children in prams, as interaction and feeling good in yourself is so important to mental health.

“It’s had its challenges, launching during lockdown, then having to do classes online and trying to offer what our in person classes did was hard, but we survived it.

“One of our favourite things about the classes are the relationships made between those who come here.”

Current classes at The Nest by Pitter Patter Tots are the Grow With Me (for babies from birth until 15 weeks then 15 weeks until age 1), Yogi Babies from 14 weeks to 10 months and pregnancy yoga and relaxation taking place on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Fitness Beyond the Bump classes are: Buggy Beat – classes with children in a buggy, This mum can – indoor fun friendly exercises that are family friendly so babies can come along too, Fitness Pilates – for postnatal workouts, strong mama – a full body workout using barbells and weights, Ab Blast – a focus on developing abs and core strength. The classes take place from Monday to Thursday.

For more information on The Nest, go to linktr.ee/thenesteccleston