Community platform combining local parent networks, verified childcare reviews, and a trusted marketplace for families navigating the transition to early parenthood.
The transition to parenthood in Australia is shaped by three arcs: isolation to belonging, uncertainty to confidence, fragmentation to coherence. Parents of children aged 0–4 face emotional strain, social disconnection, and financial pressure simultaneously — while the resources meant to help them are scattered across health portals, Facebook groups, and government websites with no connecting thread.
A survey of 25 Australian parents found that 33% turn to friends and family first for advice — not health professionals or online resources. Over half reported double-checking social media advice before acting on it. The information exists, but the system for trusting and accessing it doesn't.
Triangulated across surveys (n=25 Australian parents and caregivers via Google Forms), semi-structured interviews with parents of children aged 0–4, and online ethnography through shadow observation of Mouths of Mums, Beyond Blue forums, and Mamamia comment threads.
More than practical workload. Parents with strong local connections reported higher confidence regardless of financial or logistical circumstances.
Financial strain creates constant time-vs-money decisions absorbed silently — reduced work hours, skipped services, deferred self-care.
Access to information doesn't reduce anxiety. Online forums expose parents to judgement and conflicting opinions as much as genuine support.
I explored the problem space through five methods: mind-mapping (20+ life transitions narrowed to parenthood), Crazy 8s, bodystorming (physically acting out "freeze moments" of parental stress), Worst Possible Idea (flipping "Mandatory Bootcamp" into flexible optional support; "AI Robot Babysitter" into augmented human care with oversight), and a PMI matrix evaluating 8 concepts.
Two concepts progressed: Village (credible knowledge hub with health tracking) and Parent Circles (community-focused platform with social connection). The PMI evaluation selected Parent Circles for its "strongest social and emotional benefits" — directly addressing the core research insight about isolation.
Location- and identity-based parent groups with integrated ratings and reviews for childcare facilities. Facility reviews show overall scores, rating distributions, and individual reviews with community moderation. Designed with contrast compliance and large tap targets for time-pressured parents.
A peer-to-peer marketplace for exchanging, borrowing, or gifting childcare items — with mandatory identity verification before access. Seller locations display at suburb level only to protect privacy. Users reported this made the platform feel "safer than Facebook Marketplace."
A map-based system for finding nearby parents with similar schedules and childcare stages. Filters for age, child age, distance (50m–10km), and verification status. Friend requests include withdraw/confirm options to keep the interaction low-pressure.
Mid-to-high fidelity Figma prototype tested with 8 participants (peers and tutors) at an in-class User Testing Fair. Two-station setup: Station 1 ran think-aloud with facilitator, observer, and Wizard of Oz operator; Station 2 handled interviews and surveys.
Each participant completed three task-based scenarios. Every task captured success/failure, completion time, error count, and a Single Ease Question (SEQ) score (1–7), followed by a structured interview, full SUS survey, and unstructured follow-up. 35 data points were synthesised into an affinity diagram.
Ratings discoverability: Added a prominent "Add a rating" button directly on the Ratings page below the overall score, plus a pencil/review icon on each facility card in the list view. Before: tiny text. After: two visible entry points.
Privacy and transparency: Added a verification onboarding screen explaining why ID is required before marketplace access. Changed seller location from a precise map pin to suburb name + "Contact for Meetup Location." Before: exact address. After: "Redfern / 6km from your current location."
Map and profiles: Enlarged map avatars and separated overlapping pins. Added full-profile pages (avatar, name, bio, followed circles, friend request + options) so users could see who they'd connect with before sending a request. Before: small circular avatars only. After: full-screen map with clear avatars opening complete profiles.
Parent Circle reframes early parenthood support as a connected system rather than a collection of isolated resources. The three transition arcs from the research — isolation to belonging, uncertainty to confidence, fragmentation to coherence — became the design logic: every feature maps to one of those arcs.
The biggest lesson was about trust. ID verification wasn't originally a core feature — it was added to address marketplace safety. But testing revealed it was the single thing that made the entire platform feel different from existing options. Sometimes the thing that earns trust is structural, not visual.