Personalised book about meeting new neighbours after moving

What happens in your child Meets the Next-Door Cat

1. Your child sits on the new front step beside unpacked boxes.
2. A ginger cat appears at the hedge and investigates your child's shoes.
3. Your child follows the cat along the garden path, noticing new sounds and sights.
4. The cat leads your child to the fence beside the next-door garden.
5. Your child meets the cat's family and returns indoors with a friendly new wave to practise.

How the first page could read

On the first afternoon in the new house, your child sat on the front step beside a box marked BOOKS. The rooms indoors still sounded echoey. Then a ginger cat slipped through the hedge, paused by your child's trainers and gave one polite little meow.

Your child’s name, look and little details replace these words, and the whole story is written for their age.

Why this story works

At three to six, a move can make even the front garden feel unfamiliar. This gentle story keeps the first outing small: your child notices a cat, follows at a comfortable distance and meets the people next door through a simple, everyday moment. There is no need for your child to be bold, chatty or ready to make a friend straight away. Seeing their own face and name in the illustrations can make the new doorstep, hedge and bedroom feel connected to their own change. It gives families an easy way to talk about curious feelings, new routines and saying hello in their own time.

Reading it together

• Read it on the first afternoon or evening in the new home, then pause to look out for real garden sounds or passing cats.
• Ask your child what they might say if they saw the cat again, and accept any answer, including a wave or a quiet smile.
• Keep the book by the front door or in the new bedroom as a familiar story during the first few days.

Suggested art style: Storybook watercolour

Soft watercolour gives the new garden, hedges and doorstep a calm, familiar feel without making the first encounter seem too busy. A sidekick idea: a polite ginger next-door cat. You can pick any of the four styles and change the details in the form.