BOOK TRAINING

In terms of the separated parent’s agenda, the support arena is largely occupied by mediation, SPIP programmes and group work for separated parents. Whilst many frontline practitioners are now becoming more comfortable with conversations about conflict between intact couples, working one to one with parents who are no longer together and in conflict is relatively new territory for the workforce.  This structured resource has been created by subject matter experts with backgrounds in mediation, couple therapy and Children’s Services management. 

This resource can be used with one or both parents and uses cases studies, activities, and homework/reflection to help parents who are struggling to get along after separation.
It works well when it’s undertaken by a skilled practitioner with good unpinning skills and knowledge in relation to parental conflict. This support tackles a different kind of conflict altogether and looks in detail with each parent at the loss and anger, current feelings, impact of new partners and family members compounding the conflict.  It works best when undertaken by one practitioner who can provide that ‘wrap around’ support parents and children may need as well as keeping an eye on risk and escalation.

Disputes between parents over arrangements for their children following a separation, make up a large proportion of applications to the family courts. The concern is that families have become over reliant on the court system to ‘sort out’ family disputes. The Private Law Working Group 2020 report concluded that: “There is a need (and an accompanying desire among professionals and litigants) for radical reform of the way in which private family law disputes are resolved in and out of the family court”.

The time has come for a different approach, an approach that puts children and their parents at the centre of the decision-making process.   

Good quality, healthy relationships are at the heart of family functioning, children learn from their parents modelling ‘relational behaviours’ such as how they cope (or not) with stressful situations, compromise, negotiation, problem solving and so on. These are the skills they take with them (or not) into the community, into school, into work and into their own relationships. We know that when parents do not get along, negative parenting practices can become the norm (harsh, controlling, emotionally unavailable, blaming the child, using the child as messenger) and this has a significant impact on how children do at school. This ever-expanding field of research means that we need to change the way we approach our work with families accordingly. Parents have a crucial role in supporting their children to be happy, healthy and well adjusted.  This resource has been designed to help you support parents to work together and resolve their disputes over a series of sessions. 

During the training you will receive a copy of the structured sessions toolkit and feel comfortable to use them with parents.