Barnardo's - Parent Champions and Volunteers

The role of the Champions is to be a source of support to other parents in their own community, offering non judgemental relationships and advice and guidance where appropriate.  The training group was a mix of volunteers and volunteer managers from Barnardo's, including the the Parent Champions.

The training was a one day course, split over two half days, and was carried out virtually. 

The learning objectives were as follows:

• Discuss how early experiences can help shape brain development
• Consider research on Adverse Childhood Experiences
• Focus on the adolescent brain and the changes that occur during that period
• Discuss what we mean by “trauma” and how these experiences can affect children and carers
• Understand the concept of “regulation” and examine tools to support effective nervous system regulation
• Consider the trauma recovery model and how this applies to the children and families we support

In addition to the presentations, within the training there was much discussion and learning around opportunities for education with parents.  We particularly focussed on regulatory techniques.  To assist with this, we watched educational videos, tried out practical strategies such as breathing, stretching and refocussing the mind, and we talked about our own families and the families we support.

Feedback from the group was that they had gained a lot from the training, both personally and professionally and that the quality of the training was excellent.

We wish the volunteers the best of luck in their roles and it was a pleasure to spend this learning time with them.