Kinship Care Week webinar: How can professionals support kinship care families?
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Kinship Care Week is an opportunity to recognise the selfless work of kinship carers, raise awareness of kinship care in the community, and promote best practice among kinship care professionals. In this webinar, we will hear from Heather McVeigh, Director of Mentor Scotland, about Mentor's work with kinship carers over the past 13 years. We will also provide professionals with information and resources for how to support kinship care families they work with, based on our Early Help Model training materials. For more information, go to http://mentoruk.org.uk/kinshipcareweek/
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Kinship Care Week webinar: How can professionals support kinship care families?
- 1. How can professionals support kinship carers? #KinshipCareWeek
- 2. • Introduce Mentor, ADEPIS and CAYT • Define kinship care • Outline Kinship Care Week • Explore what kinship carers’ needs are, esp. around substance misuse in children • Get to know more about drugs and alcohol and their impact on young people • Talk about why awareness of substance misuse is important for kinship carers Today’s webinar
- 3. Mentor’s mission To promote the health and wellbeing of children and young people and prevent alcohol and drug misuse.
- 4. Research Programmes Policy Develop life skills that build resilience to risk in children & young people How we do it
- 5. Mentor-ADEPIS is publicly acknowledged as the leading source of evidence-based resources for alcohol and drug education and prevention for schools. Mentor-ADEPIS
- 6. In 2015 ADEPIS was expanded to include the Centre for Analysis of Youth Transitions (CAYT) database of impact studies. CAYT
- 7. Mentor-ADEPIS seminars • CAYT seminars • Teacher training Plus… • The Mentor Community of Evidence-based Practice
- 9. Kinship care is an arrangement for a family member or close friend to care for children whose parents are unable to look after them. What is kinship care?
- 11. The most common reason for children entering kinship care is parental drug and alcohol abuse (67%). Reasons for kinship care
- 12. In young people, drugs and alcohol can: • contribute to poor judgment and bad decisions • increase the chances of getting into fights, accidents and other dangerous situations • damage the growing body and developing brain • lead to addiction during adolescence (though evidence suggests this doesn’t happen a lot) Why is this important?
- 13. Mentor’s kinship care work
- 14. Our experience shows that kinship carers play a vital role in keeping children safe from drugs and alcohol. Their attitudes and behaviours can help shape young people’s views on drink and drugs. The role of kinship carers
- 15. A recent study found that 77% of kinship carers have asked for professional support... Why are we here today?
- 16. Practically? Emotionally? Financially? What do kinship carers need:
- 17. • Knowledge about key issues • Advice on how to talk about substances • Education and training • Knowing what to do if they’re concerned • Peer and one-to-one support • Help lines or a point of contact • Resources and further information. Practical needs
- 18. • Empathy and gentleness • Encouragement and positivity • Cared for to feel they’re not alone • That they can make a positive difference • A non-judgmental, non-blaming attitude • Awareness or understanding of their situation – and that it could happen to anyone. Emotional needs
- 19. Make sure you communicate these two important facts to kinship carers: 1. They did not cause their son or daughter’s alcohol or other drug problems. Neither did the child. 2. The carer and their children can’t cure the parents’ alcohol or drug problems, but they can encourage them to seek treatment and support.
- 20. • Understanding what kind of carer you are and what support is there • Child Benefit? Tax Credits? Kinship Carer Allowance? • Paying for food, clothes, school supplies, toys • Supporting yourselves as well Financial needs
- 21. • One-to-one support • Peer support groups • Couples’ therapy • Family group conferencing • Drop-in sessions • Educational groups • Respite services Types of support
- 25. Alcohol
- 27. DO: • Pick the right time • Start the discussion early, and keep talking • Remind them drinking is not the norm • Place limits and consequences on behaviour • Be nurturing and express warmth • Encourage children to express opinions • Use adverts, or soap stories to spark the topic • Ask what they’ve learned about drugs at school Advice for carers
- 28. DON’T: • Tell them to ‘just say no’ – it’s not effective • Exaggerate the harms – you’ll sound less credible • Preach, use scare tactics, sound angry or accusatory. • Try and get everything across in one go. Many small talks are better. • Interrogate them about what they’ve been up to when you’re not around. • Panic. If your child has tried drugs, be calm when discussing it with them.
- 29. Rules and boundaries about drinking mean young people are less likely to get drunk. This means kinship carers should set boundaries and reward children if they stick to them. If they break the rules, consequences should be consistent and fair. Recommendations for carers
- 30. If a kinship carer is concerned, encourage them to: • Get information from sources with specialist knowledge, online or in person. • Get support for themselves, too, and find someone they can talk to and trust. Where carers can go for help
- 33. Kinship Care Guide for Scotland
- 35. #KinshipCareWeek For more information visit mentoruk.org.uk/kinshipcareweek
Notes de l'éditeur
- Outline today’s seminar- talking about awareness of substance misuse is important for kinship care. Fill in the evaluation form to start Exploring what kinship carer’s needs are. Get to know more about drugs and alcohol and their impact of young people and how you can support kinship carers with this knowledge. Awareness of agencies that can help and how to speak to children on this topic.
- Our mission is two-fold: to promote young people’s health and well being, and to prevent drug and alcohol misuse.
- Who we are For 17 years, Mentor has developed specialist knowledge and experience in programme delivery to prevent and reduce risks, particularly from alcohol and drugs. This helps build our evidence base of ‘what works’ for prevention – we draw on the best international scientific research available to inform our work and to help influence public policy related to the prevention of drug and alcohol misuse in the UK.
- Building our evidence base Evidence is crucial to our work, as it helps ensure programmes are effective at protecting children and young people from the harms of drugs and alcohol. The Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service is a platform for sharing information and resources aimed at schools and practitioners working in drug and alcohol prevention. ADEPIS is funded by Publich Health England and the Home Office. In 2017, ADEPIS was recognised by UNESCO, UNODC and WHO as a “prime example” of best practice in alcohol and drug education.
- The aim of the CAYT database is to draw together evidence on ‘what works’ in terms of policies designed to assist young people in their transitions from education to work, as well as reducing engagement in risky behaviours.
- Mentor are determined to bring evidence-based practice to mainstream education. We will do this through the delivery of free regional seminars exploring best practice in prevention and showcasing CAYT quality-assessed programmes for young people. We also deliver free teacher training aimed at equipping teachers with the skills and resources to deliver evidence-based drug and alcohol education in their classrooms. We also are heading a group of educational leaders, practitioners and policy influencers. The Mentor Community of Evidence-based Practice, with its focus on prevention, will allow for shared information and experiences and collective learning which will enrich services provided to young people. More information is available on the ADEPIS website.
- Play video: https://youtu.be/9HcrN5C2kgk
- This is where professionals such as yourself can help
- Mentor launched Kinship Care Week in order for us to recognise the selfless work of kinship carers, raise awareness of kinship care in the community, and promote best practice among kinship care professionals. The week will culminate in a BBC Radio 4 charity appeal broadcast, presented by Baroness Susan Greenfield.
- We know that parental substance misuse has a great impact on children in kinship care. The children of alcoholics are four times more likely to become addicted to drink and are at a higher risk of drug problems than the rest of the population. This also includes a range of other factors which can effect a child's, physical, psychological and emotional mind.
- Evidence suggests that drugs and alcohol can harm children and young people in these ways. The harm caused by the use of tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs by young people can be divided into the immediate damage caused to developing minds and bodies, and the risk of developing addictions and behaviour which last long into adulthood. Research shows that prevention can be a cost-effective way of reducing this use, meaning kinship carers can really help, if they have the right support...
- That's why, as part of our work to prevent harms from drugs and alcohol, Mentor provides personalised support, information and advice, as well as peer group opportunities for kinship carers and young people they care for. These services improve family relationships, build confidence and help kinship families be more positively integrated within their local community.
- They are parental figures, standing in for their parents and taking responsibility for their child. HOWEVER...
- ... But only a third of them got the help they needed. These figures need to be improved, as we are doing a disservice to vulnerable families who do not know where to turn to.
- We need to be thinking about how we can recognise and address a range of needs. Kinship carers should access the same level of emotional, practical and financial support as foster carers, as they are caring for children with the same level of need.
- Practical support, such as training and respite care, should be made available to all kinship carers. 53% of kinship carers state that they have other long-term health problems. For those looking after a child later in life, this can present different challenges from when they raised their own children, for example the rise of the internet can leave some older kinship carers feeling lost about how to keep their kinship child or children safe online. –education, jargon for education It is clear that kinship carers need access to the same levels of support that foster carers receive to be able to fully support the children in their care. It is recognised that many LAs have a Family and Friends Care Policy. However, the policies across regions vary, with some offering more support, or easier access to different levels of support.
- In terms of emotional support, children who are looked after by kinship carers due to parental drug or alcohol use may have also been subjected to other traumatic experiences, such as domestic violence, abuse, neglect, parental imprisonment or bereavement. A 2014 report by Grandparents Plus highlighted that 48% of all kinship carers are raising children who have emotional or behavioural difficulties and 35% stated that they faced significant challenges supporting children to cope with past trauma or abuse.
- Practitioners who support kinship carers recognise that there should be a variety of support available to this group according to their needs. Support could include: one-to-one support support groups couples therapy family group conferencing drop in sessions educational groups · respite services. Practitioners working in drug and alcohol family support services recognised that the biggest barrier for services supporting kinship carers is funding. Whilst services do support kinship carers within the family support structures already available, it is recognised that the lack of funding has been a major barrier for providing specific kinship carer support. Further barriers include a difficulty in attracting kinship carers to groups that are running. This can be associated with the stigma that surrounds having a drug or alcohol user in the family, which is often difficult for families to overcome. 80% of kinship carers stated that they felt stigmatised or discriminated against for being a kinship carer.
- Practitioners working in drug and alcohol family support services recognised that the biggest barrier for services supporting kinship carers is funding. Whilst services do support kinship carers within the family support structures already available, it is recognised that the lack of funding has been a major barrier for providing specific kinship carer support. Understanding type of care - informal vs formal kinship carer, foster parent, special guardian, etc. – and what support is available Further barriers include a difficulty in attracting kinship carers to groups that are running. This can be associated with the stigma that surrounds having a drug or alcohol user in the family, which is often difficult for families to overcome. 80% of kinship carers stated that they felt stigmatised or discriminated against for being a kinship carer.
- Practitioners who support kinship carers recognise that there should be a variety of support available to this group according to their needs.
- Important to tell carers not to panic about issues regarding drugs and alcohol Most young people don’t use drugs: 79% of young people aged 11-15 say they have never taken drugs. Only a small minority of young people will end up with a drug problem. In fact, research shows that a child is far more likely to develop a problem with alcohol than with drugs. The truth is that you probably can’t prevent your child from coming into some contact with drugs. But your influence can mean they make the right choice if they do – by making sure you know as much as you can about drugs and talking openly about the risks. Do you feel you don’t know enough to talk to your child? It’s never too late to get clued up,
- NPS, formerly known as ‘legal highs’ They were designed to produce similar effects to illegal drugs (like cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy). They often made headlines, and some young people believed they were legal and safe. In fact, there were many occasions where NPS were seized and tested, only to find they did in fact contain illegal substances. Almost a year ago the PS Act imposed a blanket ban on NPS, making it an offence to produce or sell them. Possession is not an offence under this legislation, though certain NPS are now being reclassified and brought under the MDA, such as ‘spice’ and in certain local areas, town centres are banning these substances (e.g. Warrington) The chemicals contained in legal highs have not been tested for safety, so users cannot be sure what the outcome will be. They can cause paranoia, seizures, coma and can also lead to death. You do not know the effects of the drug, one person can be absolutely fine, another thinks that they are superman and can fly, breaking both legs an arm and a rib. Spending many weeks in hospital and physio. How much of a problem are they? Research from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) showed that the UK has the highest number of legal high users among young people in Europe. Still, use is pretty low among young people – the most recent stats from 2014 showed only 2% of pupils had ever taken a ‘legal high’
- How much of a problem are they? Research from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) showed that the UK has the highest number of legal high users among young people in Europe. Still, use is pretty low among young people – the most recent stats from 2014 showed only 2% of pupils had ever taken a ‘legal high’
- More and more young people are choosing not to drink alcohol or are waiting until they are older. However, those who do drink are drinking a lot more than 10 years ago. For some of them, "drinking alcohol" may equal "getting drunk.“
- Young people's attitudes towards alcohol affect the likelihood of them drinking. Children are less likely to drink if they have heightened perceptions of the harms of drinking and negative expectations towards alcohol - such as that it leads to difficulties with peers or impacts on school work. Kinship carers need to focus in modelling their own behaviour-positive behaviour
- Many adults worry that talking about drugs or alcohol can make them more attractive to children. But not being clear about family values can mean that those messages come from other more ambiguous sources—the media or other children and young people. What you say does make a difference, but we know that the number of conversations you have can make a difference. A recent survey for the Department of Health showed that 75% of parents say they’ve had a conversation about drugs, but only 36% of teenagers recall talking about them. You can use stories in the media or from TV programmes as a way to start conversations.
- Whilst the risks are very real, if you want to talk to your child about drugs, there’s no point being heavy-handed as this will probably backfire. Evidence shows that scare tactics don’t work, and we must make sure we communicate this to carers. You need to take a balanced approach and bear in mind that, when it comes to drugs, information is everything. Giving your child the facts from reliable and credible sources, and telling them in a reasonable manner about the effects and risks of substance misuse, will make them feel empowered and informed rather than chastised. Be sure to talk about specific drugs, rather than lump them all together. Make the necessary distinctions between, say, cannabis and heroin, and discuss the relative levels of harm. If they see that you have a realistic view of the risks, they’ll be more likely to listen to you. Don’t leave them to pick up information from their friends or TV. It’s likely that your child trusts you – even if they don’t show it. You’re the right person to talk to them about drugs. Give them accurate information; make sure they know your views so they know where they stand with you. Younger children are less likely to question authority and more willing to share their thoughts with you. But, as they get older, children want more independence and are often less likely to discuss their views with their parents. Keep communication channels open by taking an interest in their day and what they’re learning at school. Make it clear that their safety and well being are important to you.
- Research shows that if a caregiver sets rules and boundaries about drinking, young people are less likely to get drunk. The most important tip is to make sure you set rules and boundaries; you might think that being too strict will cause them to rebel. But carers should not try to make up for setting boundaries with excessive treats, or making allowances for unacceptable behaviour.
- - WNFO and Frank websites - peer support groups, help lines, agencies and charities, written resources, one to one support.
- Grandparents Plus also has the Kinship Care Guide for England, a vital resource written for kinship carers. It is also designed to be useful for social workers and others who work with special guardians, family and friends foster carers and other kinship carers. The guide provides detailed guidance on: - what the law says, and the different types of kinship care and legal orders - what help is available to kinship carers.
- This guidance leaflet, written with the help of kinship carers, offers advice and information to carers based on their own experiences. Available from Mentor’s website under ‘Info + advice for kinship carers’
- Mentor first published its Kinship Care Guide in 2009 and it has since become a vital resource for both kinship carers and professionals. It provides a definitive account of responsibilities, legal rights, financial rights and support for all kinship carers in Scotland, and offers step-by-step guidance on each of the processes that kinship carers may be involved in.
- Legal, social or just someone to talk to in order to see what ones rights are. Adfam, addaction, action on addition Frank, WNFO Coram, CAB, FRG