Adoption Support Fund
For social workers and families using the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) I offer both DDP informed therapy and Specialist Assessments.
DDP information for parents and carers
DDP is an Attachment based Therapy, developed especially for working with children and young people, who in their early lives have experienced significant trauma in their attachment relationships.
My work always begins with you as carers, and in these early sessions our focus is on working together to come to an understanding of your child’s behaviour in the light of their past and to understand your own triggers and responses to the challenges they present. The work requires you to reflect on your own early attachment relationships and experiences.
We will also talk about your child’s need for a very different style of parenting – one that places trust, safety, connection and relationship above all else and above the use of boundaries and consequences and we will practice it in the session and I will encourage you to practice it at home in between our sessions.
How I work
Sometimes when I work with parents, the pressures at home are so great, that we do not bring the child into the work for many months and sometimes the child doesn’t join at all and the DDP work is done with parents alone.
The aim of the work is to help you to hold your child as central in your hearts and minds, to look beyond their behaviour and see what it is communicating, to stay calm and regulated yourselves in the face of their challenges and do all you can to stay connected and engaged with them. This is enormously difficult to do, but it is the aim of the work.
When / if it feels right for the child to join the sessions, our focus will then be on working together but all of our thinking and reflecting will relate to your child.
Training and skills
In terms of my training and skills; I have completed level 1 and 2 and will be video recording my sessions with families in order to complete the Practicum. Face-to-face sessions are offered at my clinic room in Droitwich, Worcestershire.
Please feel free to explore my website, Facebook page and LinkedIn for more information about the way I work and the areas I specialise in.
Specialist Assessments through the ASGSF
These assessments are highly individualised to your child and your family. I can usually travel to your family home to complete these assessments, but if you prefer they can also be offered at my clinic in Droitwich. They always begin with an in-depth discussion with yourselves as carers and your child’s social worker to ensure that the assessment can be put together in a way that answers the questions or worries you have. The assessment then includes face to face meetings with yourselves and your child, consultation with your child’s school, and lots of assessment tools and activities.
Generally a Specialist Assessment pulls in some relevant parts of my usual ‘Psychological Assessments’ and ‘Cognitive Assessments’, whilst also adding lots of specialist attachment-focussed assessment tools.
Your child feels safe and comfortable
I work in a calm, connected and playful way to ensure that the space created for your child feels safe and comfortable. Sometimes this involves jumping up and down and running with your child in the garden. Sometimes this means drawing together in a sensory den in the lounge. I meet your child wherever they are at, and have a whole variety of tools to support your child to communicate their inner world.
All of this together helps us to deeply understand your child’s needs, and I include my professional recommendations at the end of my report. The whole process usually takes 3-4 weeks from initial appointment to final report. I will also offer a feedback appointment where we can talk through the report and answer any questions you have. I always aim to provide an assessment journey which feels non-judgmental, supportive and containing.
