Table Of ContentDigman-Prelims:00-Digman-Prelims.qxp 8/7/2008 12:58 PM Page i
Working with Parents
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Working with
Parents
A Guide for Education
Professionals
Carmel Digman and Sue Soan
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©CarmelDigmanandSueSoan2008
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Contents
Acknowledgements vi
About the Authors vii
Preface viii
1 Working with Parents 1
2 Domestic Violence 16
3 Bereavement and Loss 29
4 Special Educational Needs: Learning Difficulties 43
5 Neglect and Poverty 54
6 Anger and Social, Emotional and Behavioural Needs 72
7 Coping with Addictions within the Family 87
8 Working Directly with Children 102
9 Moving Forward 114
Bibliography 123
Appendices 127
Index 143
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Acknowledgements
Clearly,themainacknowledgementsforthisbookhavetogotoallthehome/
school workers who are developing this job into a valuable professional role.
When considering the Every Child Matters agenda, professionals such as the
home/school workers are enabling many of its aims and objectives to be suc-
cessfully achieved, frequently being the main link between various statutory
authorities and families. For education, the home/school worker’s role is par-
ticularly significant, because by supporting the families outside of school, the
children experiencing difficulties are frequently then able to focus on achiev-
ing their best at school, both academically and socially.
We would also like to offer our thanks to Wendy Mann, Sue Dinsdale and
other practising home/school workers, for their support and encouragement.
Ourthanksmustalsogototheschoolsfromwhichthecasestudieshavebeen
sourced, but which cannot be named in order to maintain confidentiality. All
thecasestudiesarebasedoncompilationsofhistoriesgoingbackseveralyears
and not on any individual child or family. No original names or places have
beenusedinordertomaintainanonymity.Finally,wewouldliketothankour
families for their encouragement and patience.
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About the Authors
Carmel Digman BSc (Hons) has been a home/school support worker in pri-
maryschoolsforsevenyears.Shehastraininginsolutionfocustherapy,social,
emotional and behavioural difficulties and multi-agency working. She has
experienceinawiderangeofschoolsandlocalareasamongcommunitieswith
diverseneeds.AsaSeniorFamilyLiaisonOfficer,sheprovidesguidance,train-
ingandsupervisiontootherhome/schoolsupportworkers.Shehasadegreein
psychology and many years’ experience working with families in the public,
voluntaryandprivatesectors.Shehaswrittenmaterialfortrainingandforuse
with children and families devising programmes for bereavement, anger man-
agement and social skills. She has worked for 15 years as a catechist with chil-
dren from age seven to 16. She has five children of her own and is also an
illustrator and watercolourist.
SueSoanisaprincipallecturerfortheCentreforEnablingLearning,Institutional
DevelopmentandInclusionatCanterburyChristChurchUniversity.Sheisalso
the Lead Academic for the South East Gifted and Talented Excellence Hub.
Priortothis,Sueworkedinbothmainstreamandspecialeducationalsettings,
first as a classroom teacher, then as a subject coordinator and, for over a
decade, as a SENCO. It is during her time as a SENCO that she worked with a
familyliaisonworker(FLO),thefirstinthelocalauthority,andsherecognized
thepotentialthisrolecouldofferbothfamiliesandschools.Sueisparticularly
interested in the areas of motor control development, speech and language,
and social, emotional and behavioural needs. She is author and editor of a
number of books on special educational needs and inclusion.
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Preface
The main purpose of this book is to provide home/school workers with infor-
mation, reassurance and training in a very accessible format and positive man-
ner.Itisnotintendedthatthereadershouldreadthebookallatonetime,but
should utilize the appropriate chapters as applicable to practice situations. The
chapters are designed to address topics highlighted in the Every Child Matters
(ECM)agenda,headingbyheading,evaluatingtheimpactofproblemsonchil-
dren’swell-beingandthewaysinwhichhelpmightbeaccessedthroughschool.
Mostofthechaptershavecasestudieswhichwillclearlyillustratepointsbeing
discussed and explained. Chapters also contain guidelines and suggestions for
good practice which can be modified to suit the unique needs of the reader’s
ownschoolcommunity.Pointsforreflectionandfurtherreadingreferencesare
provided for each chapter. A number of protocols and proformas are included
withintheappendicesandthesecanbefreelyphotocopiedbyreaders.
The first chapter considers the role of home/school workers and the extent
of the work they undertake. Subsequent chapters are concerned with specific
issues facing children and families that impact on their well-being and educa-
tional achievement. Not all the issues a home/school support worker may
encounterwillbefoundwithinthisshortvolume,butitishopedthattheones
whicharewillhelpyoudevelopandenhancetransferablestrategiesandideas.
The final chapter looks at the future of the role, its potential for dealing with
children’s educational problems, and the issues it raises for training, safety,
supervision and career development.
Finally, the authors hope this book will encourage debate and discussion at
many levels. It is envisaged that tutors and teacher trainers will be able to use
thecasestudiesandthepracticalideasandreflectivequestionsforprofessional
training.Localauthorities,clustersofschoolsandindividualinstitutionssimi-
larlyshouldseethevalueofusingsuchexperienceandknowledgeforpractice
and training purposes. Also, of course, it is hoped that the expertise and pro-
fessionalism of home/school workers is positively portrayed throughout this
book. It may engender discussion about the need for a specific qualification,
and hence professional recognition for this group of workers, who manage to
facilitatethecrossingofagencyandprofessionalboundaries,toenablefamilies
to access the appropriate help their children need to achieve.
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11
Working with Parents
This opening chapter will focus on identifying the roles and respon-
sibilities of a home/school worker within the context of the ‘Every
Child Matters’ (DfES, 2004) agenda of:
• being healthy
• staying safe
• enjoying and achieving
• making a positive contribution.
• achieving economic well-being
It is firstly important to consider why the initial Green Paper entitled ‘Every
Child Matters’ (ECM) (DfES, 2003) was written and what it hoped to achieve.
It was written as a response to the tragic death of Victoria Climbie, and the sub-
sequent inquiry led by Lo rd Laming, which tried to identify how her death had
been allowed to happen and how another such death could be avoided. The
government wanted to try to ensure that such a tragedy should never happen
again because of the lack of statutory agency action and collaboration. As the
then Prime Minister Tony Blair stated:
we are proposing here a range of measures to reform and improve children’s care –
crucially, for the first time ever requiring local authorities to bring together in one
place under one person services for children, and at the same time suggesting real
changes in the way those we ask to do this work carrry out their tasks on our and
our children’s behalf. (DfES, 2003: 1)
The specific areas of intervention with parents that home/support workers can
engage with will also be defined in this chapter. It is seen as a role undertaken
by designated school staff members, and therefore the interventions and
strategies suggested here will enable these professionals to support children to
fully engage with school and their education. The personal safety, the mental
and physical health, and general well-being of the home/school support work-
ers will be considered as these are always vital factors to consider when plan-
ning interventions.
