1. Working with parents and carers
COMPONENT

2. Acknowledgement of Country
I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land and pay my respects to Elders past, present and future, for they hold the memories, the traditions, the culture and hopes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

3. Professional learning goals3
Professional learning goals
COMPONENT
To better understand:
– the KidsMatter Primary framework and the importance of working with parents and carers
– how to build effective collaborative working relationships with parents and carers
– how school staff can provide appropriate support for parents and carers
– how school staff can provide parents and carers opportunities for increased connection.
To critically assess our school’s practices in working with parents and carers and begin planning for improvement.

4. What is KidsMatter Primary?
A national whole-school approach to mental health and wellbeing that aims to contribute to:

5. KidsMatter Primary professional learning
Increase awareness and understanding of each of the four components
Encourage ALL staff to have a voice in contributing to planning for each component

6. The KidsMatter Primary framework

7. The guiding principles
The best interests of children are paramount.
Respectful relationships are foundational.
Diversity is respected and valued.
Parents and carers are recognised as the most important people in children’s lives.
Parents and teachers support children best by working together.
Students need to be active participants.
Schools, health and community agencies work together with families.

8. The four components of KidsMatter Primary

9. KidsMatter model for mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention (PPEI) in schools
Whole-school community, staff, students, parents and carers, health and community agencies All students (and their parents and carers) Students experiencing mental health difficulties (20-30% of students) and the 3-12% of students with mental health disorders, and their parents and carers
Works with the whole community and provides support and information to staff, parents and carers
Through the curriculum, creates opportunities to practise skills and engages parents and carers
Supports children in school and develops clear processes and referral pathways (by working with parents and carers and health and community agencies)
Adapted from World Health Organization (1994)

10. Risk and protective factors for children’s mental health
Risk factors – increase the chances of children developing mental health difficulties (for example, childhood adversities).
Protective factors – are associated with good outcomes for children and can protect them in circumstances where they are exposed to risk.

11. Risk and protective factors for children’s mental health
(adapted from Commonwealth Dept of Health and Aged Care, 2000 and Spence, 1996)

12. Key outcomes for pilot schools
% increase in school staff and/or parents and carers who ‘strongly agreed’ with questionnaire statements from the start to the end of pilot.

13. An outline of what’s to come
Session 1: Collaborative working relationships with parents and carers
Session 2: Support for parenting
Session 3: Parent and carer support networks

14. Session 1
Collaborative working relationships with parents and carers

15. Parent and carer perspectives
Activity
Parent and carer perspectives
Form small groups.
Select a volunteer who has a close, personal relationship with a child.
They tell the others in the group about the child.

16. Working together with parents
Building positive relationships between parents and carers and school staff benefits children’s mental health and their learning capacity.
Making parenting information more accessible helps families care for their children and promotes effective parenting practices.

17. Schools + families + communities

18. Working with parents and carers
Discussion
Working with parents and carers
When you see that ‘Working with parents and carers’ is a component of KidsMatter Primary, what comes to mind?
Fear?
Relief?
Excitement?
Resistance?

19. Working with parents and carers
Discussion
Working with parents and carers
KidsMatter Primary schools aim to:
encourage staff to establish cooperative, collaborative relationships with families
actively promote parenting information and support
provide opportunities for families to develop support networks with each other.
What is your school already doing in these areas?

20. Collaborate with parents and carers?
MacDonald, 2005, pp. 2-3

21. Collaborate with parents and carers?
MacDonald, 2005, pp. 2-3

22. Relationship bank Relationships are built by small, regular deposits.
Deposits are an investment in the relationship (they can also help manage future difficulties).
Regular contact is best built and maintained systematically.

23. Investing in the relationship
Activity
Investing in the relationship
1. Positive connections What sort of things do parents and carers like hearing from school staff? How can these be communicated?

24. Investing in the relationship
Activity
Investing in the relationship
2. Regular connections How can school staff connect regularly with parents and carers?

25. Relationship building: An example

26. A systematic approach (I) interpreter needed
(L) literacy difficulties of adults
(E) responds best to contact
(F2F) responds best face-to-face contact

27. Reflection Action
How might these practices make a difference for… families and students? school staff?
Choose one strategy and plan how you can use it with parents and carers Ideas generated in the activities will be taken to the Action Team for consideration for school-wide implementation

28. Summary
A collaborative approach between school staff and parents and carers is more likely to yield sustained improvements in children’s mental health and academic achievement.
Clarifying roles – this component builds upon what schools are already doing.
Relationships are best built by small, regular investments and maintained in a systematic way throughout the school.

29. Session 2
Support for parenting

30. Key messages from last session
A collaborative approach between school staff and parents and carers is more likely to yield sustained improvements in children’s mental health and academic achievement.
Clarifying roles – this component builds upon what schools are already doing.
Relationships are best built by small, regular investments and maintained in a systematic way throughout the school.

31. Discussion
Common concerns
What are some common concerns that parents and carers bring to school staff?

32. Two approaches
After GPs, teachers are the professionals most frequently consulted by parents and carers regarding children’s emotional or behavioural problems

33. Parenting resources spectrum

34. Activity
Parenting resources
1. What’s available?

35. Kidsmatter Primary supporting resources
Component 3 information sheets, including topics:
– Children’s social development
– Children’s development: understanding emotions
– Children’s development: thinking and learning
– Effective discipline
– Family relationships
Enewsletters

36. Activity
Parenting resources
2. How can we distribute the resources?

37. How other KidsMatter Primary schools have provided access to parenting information
School newsletters
Pamphlet holders/mobile trolley
A resource library
Display boards
Leaflets in enrolment packs
In-transition programs
Through designated staff, parent or carer representatives

38. Responding to parent and carer requests for information
Discussion
Responding to parent and carer requests for information
You are asked for advice about family issues and/or the child’s behaviour at home.
How do you currently respond?

39. Responding to requests for information

40. The SIB model in action: A role-play activity

41. Summary
Teachers are the second most consulted profession by parents and carers about their children’s mental health (GPs are number one).
By helping parents and carers access information, schools can assist parenting practices and  enhance the mental health of children.
The S-I-B model provides a framework for communicating with parents and carers.

42. Session 3
Parent and carer support networks

43. Key messages from last session
Teachers are the second most consulted profession by parents and carers about their children’s mental health (GPs are number one).
By helping parents and carers access information, schools can assist parenting practices and  enhance the mental health of children.
The SIB model provides a framework for communicating with parents and carers.

44. Family and community support networks
Schools can provide a community hub for parents and carers by:
providing opportunities to build supportive relationships
promoting community resources.

45. What the research tells us
One in four parents and carers reports low levels of social support.
Feeling connected to a community helps parents and carers to cope better.
Schools are a community hub – connecting parents together can increase their social support which is a protective factor for children’s mental health.
Data from Longitudinal Study of Australian Children

46. Connecting parents and carers with each other
Activity
Connecting parents and carers with each other

47. Community resources
Schools can help parents and carers to link with relevant services in the community.
Community agencies can support families to address risk factors which will benefit children’s mental health.
Community agencies sometimes have stronger connections with families the school is finding hard to engage.

48. Activity
Community resources

49. Summary
Providing opportunities for parents and carers to develop support networks enhances social connection – a protective factor for mental health.
It is important that networking opportunities meet the different needs of parents and carers.

50. Where to from here? What’s in the pipeline?
Discussion
Where to from here?
What’s in the pipeline?
What more do we need to find out?
What local organisations do we need to make contact with?
How can we involve them with our planning?
Is there further professional development available for staff?

51. A quick review of Component 3 professional learning
Schools working together with parents and carers is beneficial for children’s mental health and wellbeing.
Relationships are best built by regular investments and maintained systematically.
By linking parents to information, schools can assist parenting practices and enhance the mental health of children.
Schools can assist parents and carers by helping them to connect with each other and resources in the community.

52. Evaluation outcomes Improvements to student mental health:
– Increased positive mental health.
– Reduced mental health difficulties.
– Students experiencing mental health difficulties showed significant improvements in their mental health.
14% more teachers strongly agreed that KidsMatter Primary led to improvements in students’ schoolwork.

53. Component 3: Evaluation outcomes
KidsMatter Primary:
– facilitated placement of mental health as an issue onto school’s agenda
– provided a common language for school communities
– had an impact on school culture, facilitating the raising of issues relating to mental health and child development
– assisted parents’ understanding of their child.