Positive Parenting Malta is committed to ensuring that professionals working in the field are trained with the latest evidence-based skills to be in a better position to support families and society at large. Indeed, in 2021, several professionals from various sectors were trained in various programmes, namely: Step-by-Step Parenting Programme, Parenting Skills Programme, and Parents as Partners Programme.
Positive Parenting for Aspiring Parents/ Parents with Intellectual Disability
In October 2021, a group of 6 professionals from Agenzija Sapport travelled to the UK to receive training on Positive Parenting for Aspiring Parents/ Parents with Intellectual Disability from Aspire Social Work UK.
The training was aimed at professionals working with parents or aspiring parents who have intellectual difficulties and mental health difficulties. This training related to the assessment process and assessment tools used for assessing capacity of service users with intellectual limitations who are or are aspiring to be parents. It focused on the use of the Parenting Assessment Manual Software (PAMS)
and how through such an assessment, one can inform a teaching, training and intervention plan. This training also focused on the use of the Real Care Baby Simulator with these parents to achieve the best outcomes.
Step-by-Step Parenting Program: Preventing and Ameliorating Child Neglect Through Competence-based Intervention for Parents with Learning Difficulties- Dr. Maurice Feldman, PhD., C.Psych., BCBA-D
In this 3-day workshop, Dr. Maurice Feldman presented the Step-By-Step Parenting Program© for parents with learning difficulties and their children. The Step-By-Step Parenting Program© has been used extensively to help parents with learning difficulties reduce risk of child neglect. Parents are taught specific parenting skills related to basic child-care, child health, safety, development, parent-child interactions, and child behaviour management. The Program includes an assessment, training, and support model specifically designed for parents with learning difficulties raising children 0-3 years. The 3-day workshop also covered The Family Game designed for parents with learning difficulties who have older children. The Step-By-Step© model has been shown to be effective in numerous evaluations published in peer-review journals and books. The Step-By-Step© model is emulated in Canada, the U.S., Australia, and Europe.
Positive Parenting Online Programme- Collaboration with Agenzija Sapport
Positive Parenting Malta collaborated with Agenzija Sapport to offer the Positive Parenting Online Programme course. The Positive Parenting Online Programme consists of 7 sessions of 2 hours each. 2 groups were held: 1 group for Parents who had disabled children from 0-10 years and another group of Parents who had disabled children from 11-17 years. In all there were around 30 parents who attended these groups. The topics we covered were the following:
- Session 1- Promoting Independence at an Early Stage
- Session 2- Dealing with Grief
- Session 3- Understanding your child’s needs and your parenting styles
- Session 4- Setting Up for Success and Independence
- Session 5- Values, Rules and Rewards
- Session 6- Positive Discipline: The Road to Independent Living
- Session 7- Resources and Parenting Tips: The 5 Languages of Love and Promoting a Secure Attachment
Parents as Partners Programme, Prof. C. Cowan and Prof. P. Cowan, University of Berkeley California- Train the Trainer course
In 2020, six professionals who are accredited in delivering the Parents as Partners Programme, were also trained by the Tavistock Relations London, to become trainers in this programme. This was funded by the Positive Parenting Malta Campaign. The Parents as Partners programme is an evidenced-based 16-week intervention programme aimed at supporting the co-parenting relationship to facilitate more enhanced emotional and psychological wellbeing for the whole family. The aim is for the trainers to now train interested professionals in the field in this parenting programme so that it could be used across other local early intervention services.
