Parenting Week 2018 – Power of Parent Child Relationships

Of the many different relationships people form over the course of their lives, the relationship between a parent and their child is among the most important.

Parenting NI are contacted by thousands of parents each year, about a variety of issues including concerns around children’s digital activity and video gaming, separation, and child to parent violence. As challenges for families increase and become more complex in today’s society, the parenting support charity want to use this year’s Parenting Week to highlight how valuable positive parent-child relationships are in improving outcomes for children.

Strong parent-child relationships play a vital role in all areas of children’s development and can have a lasting influence throughout a child’s life, including better mental health, finding it easier to make friends, better educational attainment and being more resilient.

Parenting NI CEO, Charlene Brooks said,

“We want to assure parents that no matter what challenges they are facing they should never underestimate the impact of the positive relationship they have with their children.

Relationships shape how our children see the world, teaching them about communication, emotions and how to behave. Parenting NI want to encourage parents to get involved in Parenting Week to celebrate the how powerful their relationship is; helping to raise happy, healthy children.”

To launch the Parenting Week programme of events, Parenting NI brought together over 240 professionals and practitioners to Girdwood Community Hub for an event with Dr Karen Treisman, focusing on the importance of parent-child relationships.

Speaking in support of the week, Dr Treisman said,

“We need to see beyond challenging behaviours and connect with the person behind them. It’s vital that we keep relationships at the heart of supporting parents to help them be the best support for their children.”

Schools throughout Northern Ireland will also be taking part in the week with various resources and activities being provided to teachers to help explore the relationships and communication in the classroom.

Graham Gault, Principal at Maghaberry Primary School explains why he was delighted to have his school involved,

“We know that children from homes in which parents adopt effective approaches to managing behaviour and development are better able to cope with the normal struggles of life and set appropriate boundaries for themselves. The resources and support provided by Parenting NI have been very useful in helping our parents reflect on how important relationships in the home are in creating the context in which children can flourish.”