Protecting against long term harm

   Skills required

Doing this work needs no extra special skills than those available to many professionals concerned with children.

You need to:

• be warm, empathic and genuine
• make a therapeutic relationship
• help clients explore their difficulties
• enable clients to set achievable goals
• empower clients to take action to reach these achievable goals
• stay with clients and help them stabilise and maintain changes.

The issue for children and for their safety is not whether or not their parents are drinking, but whether or not these parents are able to provide a safe, secure and supportive environment for their children.

To joint protocols section