Parent workshops

Sign up to a future workshop here. 

Our Psychology in Schools Team run a program of parent workshops throughout the year to provide up to date advice and guidance on how parents and carers can support the young people in their life. All the workshops are recorded for you to watch at any time. 

Use the hyperlinks below to find out more about the workshop and get the link to the video on YouTube.

Parent Workshop Programme

Childhood Neurodiversity Parent Workshop Programme

Workshops for Young People

Archived Workshops

All workshops

Supporting Young People with Eating Difficulties

This workshop explores reasons why children and young people may struggle with eating difficulties, what parents/carers can do to help and what are the red flags for eating disorders to alert families to seek specialist help. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant (clinical psychologist) and Emily Mizen (assistant psychologist) from the Psychology in Schools Team.

Supporting our young people with challenging behaviour

In this workshop Dr Kelsey Odgers (Clinical Psychologist, NSFT) and Katherine Thrasher (Assistant Psychologist, Countywide ADHD Service, NSFT) will explore child behaviour that parents or teachers find challenging to manage, such as: hyperactivity, difficulties with attention, aggression, difficulties with friendships and relationships, and irritability. We will cover practical strategies to help manage these behaviours positively. This workshop may be helpful for parents who have concerns around possible ADHD in their young person.

Tools to Manage Uncertainty and Building Resilience in Young People

Life is always unpredictable, but we have been living with a much higher degree of uncertainty over this last year than is usual. This workshop will introduce strategies that parents/carers/professionals can support their young people to help them cope better with uncertainty now and in the years to come. Being able to adapt to situations by learning to tolerate emotions and cope with change reduces stress levels and is a great skill for life. This workshop is suitable for parents/carers of all children struggling in the current pandemic who would like to learn strategies they can teach their children to manage difficult thoughts, feelings, and situations. It is also helpful for professionals who might work with young people.

 

 “What I will take away from tonight’s session – Try to take the uncertain path instead of keeping to the safe route was new to me and I think will change my life and make my children’s future better. Living life to the full instead of a half life like I feel has been the case”.

Surviving Lockdown Mark 3

This workshop explores how we make sense of what we are all experiencing at the moment. It will consider the most significant challenges posed by the pandemic for both parents and young people (including anxiety and low mood) while also thinking about the most helpful ways to manage these challenges.

“I found your session so helpful as it made me feel that I am not alone as a parent, that we are all going through this together. It made me feel that actually ‘I’m doing an ok job’ and not to be too hard on myself.  I found the biochemistry side of things fascinating and it was exactly the things that are happening with my son. It made me feel reenergised and to ‘keep going’.”

Supporting Young People with Anxiety

This workshop is for parents of school aged children to help them understand anxiety better. The session covers: what is anxiety, why anxiety, how it effects the brain, how it effects the body, how it impacts on what we do and don’t do and how parents can support their children/adolescents who might be struggling with anxiety.

"Connection over correction – its very difficult to do this and I often need reminding! ideas to help Children move from reassurance to self-assurance was useful as I'm often exhausted from having to reassure constantly!"

Supporting Young People with Low Mood

All of our young people have days when they feel low,  this is perfectly normal.  Sometimes this low mood hangs around for a bit longer and starts to make it much more difficult for our young people to do the things that are important to them and have the kind of relationships they want to have with others.  For us as parents it can be hard to spot these difficulties especially among all the other changes that are happening in adolescence. This workshop will help you to have a better understanding of why our young people are more vulnerable to low mood once they reach adolescence, the warning signs and some evidence based strategies to best support your young person. 

Building Resilience - managing the next steps

Part 1

This workshop explores what resilience is and why it is important for our young people. The sessions focus on five key components to wellbeing and resilience and suggests practical support for our young people in each of these five areas. The workshop pays particular attention to the approaching summer holidays and the opportunities these offer.

Part 2 

This workshop, delivered by the Psychology in Schools Team (NSFT) is an extension of our previous workshop; Resilience and Managing the Next Steps (Part 1). In this workshop, we explore what resilience is, and provide an overview and re-cap of the five key components to wellbeing and resilience. By strengthening resilience, young people are in a better position to manage challenges in life, including change and transitions. The workshop also looks more closely at transitions, and how to help support young people to build the skills to manage transitions, as well as discussing practical considerations when preparing your child for a transition.

Supporting our children and adolescents with sleep

Experiencing sleep difficulties at some stage in our lives is common. We know that children and young people can particularly struggle with their sleep. Sleep difficulties are not only frustrating, but they start to impact on our mood and everyday lives.

This sleep workshop is aimed at parents and carers who have children over 11 years old who may be experiencing difficulties with their sleep. The workshop, delivered by the Psychology in Schools Team, covers important topics such as:

  • why we need sleep
  • why teenagers may struggle more with this
  • what you can do to support your young person to have a better night’s sleep

Understanding the teenage brain - Supporting our teenagers with emotions

During adolescence, the brain is going through some very big changes – these changes are positive and support our young people to make the transition into adulthood. However, these changes can be confusing and understanding what is happening in the teenage brain is incredibly helpful. This session will explore these brain changes and how they impact on all aspects of our adolescent’s life, including mood, behaviour, risk taking and relationships. We will also explore what we can do to strengthen our relationships with our young people and support them through this period of development. With thanks to Dr Hazel Harrison for the brilliant brain house illustration.

Supporting your child to manage their big feelings

Dr Hope Westgate and Dr Tamara Scully, Clinical Psychologists from NSFT, deliver a workshop for parents on ‘supporting children to manage big feelings’. This workshop includes information on children’s emotional development and what is happening in their brain when they are experiencing big emotions. It also provides practical and supportive guidance on what are some of the things that parents can do to support their children with the emotions they experience. This workshop is primarily aimed at parents of children who are under 12.

Managing Exam Stress

A workshop for parents and young people to provide guidance around exam season.

It is very normal for exams and tests to lead to anxiety, stress, and worry. This workshop is designed for both parents and young people to attend to provide guidance around preparing for and coping with exam season.

Understanding young people's self-harm

This workshop delivered by the Psychology in Schools Team (NSFT) provides an introduction to understanding self-harm among young people and adolescents. It aims to develop parents’ understanding of self-harm and will cover: “What is self-harm?”, “Why does self-harm happen?”, and “What can I do to help?”.

This workshop is presentation based and aimed at parents and carers who live within Norfolk and Suffolk. 

This video contains information on self-harm among young people. If you are concerned about your child’s safety please speak to a health professional. Samaritans can be called on 116 123. 

Getting the best out of your relationships with your person

Dr Beth Mosley MBE (Consultant Clinical Psychologist) introduces Viktoria Cestaro and Sue Staff, experienced mental health clinicians, to present this parent workshop on how to get the best out of your relationships with your young person. We consider how adolescence can change our relationships and communication style with young people and how we can connect effectively with our children/young people, especially when they are struggling. This workshop provides some practical advice and guidance on communicating with those young people we love. It will be helpful if you feel your communication can sometimes be explosive or you feel you do not have enough connection with your young person, and they may be struggling with low mood.

How to get what you want: Adolescent workshop

Do you find that it is sometimes really difficult to get from others what you need? Do others struggle to understand you or you get the least helpful response from them? This session by the Psychology in Schools Team helps give practical tips for young people on how to communicate well with others (whether that is your friends, parents, teachers or any other human being). These tips have been tried and tested by other young people, and can be especially helpful, especially if you may experience times of low mood.

How to talk to your young people about the war in Ukraine

As parents and families we are likely to have been shocked about the devastating situation in Ukraine. Our children will be having conversations with us and others and trying to make sense of what is happening. This workshop aims to highlight the importance of communication around these topics and to consider the way in which we do this, providing practical guidance for having these sensitive conversations. We discuss how to manage exposure and time spent reviewing news stories, and how to turn difficult feelings into helpful actions.

Supporting your child to attend or get back to school

This workshop, delivered by the Psychology in Schools Team, focuses on supporting parents to help their young people in attending or getting back into school. The workshop provides an understanding of school avoidance for parents, with reference to West Suffolk Guidance. It also discusses strategies and ideas that can be used to help young people feel confident in re-engaging with school.

Building Understanding and Supporting Your Child with Tourette's Syndrome/Tics

This workshop delivered by clinicians experienced in working with young people with Tourette’s/Tic Disorder will provide information about Tourette’s and Tics in children and young people, dispel some common myths and give guidance on how you can best support your child/teenager as they negotiate the highs and lows of life with tics.

Building Confidence and Managing Anxiety in Your Child (Under 12s) 

Part 1

This workshop is for parents of children under 12 who have attended or viewed a recording of the Psychology in Schools Team anxiety workshop

and/or

This is the first part of a two-part webinar is delivered by the Under 18s Wellbeing Team part of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. It will provide additional strategies and aims to further develop understanding of anxiety, so that parents feel more confident in supporting their young people.

View part one on our YouTube channel:

Part 2

This workshop is for parents of children under 12 who have attended the “Building Confidence and Managing Anxiety in Your Child (Under 12s) - Part 1. This is the second part of a two-part webinar is delivered by the Under 18s Wellbeing Team part of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. It will provide additional strategies and aims to further develop understanding of anxiety, so that parents feel more confident in supporting their young people.

View part two on our YouTube channel:

Parenting the Anxious Adolescent

Part one

This workshop is for parents of children and adolescents who are aged 12 and above, who have attended or viewed a recording of the Psychology in Schools Team anxiety workshop

This is the first part of a two-part webinar is delivered by the Under 18s Wellbeing Team part of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. It will provide additional strategies and aims to further develop understanding of anxiety, so that parents feel more confident in supporting their young people with anxiety.

View part one on our YouTube Channel:

Part two

This workshop is for parents of children and adolescents aged 12 and above, who have attended or viewed a recording of “Parenting the Anxious Adolescent – Part 1" . This is the second part of a two-part webinar is delivered by the Under 18s Wellbeing Team part of Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. It will provide additional strategies and aims to further develop understanding of anxiety, so that parents feel more confident in supporting their young people.

View part two on our YouTube Channel: 

Supporting our Young People with Anxiety

This workshop is for parents of school aged children to help them understand anxiety better. The session covers: what is anxiety, why anxiety, how it effects the brain, how it effects the body, how it impacts on what we do and don’t do and how parents can support their children/adolescents who might be struggling with anxiety.

Understanding trauma

This workshop recording is for parents and carers of young people who have experienced trauma. It includes a brief introduction to understanding what we mean by trauma and considers the impact of early traumatic experiences on child development. It focuses on what you can do to support your young person’s wellbeing and sense of psychological safety. Resources and information around services have also be shared in the workshop for when further support is needed.

Supporting our Young People with OCD

This workshop is for parents of school aged children to help them understand 'Obsessive Compulsive Disorder' (OCD) better. This session covers: what OCD is, how it effects and impacts young people and how parents can support their children/adolescents who might be struggling with OCD and further support available. The Psychology in Schools Team is based in Suffolk, UK so resource information focuses on services local to there, but helpful national resources for parents, carers and young people are also shared. Since contact details change, do check the original source for the most up to date information about services.

Supporting your child to regulate their emotions

Does your child struggle to manage strong emotions, get very stressed or have difficulty with managing relationships? Then this parent/carer workshop may be for you! This introductory session will explore what emotion dysregulation is and what can impact a child’s ability to regulate their emotions. It will then focus on what parents and carers can do to support their children/adolescents in this.

Supporting our Young People with self-harm

Knowing your young person is finding things difficult and engaging in self-harm can be frightening and confusing for parents. This workshop aims to develop parents’ understanding of self-harm and will cover: “What is self-harm?”, “Why does self-harm happen?”, and “What can I do to help?”. This event is presentation based and presenters will not be able to speak to attendees directly. If you are concerned about your child’s safety and require crisis support please call 0808 196 3494; this number operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This session will take place via Zoom. You can access the event either by using the link in your confirmation email or using the Online Event Page. A password is not required to enter the event. To access the Online Event Page please click the "View the Event" button on the reminder email and log into your Eventbrite account. More detailed instructions will be sent with your confirmation email.

Social Media and the Impact on our Teenagers' Mental Health

This workshop increases understanding of how the use of social media might be associated with mental health difficulties, including anxiety, low mood, self-harm and body image. It also explores the world of our young people to offer a balanced perspective to supporting our young people in this area. Delivered by Dr Beth Mosley (Consultant Clinical Psychologist) and Emily Mizen (Assistant Psychologist).

Building Resilience, Managing the Next Steps

 

A workshop to support parents/carers in building the resilience of their young people whilst looking ahead to the summer holiday and transitions.

Childhood Neurodiversity

What you need to know as a parent or carer

What is neurodiversity? What is autism, ADHD and learning disability? Does my child need a diagnosis to get support? This introductory workshop answers these questions and introduces where parents/carers can find advice and guidance for supporting their neurodiverse children. Delivered by Dr Beth Mosley (Consultant Clinical Psychologist) and Dr Annie Bryant (Clinical Psychologist).

Managing big feelings (including anxiety and low mood)

This workshop explores why neurodiverse children may develop difficulties with their emotions, including anxiety and low mood and how parents/carers can support neurodiverse children with managing their big feelings. Delivered by Dr Annie Bryant (clinical psychologist) and Dr Kelsey Odgers (clinical psychologist) from the Psychology in Schools Team.

How the Brain Develops

This workshop covers childhood brain development including the impact of relationships in early childhood and changes in adolescence. The workshops will also explore neurodiversity in brain development and how parents/carers can support their child’s developing brain. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant (clinical psychologist) and Emily Mizen (assistant psychologist) from the Psychology in Schools Team.

Understanding and managing behaviour

When distressed, neurodiverse children and young people may show behaviours that challenge the adults around them. This workshop explores how to understand behaviour and how parents/carers can support their neurodiverse children with behaviours of distress. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant (clinical psychologist) and Anna Mulvey (assistant psychologist) from the Psychology in Schools Team.

The impact of early life stress

This workshop explores the impact of early life stress, or traumatic experiences, on childhood development. It considers neurodivergent children’s vulnerability to early life stress and provides advice on how parents/carers can support their children with the potential impacts of early life stress. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant (clinical psychologist) and Linda Brindle (senior psychotherapist) from the Psychology in Schools Team.

Understanding and Supporting Sensory Needs

What are the different sensory systems? What might sensory processing difficulties look like in children and teenagers? This workshop answers these questions and explores how can parents and carers can support a child’s sensory needs. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist from the Psychology in Schools Team, NSFT, and Andrea Hattrell-Caney, Clinical Academic Research Practitioner & Advanced Paediatric Occupational Therapist at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust.

Understanding and Supporting Eating Difficulties

This workshop is for parents/carers concerned about their neurodivergent child’s limited diet (i.e. avoiding or restricting certain foods). We will explore why children may struggle to eat, anxiety around eating and how parents/carers can support children with these eating struggles. Please note this workshop is not aimed at parents of children whose eating difficulties relate to body image concerns. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist from the Psychology in Schools Team, NSFT, and Dr Beth Mosley MBE, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Head of Psychological Therapies for Suffolk Early Intervention CAMHS, NSFT.

Supporting Language and Communication

This workshop covers language and social communication in neurodivergent children and adolescents, including how parents and carers can support their children to communicate. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist from the Psychology in Schools Team, NSFT, and Emily Skinner, Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, Integrated Community Paediatric Services, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust.

Supporting, Planning, Organising and Remembering

This workshop explores cognitive difficulties in childhood such as planning, organising and remembering things. The workshop will consider how these difficulties can impact on day-to-day life and give advice on how parents/carers can support their children with cognitive difficulties. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist from the Psychology in Schools Team, NSFT.

Understanding and Supporting Sleep Difficulties

Sleep difficulties can have a huge impact on a child’s emotions, behaviour, learning and health. This workshop will explore sleep difficulties for neurodivergent children, and how parents/carers can support their children with sleep. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist, and Rose Bidewell, Trainee Clinical Psychologist, from the Psychology in Schools Team, NSFT.

Supporting Social Relationships

This workshop discusses social relationship difficulties for neurodivergent children, and how parents/carers can support their children with understanding and managing social relationships. The workshop is presented by Dr Annie Bryant, Clinical Psychologist, Psychology in Schools Team - NSFT, Emily Skinner, Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, Integrated Community Paediatric Services - West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust and Alix Walker, Speech and Language Therapist, Autism Diagnostic Youth Service for Suffolk (ADYSS) - NSFT.

The Benefits and Problems with Using Technology

This workshop developed by The Psychology in Schools Team (Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust) explores the benefits and problems with technology use, with a focus on social media. It describes how families can use technology to support their neurodivergent child.

Getting the Best out of your Relationship with Your Child

This workshop helps make the link between emotions, mood, relationships and how we communicate. This practical session provides six communication strategies that you might find helpful to use as an adult or teenager in your relationships with others.

Live workshops

You can get information about the latest LIVE workshops by logging into Eventbrite and following the Psychology in Schools team. You will then be notified of upcoming workshops and have a link to book onto these.

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