Transcript Slide 1

Facilitating Community
Groups for children
AVA Network Meeting
February 14th 2011
Thinking about
facilitating groups
First questions?
Purpose of the Groups
The purpose of the programme is to
provide children with the opportunity to
process and understand the violence and
abuse that they have experienced.
For Mothers
• The group is designed to help them
understand how violence has
affected their child and help the
child recover.
• It is not a Survivors programme and
should not be delivered as such!
Facilitator mix
• Mother’s groups are run by female facilitators
only
• However, it is desirable for mothers to meet and
form relationships with male facilitators from
children’s groups
• Minimum of 2 facilitators per groups
• Groups with children who have challenging
behaviour or complex needs may require 3
facilitators – consider students on placements
• A third person can ‘observe’ and help out –
effective training method
• Each group should have an experienced
group work facilitator to ‘lead’ the group
• Facilitators for mother’s group should
have run a children’s group or AT LEAST
be fully familiar with the content of the
children’s group manual
• Groups for children should ideally have co
gendered facilitation – always for
teenagers!
Skills required to
facilitate groups
• Need a mix of ………..
• Previous group work experience
• Understanding of domestic abuse and it’s impact
on women and children – basic awareness training
as a pre requisite
• Risk assessment skills
• Understanding of child protection and local
protocols
• Knowledge of normal child development
• Enthusiasm!
• Coordinators should be organising facilitator
group skill mix
Special Considerations before
signing up
• Identifying and engaging male colleagues as
facilitators
• Especially important for teens and pre
adolescents
• Staff need to think of self care in the work
• -personal experiences of domestic abuse as a
child or adult relationships
• Work in one group may be easier than another
• Children – which age best suits you?
What is the commitment
• Facilitator tasks include
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Making themselves familiar with the manual and resources
-Meeting and developing relationships with co-facilitators
-Generating and discussing referrals
- Meeting families and Undertaking assessments
-Delivering group
-Pre and post group preparation, planning and recording
Group de briefing
-Attending supervision
-Final group summaries
Potential for reports required by other agencies or
attendance at CP conferences
Basics for groups
Structuring of the Group
1. The Setting - closed room – the same room each week
2. Group Size – 8 children per group, 6 if younger
3. Group Guidelines / Rules – a group that makes its own
rules is more likely to abide by them.
4. Closed Group – only members selected at the beginning.
5. Length of Group – 12 weeks, 1 ½ hours per session, 2
hours for mums (longer if interpreter required)
6. Meeting Times and Days – consider your clients ability
to get to group, morning best for children
7. Facilitators/Group Leaders- two leaders per group
8. Programme Planning – Initial meeting, time before and
after each group
9. Snacks – an important part of the group
10.Weekly Group notes – only those necessary to enhance a
child’s participation
11.Group Reports – identifying information, what the group is
about, a paragraph outlining the child’s unique contribution
to the group.
12.Debriefing – an essential component for the mental health
and well being of the group facilitators.
Developmental Framework
• Children’s groups are divided by age
– 4-6 years
– 7-8 years
– 9-11 years
– 12-13 years
– 14-16 years
• We do not mix school year group 2 with year
group 3, or year group 6 with year group 7
• Widening the age range tends to create
difficulties within the group process so is not
advisable
Special circumstances and
considerations
Considerations
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children with Special needs
– reduce numbers on group
– have extra facilitators (i.e. ADHD)
– Interpreters – 1 per group and lengthen group
time
• Good fit with group composition – invest in
assessment time
• Structure free time – it is not a free for all –
constructive activities
• “fiddle” objects for distractible children in group
Really practical considerations
• For mothers to attend a crèche may be needed
• Are premises child friendly and age appropriate
What premises are available?
• -think about location and time of day for group
• -Are premises suitable, safe and child friendly
• Those with outdoor play areas are an advantage
• Make sure arrangements to open and lock up are
in place BEFORE group
• All of these if considered in advance will leave you
with less stress and encourage mums to engage
Preparation time for group
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More time is always needed for new work
Time allowances are needed for:
Getting to know each other
Planning/ steering Group
Promoting and generating referrals
Becoming familiar with the manual and materials
Meeting families /doing assessments
Pre and post group planning / debriefing
Recording and final summaries
Supervision (Time allowance for facilitators 1 day per week)
Group process
and dynamics
Defining a group
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Interact with one another
Be socially attracted to each other
Share goals and objectives
Have a shared identity which
distinguishes them from other groups
Stages of Group
Development
• Forming – meeting – often feels quite
formal
• Storming – tension as competition for
status and influence emerges
• Norming – rules and standards of
behaviour are agreed
• Performing – group matures to a point
where it works as a team
The importance of
Cohesion
• Social cohesion – extent to which group
members get along
• Task cohesion – extent to which group
members cooperate to achieve group goals
• High interaction groups need high task
cohesion in order to be successful
Factors that influence
cohesion
• Stability – achieved the longer a group is together with the
same members
• Similarity –the more similar group members are –
age/gender/skills/attitudes
• Size – more likely to develop in smaller groups
• Support – arises from group leadership and encouragement
to support others
• Satisfaction – extent to which members are satisfied with
each others behaviour and conformity to norms of the group
A Cohesive group has..
• A collective identity
• A sense of shared purpose
• Structured patterns of
communication
‘Loafing’
• Defined as a tendency for individuals
to lessen their efforts when they are
part of a group
Possible Causes include:
• Perceiving others to be working less hard than
self so develop an excuse to put in less effort
• Believing their own efforts will have little effect
on the outcome
• Disliking hard work and assuming lack of effort
will not be noticed
• Feeling ‘off form’ and believing others will ‘cover’
for you
Managing group process
Common Challenges
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Time management
Listening to clients versus moving them on
Adhering to the programme
Differences in facilitator styles
Power struggles between facilitators –
different views beliefs, agendas
• Decision making
Advice for working together
• Invest time in getting to know your co facilitators – plan
ahead, meet for coffee etc
• Understand professional theory and perspectives –read and
ask
• Be respectful of each others perspectives….we all bring
individual strengths
• Discuss professional and personal thresholds for group work
– what would you let or not let happen in group ( smoking/
swearing)
• How would you challenge manage tricky moments – e.g.
discriminatory language
• PLAN GROUP TOGETHER
• The manual enables sessions to be divided and
tasks shared
• Factor in preparation time
• Always debrief
• Agree at the outset the time you can and will
allocate to this – some may be able to manage
more than others
• This discussion needs to be up front, open and
honest between coordinator and facilitator at the
outset
• Compromises may be necessary
• Attend supervision
• Prepare and share programme tasks
• Mirror equality in your professional
relationship
• Facilitation needs to mirror group rules
• Be non judgemental with each other
• Discuss and share both your skills and
worries
• Debrief each week should include a
reflection of group process
• Participants process
• Facilitator process
• Interaction between the two
Time management
• The aim of each session is to deliver the
programme material
• Most groups run into time difficulties with
the mothers programme
• The mothers programme is NOT a
survivors group or parenting group
• The focus is to help mothers understand
the impact on the child and group process
for recovery
Balancing facilitator tasks
and participants needs
• Allow 2 hours for mothers group – longer
if an interpreter is required
• Facilitators' need to balance giving mums/
children time to talk whilst keeping them
on task and moving them on
• Having an agenda with a time allocation
helps in some groups
• What group can offer and what it can’t must be
made clear to clients at the outset
• Importance of the Community resource list
• Importance of other local services
• Reminders about time are not disrespectful if
balanced with advice/ signpost to other agencies/
offering discussion outside of group
• Facilitators can take a time management task on
Most groups run into problems because they
did not time manage the ‘Check in’
effectively
Asking how are things with you is a slippery
slope!
Highlights the importance
of coordinators ensuring
the right skill mix – at least
one facilitator should have
previous group work
experience
Managing time for groups
• Should be negotiated at the outset so
there is clarity about what time is
manageable
• Set up time for group 30 minutes – 45
minutes
• Group session 1.5 – 2 hours
• Post group tidy up – 30 minutes
• Supervision – length and frequency
• Assessments – 1-2 hours duration per
assessment
Debriefing from group- Should
include..
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Recording notes from session
Any liaison required or feedback to group co-ordinator
Facilitator debrief:
-group process – did you cover all tasks
-Co working
-strengths and challenges of the session
-personal feelings and effect – know how and where to seek
help
• - planning for next weeks sessions – tasks, roles and
resources
• Have fun, its ok to make
mistakes, laugh, reflect and
try again
Applying knowledge of
children’s developmental
stages into good practice
(An example)
Working with younger
children
(4-6 years)
• Groups need fewer children – 6 maximum
• Desirable for child to have had a previous
group experience – toddler group, nursery
etc
• Playtime is essential – preferably with toys
that enable them to make sense of things –
dolls house, puppets, playdoh etc
• Reinforce group with a leaving sticker –
helps remind them of group between
sessions
Age four years
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Imaginary friends
Egocentric
Prone to exaggeration
Co – operates with others – periodically
Turn taking developing
Rapid mood changes – laughing, crying,
tantrums (easily frustrated)
• Enjoys role play and make believe
• Muddles tenses
Age 5 years
• Questions – Why? , What?, Where?,
When?
• Develops friendships
• Participates in group play
• More control over emotions
• Still needs comfort and reassurance
• Likes making others laugh
• Understands past and present
Age 6 years
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Becoming more independent
Developing sense of right and wrong
Starts to grasp the concept of future
Focus of concerns shifts from self to
others
• Compares self to others
• Still needs comfort, love and
reassurance
How might this translate
into group practice?
(small group practice)
Managing
confidentiality
Children and mothers
Group should be
confidential for women and
children – but there are
always challenges
Confidentiality
• Group needs to be confidential for both mums and
children
• Safeguarding and public protection concerns are
exempt from maintaining group confidentiality
• Mothers and children must be aware of this from
the first meeting
• Including this in group rules as a reminder helps
• Most breaches of confidentiality are by mothers
• Mothers need to understand breaching
confidentiality may place others at risk and
breaks group trust
• The consequence is being asked to leave group –
this will affect their child
• Facilitators must NOT waver on the consequence
Thinking about this pre
group
• In small communities relationships may already exist
• Some may be acrimonious or discriminatory, others strong
and supportive- both create problems
• Too many women with too many prior connections together
can and does disrupt group focus
• Try to moderate this if known beforehand when composing
groups
• Failing to do so runs the risk of confidentiality breaches or
other women feeling isolated and judged within group
sessions (and maybe beyond)
• Women with previous positive relationships with each other
may bring outside issues into group (clubbing/affairs etc)
A good group rule is not to
meet more than is necessary
whilst attending group AND
to not bring issues from
outside group into group
Managing disclosures in
groups
• Group disclosures need to be handled sensitively
• Facilitators need to respond respectfully and validate
experiences
• Whilst doing this they must quickly evaluate
• - whether to offer the mum /child an opportunity to discuss
this outside group
• - the effect on other mums and children hearing the
disclosure
• -sometimes re traumatising – at the least anxiety provoking
• - follow local guidelines and procedures
• -reassure other group members that the facilitator role is
to ensure safety and professional help – the person
disclosing is in safe hands
• After the disclosure is dealt with staff MUST include this
is their de brief – management of and impact on themselves
The challenge for facilitators
• To allow women and children a voice to express and share
their experiences
• To moderate and balance this ( by adhering to the session
content) so mum’s do not perceive the group as a survivors
group – to share and discuss experiences
• Women who disclose too much too soon may disengage from
group as they reflect on their contribution
• Group rules should be utilised to help contain premature
disclosures and keep women feeling safe
• It is okay to check with women and children if they want to
say more or less whilst in group
• Re visiting group rules EACH week aids containment
Importance of Boundaries
Discuss in small groups-what is
acceptable and what is not?
• Boundaries within group – what does it
mean
• Boundaries between facilitators for
children and facilitators for women’s
groups
• Boundaries with other areas of work
• Personal boundaries – how much of
‘yourself’ can / should you disclose?
Challenges and Learning
points
• Facilitators should not work with families they have a
personal relationship with
• They should not be a group facilitator if they are also a
keyworker
• If the family is known to a staff member in a loose way – let
the other facilitator work with this client in group and
discuss this with the mother at the assessment stage
• Workers should not ‘socialise’ with clients outside of group
• If a worker lives near a client consider how this might
affect group – e.g. CP issues
Helpful tips
• Try and have a ‘doing activity’ each
week especially for younger children
• Give then turns each week for the
treasure chest and affirmations
• Perhaps introduce a worry box or
wall to the group
• Always start with reminding them of
group rules –Every week!
• When talking about rules also think about
consequences
• Talk about calming down and coping
RATHER than time out
• Send notes or certificates between
sessions and breaks
• Keep a child off school if they are too
upset / angry to return in a calm manner
• Keep mother’s child focussed
• Direct to other services for
additional support
• Be clear at all times about purpose
and remit of group
QUESTIONS?