Parent Centred Parenting
Bringing balance and harmony to family life25
A new, innovative course for the 21st century based on Dr Amanda Gummer’s
”Parent-Centred Parenting Model of Family Life”
Parents today face more challenges than previous generations
By understanding how parenting today differs from parenting in previous generations (dispersed families, working parents, increased single parent families, the internet, safety fears, expectations of parents and children etc), and recognising how these differences impact on family life, parents can assess their own family’s needs and make decisions and develop a value system which are beneficial to each individual family.
Each family is unique
The Parent Centred Parenting ethos recognises that each family unit is unique and works with parents to establish a supportive framework and value system to get the most out of family life.
Children learn by modelling
Children thrive when they feel comfortable in their environment, therefore parents need to provide and model happy, healthy role models for their children to copy.
Parent centred – Child focused
Many guides on childrearing, especially those which are child-centred (most of the literature available today) ignore individual differences in family situations and result in feelings of failure, resentment and guilt by parents who are trying their hardest to raise happy, healthy children.
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Raising children is one of the most satisfying job but also one of the most demanding as children do not come with instruction manuals! Parent-Centred Parenting empowers parents to feel confident in their ability to raise children who become happy, healthy, responsible adults
Understanding children development and managing behaviours
By gaining understanding of what a child can be expected to do at different ages and stages of development Parent centred Parenting can reduce stress for the whole family. Managing the stress hot spots and finding practical solutions to typical childhood behaviours e.g. shouting, whinging, not listening, hitting out etc
Parents First!
Parents who look after themselves are more able to take care of others and have greater resilience to cope with stress and strains of modern family life. Children are demanding, and that makes it all the more important that parents find ways to look after themselves both physically and emotionally so they are able to provide the level of care that children need. Parents who are happy, confident and supported are much more likely to be able to respond to the child’s needs appropriately than a parent who is stressed, over-tired or depressed. The parent-centred approach may be more beneficial in helping parents be the best people they can be and ultimately, do what is best for their families.
Bringing back the balance
Most of the popular approaches to parenting today are still ‘child-centred’, where parents are helped to understand their children’s needs and how to meet them. Whether it is baby’s sleep patterns, feeding times or cognitive development, there are books, courses and experts that will help new parents recognise their children’s needs and work out what they should be doing in order to do the best for their child. They focus on the needs of one child and therefore are not helpful for parents who are trying to meet the needs of a larger family. This can result in parents feeling that they are failing all their children if they are unable to meet the standards of care for subsequent children that they were able to give the first.
An additional, unintended consequence of this style of parenting is that it is often the child perceived to have the most ‘needs’ who dictates the family’s actions. This is clearly unfair on other children in the family, but also on the parents as it prevents them from ‘parenting’ the way they would like to.
The result of a child-centred approach can be an overwhelming sense of failure, guilt and inadequacy on the parts of the parents. By taking a more parent-centred approach, it is possible to redress the balance and end up with a system of parenting which balances the needs of all the members of a family.
I have been aware of the work of Families in Focus for over 5 years now, and have worked with them on more than one occasion. I am delighted that the Parent-Centred Parenting (PCP) approach is being adopted by such a forward-thinking organisation and the way that the facilitators deliver their courses fits very well with the ethos of PCP. By developing new programmes and adapting existing courses with their increased knowledge of child development and commitment to the PCP approach, Families in Focus will be able to support families in Herts. and beyond even more effectively.
Dr. Amanda Gummer FUNdamentals
To see if there is a FREE course running in your area, check our current available course
To commission Families in Focus CiC to run a course for your organisation please contact us.
