Leading Europe in parenting

A Dundee parenting project, developed with assistance from Dr Suzanne Zeedyk of the Department of Psychology, was recently short-listed for the prestigious European Alcuin Award - one of only five nominations from across Europe.

PALS - Parents Altogether Lending Support - is a six-week course consisting of one 90-minute session each week on a particular topic. Parents meet in groups of between four and seven to share their own experiences as parents and to learn from those of others. A variety of teaching methods are used to stimulate and guide discussion including written worksheets, videos, and observational "homework".

The aim is to increase the life chances of young children by supporting parents in their parenting roles. Parents of pre-school and primary-aged children use the groups to support and encourage one another rather than being dependent upon professionals.

The programme was developed by Early Years' Coordinator Irene Werritty, together with a group of mothers from Kirkton (a Social Inclusion Partnership neighbourhood). It was assessed from inception by Suzanne and the findings have been crucial in shaping the programme and helping to ensure its continued success in the future.

Suzanne interviewed parents several years after they completed the course. Her findings showed that participating in the short course had long-term benefits and that parents were still able to apply the skills they had learned several years after finishing the programme. She also found that even though the course was only six weeks long, parents showed a dramatic improvement in their ability to deal with difficult situations concerning their children. In addition, she discovered that participation builds up parents' self esteem and confidence and increases their sense of efficacy for helping their children learn.

Suzanne said, "Our findings show the extent to which PALS has helped to transform the lives of parents and children. For example, one parent felt that without PALS she might have given up trying to change and let her child be taken into care. Many simply say how nice it is to have friends and to feel part of their community.

It is gratifying that this venture has been nominated by the Scottish Executive. I was delighted as an academic researcher to be able to work with the local education authority in a way that directly serves parents in my community.

The nomination of this project - one of only five across Europe - is testimony to the high regard now given to the PALS project, and to the innovativeness of Dundee City Council, as well as to Irene Werrity's efforts. The findings strongly suggest that this is a very worthwhile long-term investment."

Irene Werritty said, "Suzanne's evaluation confirmed the extent to which PALS greatly improves many parents' self-confidence in their parenting abilities. It has also helped us to understand how we can help those parents who don’t find group participation so easy."