Helping your child with fears and worries

The Educational Psychology Service and Primary Mental Health Team have been running regular half termly virtual parent workshops on helping your child with fears and worries.  These are always very well received by parents and, as such, we are offering further dates (below).  

The aim of the programme is to teach parents cognitive behavioural strategies so they can use them with their children to overcome their anxiety. It is based on the book: ‘Overcoming your child’s worries and fears’ by Cathy Cresswell and Lucy Willetts.  The group will be a 2.5 hour online workshop – a “whistle stop tour” of key principles for parents. 

There are two further sessions planned for the summer term:

• Wednesday 15^th March 9:30 – 12:00.
• Wednesday 26^th April 9:30 – 12:00.
• Wednesday 21^st June 9:30 – 12:00.

Sessions will be via Teams.  We have capacity for around 4 – 10 participants each session. 

The following information will help you to decide if your child would  benefit from the workshop:

• Child is aged 5-12 years.
• Anxiety is the primary presenting concern in your child and the anxiety presents at home.
• The degree of anxiety is mild/moderate (not severe) – it is having an impact on the child’s life - for example the child is starting to avoid situations that lead to anxiety, like social situations.
• The approaches in the workshop are designed to help with “irrational” fears, for example, specific phobias (dogs, school phobia etc…), separation anxiety, generalised anxiety. 
• It is not designed for children whose anxiety is due to trauma (eg: domestic violence), PTSD, bereavement, sensory overload. 
• Parent or child is not currently receiving any other kind of support for their anxiety (eg: at CAMHS or the AnDY clinic).
• The programme is not targeted at children with a diagnosis of autism or significant social communication difficulties.

If you are interested, please email Wilma Williams and include: your name, email and phone number (for contact – they will be emailed a Teams link) and your child’s age and school.  Please also state which of the dates for the course they are to make, and whether you have a preferred date – so we can allocate spaces. 

Wilma.Williams@brighterfuturesforchildren.org