We run a range of parenting courses for parents of children aged 0 to 16 years old.
We have courses about:
- young children
- teenagers
- children with challenging behaviour
- teenagers with aggressive or abusive behaviour
Incredible Babies
For parents with babies from birth to crawling.
The Parents and Babies Program is delivered over 8 weeks in one-hour sessions with trained facilitators. The facilitators help you and your baby with topics that will support attachment and bonding.
Parents learn how to:
- help their babies feel loved, safe and secure
- encourage their babies' physical and language development
- practise skills with their babies.
Contact your locality team for information about dates and venues.
Incredible Years
The Incredible Years Parenting Programme is an evidence-based programme (this means it's based on research) devised by Caroline Webster-Stratton, a child psychologist. This course can help you to:
- strengthen your parenting skills
- build healthy relationships with your child
- reduce inappropriate behaviours
This is a free programme and aimed at parents of children aged between 3 and 12 years old.
Incredible Years encourages your involvement in your child's experiences as their parent or carer. This can help you:
- gain confidence in managing negative behaviour
- gain an understanding of your child's development and age-appropriate expectations
- invest in emotional wellbeing to have a positive understanding of emotions
- learn strategies to manage and regulate emotions and improve behaviour
- understand the benefits of positive attention and praise
- reduce your concerns about your child's behaviour
- improve your communication with your child
- get positive peer support from other parents and carers in the group
This is a 12 to 14 week programme and takes place in different locations in Dorset. It can sometimes be run for longer periods depending on the needs of the group.
Contact your locality team for information about dates and venues.
Living with Parents
The Living with Parents Day is a one day event suitable for one parent with one child aged between 8 and 15.
The event is designed to:
- enable parents and their child to spend some one-to-one time together
- work on problem solving
- build trust and improve communication
- encourage respect, listening and trust
- highlight the differences between the role of the parent and the child
During the day the parent and child take part in activities together. These include games and discussions.
Contact your locality team for information about dates and venues.
Living with Teenagers
Living with teenagers is a 7 week evidence-based programme. This programme is designed to help parents and carers of teenagers aged 11 to 16 years who are experiencing behaviour and communication difficulties.
The programme covers:
- understanding how behaviour is learnt
- increase understanding of 'normal' behaviour and typical developmental stages
- increasing wanted behaviour and decreasing unwanted behaviour
- types of sanctions
- looking after yourself
- empowering parents
- boosting self-confidence
- sharing difficulties with other parents to work together to solve problems
Contact your locality team for information about dates and venues.
Action for Children parenting programmes
Behaviours that challenge us information sessions
These workshops:
- are open to all parents in Dorset
- give an introduction to some of the reasons behind a child's challenging behaviour
- introduce you to positive parenting strategies
- take place at locations across Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset
Parenting programmes
Action for Children provide parenting programmes:
- at locations across Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset
- for parents of children registered with a GP in Dorset
Find out more about Action for Children's parenting programmes.