Parent and carer peer support

What is parent and carer peer support?

Caring for a child or young person who is struggling with their mental health can be incredibly challenging. Often the best way for parents and carers to get support is to connect with others who have been through something similar. This is known as parent and carer peer support (PCPS).

“It just means so much to know that there are other people there that are in your situation and you’re not alone. And that if you need someone you can reach out and they will be there for you, and you don’t have to go through things alone and there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

It might happen accidentally at the supermarket, school gates, in a park, on social media or in the waiting room of an appointment; or it may happen intentionally at a PCPS group. What we know for sure is that PCPS is what many parents and carers are seeking.

There is often an inner human need when you are going through a difficult time with your child to connect with others who might be experiencing something similar. Reaching out is not easy - the stigma and judgement still associated with parenting a child with mental health difficulties is real. It can be a barrier to people accessing help. PCPS can provide a safe, non-judgemental space for people to access the support they need in a way that matters to them.

What is a parent carer peer support worker and what might they do?

Parent carer peer support (PCPS) workers use their lived experience to provide hope and encouragement to other families, to help them identify their own strengths, needs and goals. They may work alongside professionals who provide mental health advice and ensure that the help offered is safe and based on the best evidence available. The Trust supports a model of working that is led by parents and carers, and supported by professionals.

To give parents and carers confidence in their ability to help their child and in the mental health service their child receives.

For example face-to-face and digital support groups, one-to-one support, and support via social media platforms, email and text-based systems. 

For example dads and male carers, adoptive families, and parents and carers from black and ethnic minority groups. The PCPS workforce can do this in a way that is inclusive and led by people’s needs. This is because they have similar experiences and come from the same communities, so they are culturally aware of the needs of the family members they support.

To ensure they can access the most appropriate support for their needs.

They can do this by ensuring that clinicians explain treatments and interventions clearly and non-judgmentally and in a way that involves families. This helps families adopt and use the strategies clinicians offer.

This might include co-delivering training in schools and other educational settings on the early signs of mental health problems, supporting people who are waiting for assessments or treatment, and supporting families in crisis.

Aim to get better results for children and young adults by empowering parents and carers to engage and build trust with services. This may include supporting them to develop care plans in cooperation with mental health services.

This could include helping them to feed their views into the development of mental health services for children and young people. This can give them the potential to influence policy and to help build the evidence base for family-led interventions.

Are you interested in becoming a parent carer peer support worker?

It can be life changing when you are supporting a child with mental health difficulties, in negative and positive ways.

Everyone’s journey is different, but many are left with scars and trauma if things have been particularly difficult. 

It has an impact on your whole life. This can sometimes mean the breakdown of friendships and family relationships, struggles with your own mental health, financial difficulties or leaving employment due to caring responsibilities. Some people are living with every parent and carer’s worst fear because their child devastatingly died by suicide, yet many still want to give back to help others through difficulties similar to those they experienced. 

To turn your heartache and difficult life experiences into hope for others is healing and this is at the heart of parent carer peer support. It is an opportunity to learn new skills, to contribute to the children and young people’s mental health workforce and make a difference to the lives of children, young people and families. 

If this sounds like something you would like to do, here’s how to get started: 

  • Join the PLACE Network to connect with other parents, carers and professionals who are facilitating parent carer support groups or working as a PCPS.
  • Ask about volunteering at your local PCPS group if you have one (this interactive map can help you find out).
  • Get in touch with your local children and young people’s mental health (CYPMH). service, show them this information and ask if they can support you in any way to get started.

Our parent carer peer support training

Our parent carer peer support (PCPS) training courses are open to those already working or volunteering as PCPS workers, or parents and carers supported by local services who would like to train to become a PCPS worker. We also provide training for their supervisors. If you would like to hear more about this course, register your interest now!    

Parents and carers  - Register your interest  

Services and commissioners - Register your interest