Therapeutic Approaches in Work With Traumatised Children and Young People: Theory and Practice (Therapeutic Communities)

Cover......Page 1
Therapeutic Approaches in Work with Traumatized Children and Young People: Theory and Practice......Page 5
Contents......Page 7
Foreword......Page 13
Acknowledgements......Page 16
Introduction......Page 17
Emotional unintegration and integration......Page 20
Emotional containment......Page 21
1. The Cotswold Community......Page 24
The therapeutic resource role......Page 25
The therapeutic resource meeting......Page 26
Adaptation to need (the provision of ‘special things’)......Page 28
Working with omnipotent behavior......Page 32
Emotional preoccupation and the provision we make for children......Page 33
Transitional objects and the use of teddy bears......Page 35
The therapeutic task with emotionally unintegrated children......Page 36
The role of focal-carer and back-up carer......Page 39
The importance of food in a therapeutic setting......Page 41
Mealtimes......Page 42
Food and children’s physical weight......Page 43
The provision of food and drink for children and adults......Page 44
Children’s visits during bedtime......Page 45
Providing opportunities for primary provision and matters related to privacyand safety......Page 47
Working with fragilely integrated children......Page 50
Working with emotionally integrated and unintegrated children together......Page 54
Criteria for assessing whether a child is ready to move on......Page 56
Becoming emotionally integrated and moving on......Page 58
The move from a primary house and future contact with the child......Page 59
The referral process from a primary to secondary house......Page 60
The interrelationship of education and therapy......Page 63
The importance of education in the treatment of traumatized children......Page 66
The child’s experience of separation between care and education......Page 68
GCSEs and the relationship between a child’s academic and emotional development......Page 69
Regression within the education setting......Page 71
House–school handovers......Page 72
The involvement of a child’s carer with his time in school......Page 73
Working with breakdown in the school......Page 74
Learning support......Page 76
School homework......Page 78
Education staff ’s involvement with needs assessments......Page 79
Working on conflict between care and education staff......Page 80
Opportunities for play in houses......Page 82
Play and activity with children......Page 83
Children playing games that have an element of danger......Page 85
The symbolic and reality-based use of toys in children’s play......Page 86
The use of sensory experience rooms for children with learning difficulties......Page 87
The use of individual meetings in the treatment of emotionally deprived children......Page 88
The use of dolls and other figures in children’s meetings......Page 96
Talking groups......Page 97
The potential use of house group meetings......Page 98
How do adults work together in groupmeetings?......Page 100
Time boundaries and working through difficulties......Page 102
Working with children who find it extremely difficult to be in groups......Page 104
The use of language......Page 106
Things we say to children that feel inappropriate......Page 108
The use of humor......Page 109
The use of shouting......Page 110
8. Delinquent Excitement and Subculture......Page 112
Delinquency as a sign of hope......Page 113
Working with delinquent excitement and subculture in groups of children......Page 115
Working with excitement in the group about drugs......Page 116
How do we work with aspectsofyouth culturethat maybe offensive?......Page 117
Tarot cards and other types of fortune-telling......Page 119
Working with consequences......Page 120
Working through difficulties with children......Page 123
Authority......Page 125
Authority and containment in times of change......Page 127
The use of the word ‘boundaries’......Page 128
The gender balance in teams......Page 129
Dress and appearance in work......Page 130
Dress and sexuality......Page 131
Men wearing earrings at work......Page 132
The provision of sex education for emotionally unintegrated children......Page 133
Children’s sexuality and involvement with each other......Page 136
11. Working with Absence and Break Periods......Page 139
Going away for break periods......Page 140
Work with children during break periods......Page 141
Support for children who are away for break periods......Page 142
Working with the impact of staff illness and absence......Page 143
Staff meetings and matters related to absence......Page 145
Staff attendance on external courses and the implications for treatment......Page 146
A child’s carer leaving him something when she goes......Page 147
Preparation for a child’s planned leaving......Page 149
Marking a child’s leaving from a house......Page 150
The continuing contact with a child after he leaves a house......Page 152
Future contact with an adult who has left......Page 153
Working with a carer’s leaving and the care of individual children during this change......Page 154
The transition between carers when a child’s carer leaves......Page 156
Change of leadership and possible impact......Page 157
13. External Reality and Protection from Impingement (intolerable disruption and stimulation)......Page 160
How do we manage things children bring back to the house?......Page 161
Working with news items with children......Page 162
The massacre at Dunblane (1996)......Page 163
The impact of external processes on treatment......Page 164
Understanding violence and aggression......Page 166
How do we respond to particularly violent attacks on staff by children?......Page 168
How do we take violence seriously?......Page 169
How do we understand a child who harms, injures or kills a living creature?......Page 171
Physical restraint – what we learn from training......Page 172
Gender issues in relation to the therapeutic management of violence and physical restraint......Page 174
Physical restraint and physical holding......Page 175
Bullying......Page 176
The supervisor’s task......Page 177
Supervision with a staff member who has been physically attacked by a child......Page 179
Work with children towards whom we have powerful angry feelings......Page 180
What is our approach to work with a child who we feel is stuck?......Page 181
Vulnerability in residential work with children......Page 182
Management, treatment and safety......Page 184
Contact between senior managers and houses......Page 186
Staff hours of work in relation to the therapeutic task......Page 189
The reduction of hours staff work and its impact on the therapeutic approach......Page 190
Do we have enough unplanned time at work?......Page 193
Preserving thinking space in difficult times......Page 194
The giving and receiving of presents at Christmas......Page 197
Birthdays......Page 199
Group holidays......Page 200
Working with children’s parents......Page 202
Bedwetting and soiling......Page 204
Children’s clothing and appearance......Page 205
Children buying their own teddy bears......Page 207
Tickling and play fighting......Page 208
Peer group relationships for children......Page 209
The possible implications of lockable cupboards or boxes for children......Page 211
References......Page 213
Subject Index......Page 216
Author Index......Page 225