Being a parent brings a great deal of responsibility, also additional pressures and draws on all of our resources. There are some issues that can make the task of parenting even more challenging. These may include:
- Substance misuse
- Domestic Abuse
- Mental Health difficulties
- Learning difficulties
National and local reviews have shown that the presence of the above factors can impact on the ability to safely parent. However, the presence of one or more of these factors are not definitive indicators of abuse. Some parents with mental health problems and substance misuse issues, for example, can parent sucessfully.
It is very important that professionals working with parents ‘think whole family’ and consider the any isues that the parent or carer may be facing as well as the impact on the child or children.
Below are some resources for professionals to access when working with parents and their children:
Alcohol, drugs and parenting | NSPCC
Protecting children from domestic abuse | NSPCC Learning
The IOM Safeguarding Procedures can be found below for those working with:
parents who misuse substances;