Background
In 2002, a professional development program for professionals working with separating parents was designed and implemented by leading Australian and international experts in child psychology, family law, mediation, counselling, and family therapy. A series of symposia and workshops were conducted throughout Australia.
Early in 2003, the Institute of Arbitrators & Mediators independently evaluated each event of the Children in Focus program. Their results indicated that the symposia and workshops imparted knowledge, skills and achieved attitude change. Some of the factors contributing to the success of the program were judged as:
- The strong commitment to quality by the program team
- The critical importance of the program's objectives
- The credentials of the multi-disciplinary presenters at the top of their fields who were able to combine practical knowledge and skills with the latest research.
The learning materials developed for the Children in Focus program are available for purchase. Papers given during the symposia were subsequently published in 2003 editions of the Journal of Family Studies, a refereed journal for academics, researchers, administrators, educators and clinicians in the helping professions.
The Extension Project
The Children in Focus ('CIF') Extension Project had the broad aim of ensuring that the resources and educational programs developed would continue to be available to the key target groups of the original program. The Project focused on increasing the number of people who accept the model as 'best practice' and on increasing the number of practitioners who incorporate the child inclusive practices in their work. The Project thus aimed to:
- significantly widen the awareness of the benefits of child inclusive dispute resolution among stakeholders;
- train additional practitioners; and
- enhance the skills of the early adopters.
The Project has now been completed; however, the following achievements were noted:
- Marketing - a comprehensive marketing plan for CIF resources and training was developed in consultation with the Attorney-General's Department. This plan provided a framework for a diverse range of activities undertaken to promote awareness and implementation of child inclusive practices in mediation.
- Publications - all the presentations delivered during the Children in Focus symposia were developed into papers that were subsequently published in the Journal of Family Studies April and October 2003 editions. The Journal is now a major research publication for the promotion of child focused theory and practice. See www.latrobe.edu.au/jfs
- Presentations - key members of the project team implemented an extensive program of presentations promoting CIF aims, practices and resources at a wide range of professional and public forums over the life of the project.
- Sale of Children in Focus resources - existing CIF resources and new resources developed as part of this project were extensively marketed. Further, core material from Symposium and Workshop 1 of Program B was repackaged in the form of a self-paced multimedia two-set CDROM educational program.
Also, a booklet was developed for parents called 'Because it's for the kids: Building a secure parenting base after separation. The final version was launched to critical acclaim in February 2005. Since that time over 75,000 copies have been printed.
- Training - intensive workshop addressing training in Child Focused and Child Inclusive Dispute Resolution were promoted to service provider organizations. Funding for provision of these workshops has now ceased but interested organizations can contact Family Transitions. enquiries@familytransitions.com.au
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