Connect for Kids – West Midlands Theraplay® group sessions for families
Connect for Kids – West Midlands Theraplay® group sessions for families
Does your child need extra support with social and emotional development? Book onto our FREE West Midlands group Theraplay® sessions. Supported by experienced therapists with lived experience, you can share in fun and engaging play activities to build your child’s confidence and resilience
Connect for Kids Theraplay® Sessions
Parents attending these free workshops will have the additional opportunity to join a free Beacon Family Services community for parents facing challenging behaviour in children. Here is a downloadable poster for these events.
At a glance:
In-person dates: Tuesdays during term time on 29th April (mandatory parent session), 6th May, 13th May, 20th May, 10th June, 1st July, 8th July)
Suitable for: Birmingham parents and their children aged around 5-10 years (these ages are a guideline, not a prerequisite)
What’s involved:
A Theraplay® group is an adult led and structured session where children and their parents share fun and engaging play activities together. Our sessions each last about 45 minutes and are aimed at children aged 5-10 years. We are welcoming and inclusive and know that some of you are older or younger and would love to join in too so age is not a prerequisite.
Everyone will have a lot of fun while enjoying co-operative and nurturing activities that build children’s self confidence, self esteem, sense of belonging, trust to care for themselves and others.
Book now
Use the form below to book your place or register your interest.
Connect for Kids workshop FAQs
Are Connect for Kids workshops really free?
Yes, they are, for the most part – with occasional exceptions which are priced at affordable rates and which you have no obligation to attend.
With funding from the National Lottery, we have established much needed and valued services in the community. We look forward to expanding further so that we can help more families over the next few years.
What are the benefits?
Our sessions support children by helping them to:
Feel good about themselves
Feel proud of themselves
Feel loved
Feel like they belong
Express themselves through play
Experience healthy interactions with adults
Improve interactions with other children
Trust other people
Show care for themselves
Show care for others
Generally improve their emotional and social confidence
Parents and carers who have attended group sessions have told us they feel very connected with their children during and following the sessions. Many have also told us about how their relationship with their child/ren has improved as a result of attending the sessions.
Theraplay® as an intervention includes the parent because, through the therapist’s support, you’ll learn to attune to exactly what amount of structure, engagement, challenge and nurture your child needs. This is what helps you build the parent/child relationship. In a way, you get just as much out of Theraplay® as your child does!
You can also enjoy meeting other parents in the workshop whose children have similar needs.
Is a Connect for Kids workshop right for me?
If you are a Birmingham parent or carer who fits any of the criteria below, you are welcome to book onto a Connect for Kids workshop.
Parents who are struggling, emotionally or socially
Parents who want to help their family feel safer
Parents managing neurodiversity
Parents who are finding their children’s emotional behaviour a challenge
Parents facing challenges due to resettling, e.g. as a displaced / refugee family
Parents who feel that their stories are not being heard or understood
Participants are asked to complete an evaluation via link, to help us improve our services.
What to expect from a Connect for Kids workshop
Some children are going to need more opportunities to feel safe. Theraplay® is an interactive therapy that relies on healthy playful interactions to create this sense of safety. We are all wired for human connection and our Connect for Kids sessions help children and parents find safe ways to enjoy this.
Group overview
A Theraplay® group is an adult led and structured session where children and their parents share fun and engaging play activities together.
We are welcoming and inclusive and know that some of you are older or younger and would love to join in too, so age is not a prerequisite.
Everyone will have a lot of fun while enjoying co-operative and nurturing activities that build children’s self confidence, self esteem, sense of belonging, and trust to care for themselves and others.
Group games and activities
Our nervous systems are wired to detect danger, so creating time for the kind of play that builds relationships through creating connection is vital to children’s social and emotional development.
Many of the typical games parents can play at home, like Peekaboo or Hide and Seek, help children learn it is safe and fun to explore the world. When adults – especially those they feel safest with, like parents – join children in this play, they are relaxed and joyful and give children the message that the world is safe, and that they are safe. Play is more than just fun. Our Connect for Kids Theraplay® group sessions are certainly enjoyable, but also use play-based interactive therapy to make the activities as beneficial to children as possible.
These are not just play groups. They are therapeutic group sessions. Attending the initial parent session is mandatory as it helps you learn more about how to make the most of therapist-led Theraplay® group sessions with your child.
Workshop leaders
Connect for Kids workshops are facilitated by our qualified and experienced therapists. They have lived experience of the challenges you may be facing. In addition, they have all been trained in play therapies and Theraplay®, a relational support that uses play to build and strengthen relationships with your child.
What parents say about us…
“This session gave me a really good boost and I now know I’m not alone.”
“This week has been difficult – almost at the point of placement breakdown. This (workshop) has given me hope!”
“It is refreshing to meet people with the same sort of circumstances – parenting as a neurodivergent adult, having children with conflicting sensory needs, clash/triggering each other.”
“It was so helpful to know there is help out there and that other parents are in similar situations. I feel less alone when I start to think I’m struggling or drowning.”
“It has been good to think about support networks, and how that helps to reduce violent and aggressive behaviours, as well as increasing capacity to manage the situation.”
“A great opportunity to get together with other parents and care givers going through similar experiences, to hear how others are living lives like ours.”
“I never knew how much I needed this until I started, but knew I was burning out. I got so much out of it personally and lots to take away.”
“I have not just a greater understanding after this workshop but feeling that what we are living is real and not just our perception and that someone else gets it.”
Further support for parents
If you or someone you know is struggling with family relationships, Beacon Family Services can help. We provide a range of therapies and resources to support parents, children and families including our Connect For Kids Theraplay® group and parent workshops on a variety of topics, as well as access to peer support groups.
For further support, and to see our latest parent events and services, please visit the Families hub.
You can also explore our resources for instant support, including newsletters, online support groups, and much more. You can also read further insights and tips from qualified therapists and professionals on our blog.
