1 Building positive relationships

You have looked at the importance of providing positive, nurturing experiences for babies and young children, but in order for this to happen it is vital that parents feel confident and supported.

Activity 1 Supporting parents

Timing: Allow about 15 minutes

Watch this Open University video, which looks at the ‘Incredible Babies’ programme in Wales. As you watch it, note down anything that you notice the parents or practitioners say about what they and their babies get from relationships they have formed within the group.

Download this video clip.Video player: Video 1

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Transcript: Video 1

HELEN DOCHERTY

And topic today-- as you can see, we’ve set the room up quite different today. So we’ve got lots of areas of different tactile and visual stimulation.

The Incredible Babies programme is an evidence-based programme. It runs for eight sessions, and we talk about different topics each week looking at stimulating the baby’s brain, the importance of talk, the importance of communication, getting to know your baby’s cues, as well as other topics such as weaning, safety, and baby massage.

SPEAKER 1

Yeah, I was checking [INAUDIBLE].

HELEN DOCHERTY

Once parents come along to Incredible Babies, we usually close the group off by about week 2. So by then, everybody’s gelled, everybody’s built up that relationship, and then we will offer the programme then in the next term. So it is a rolling programme.

SPEAKER 2

I enjoy coming to Incredible Baby group because it’s nice for the children to meet each other. And Lola’s got an older brother, but when she’s seen other babies, it was nice to see her reaction and just play with each other. And they end up growing up because they’re all in the same area. They go through school and play group. It’s nice to meet other mums as well.

SPEAKER 3

Does she like that?

SPEAKER 4

I think that it’s welcoming. I feel really comfortable here. And if I got a concern or worry, we can just come across to other mothers, and then they’ll give us their advice what they’ve done. So if the baby’s not sleeping or if they’re not eating tidy, they’ll just explain what they do different to what I’m not doing. So it gives us tips, really.

SPEAKER 2

If we didn’t have the group, I’d probably be searching on the internet, and there’d be different answers to what we get from other mums and from what we get from the group leaders, which is good. So it’s nice to have someone to talk to face-to-face rather than a computer screen.

HELEN DOCHERTY

Also, it’s a good idea to actually give time for the brain to connect. So where you think that they might or they’re not interested in that, actually give it time to process as well, and give them time to respond.

Lots of discussion comes about in groups. Sometimes if there is extra support needed, as if there is domestic violence or financial issues in the home and housing difficulties, then we have a good network of other agencies that we can actually refer the parents onto, or sometimes we’ve even-- may even have them coming in and just having a chat with parents at the centre.

A topic that came up was a parent was struggling to pay her rent and her bills. We had somebody come in from Communities First, and they helped and supported that family. They also helped and supported the rest of the group because they weren’t aware of the warm grant funds and financial support that was out there.

When mum did raise the issues in the group, they did actually all support her, and they were very empathic as well. So that was nice for her to be able to have that confidence to discuss that in the group and feel confident to do that. And the group then reassured her that it was OK, and there is help out there.

They also mentioned that Cobain Farm, which is another project that’s close by. They actually do food sessions where you can go and get bags of food.

SPEAKER 5

[INAUDIBLE]

SPEAKER 6

I don’t feel judged when I come, and I know that if I got something to ask, I haven’t got to be afraid because they-- or if they haven’t got the answer, they’ll find the answer for me. And I like the fact that I’ve got other mums to talk to. And, well, if I got a question, I’ll ask them. The main thing is not being judged. I’m a worrier.

HELEN DOCHERTY

When you go home now--

SPEAKER 7

I think without this course, it can be quite isolating in the area, not knowing many people with a young baby. I mean, I don’t go out like I used to. So to have this group and these friends and stuff has been amazing. It’s been absolutely amazing.

HELEN DOCHERTY

The programme is evaluated via Topsy and it’s a little booklet that the parents have at the beginning of the programme, and then they can score themselves and their babies. And then we do it again after the programme.

They can look at the Topsy done prior to see if they wanted to make some changes. Sometimes, it shows that they thought that they knew things, but after doing the programme, they’re like, wow! Actually, I didn’t really know as much as I thought I did.

[INTERPOSING VOICES]

HELEN DOCHERTY

What’s good about my job is I’m doing something that I wanted to do, and I’ve always wanted to work with children. To work with parents as well, it was like, wow! This is different. But it’s so rewarding to know that you have sometimes made a difference. Or if you haven’t, then you can refer on to another agency. But making that difference in that family, child, or that mum or dad or carer’s life is rewarding.

End transcript: Video 1

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Video 1

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Discussion

Throughout the video, the importance of having trusting, effective relationships is mentioned. Helene, the group leader, tells us that once the group has gelled and the relationships are strong, no new members are introduced. The mums highlight that within the group they feel comfortable to ask for help, share experiences, look for reassurance and explore ideas because of the relationships they have developed. They are able to build connections with their wider community and develop confidence. The mums also recognise that the group gives their babies opportunities to start to make relationships with the other children who they will be going to school with.

All these aspects show us the impact that relationships have on lots of different elements of practice. In this case the relationships are positive and are helping the members of the group to gain confidence and make progress, and we need to try and make sure these are the types of relationship we are promoting.

When practitioners work with babies and young children, they build relationships with lots of people. These can include:

Figure 1 Practitioners building relationships

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A diagram showing seven ovals, each containing a group or organisation involved with babies’ and young children’s care and education. The groups are: Inspectors and regulators, Parents, Voluntary and community organisations, Management team, Other staff in the setting, External training providers, Local authority staff.

Figure 1 Practitioners building relationships

You might be able to think of other people who are involved in a setting too. Working with each of these groups requires lots of different skills and knowledge. For example, the way you communicate with parents would not be the same as the way you communicate with regulators, and the information shared with the local authority would not be the same as that given to community organisations. Managing these different requirements is one of the professional skills that early childhood practitioners need in order to build effective relationships.

Traditionally, working with very young children was seen as an informal role that did not need any formal training or qualifications rather than a professional position, and it was assumed that women would be best at it because they were predisposed to ‘mothering’. As a result of research into child development and recognition of the connection between quality care and improved outcomes for children, these attitudes have begun to change. This has resulted in actions being taken to try and professionalise the early childhood workforce by introducing training and qualification pathways that provide clear evidence of practitioners’ skills, knowledge and understanding.

The professional characteristics of practitioners working with young children in Wales are outlined in these ‘Enabling Adult’ descriptors: