Written by Simeon Bowen-Fanstone, Solicitor in the Family Team.
This week (6th – 12th February 2023) is Children’s Mental Health Week. Children’s mental health charity Place2Be use the week to raise the importance of children and young people’s mental health.
This year’s theme is Let’s Connect. As parents, how you connect with your friends and family will influence your child and how they develop their own friendships and relationships. This is particularly pertinent to parents who are going through a separation, or are engaged in child arrangement proceedings.
Here are a few simple ways you can connect with your child and help them to make meaningful connections:
1. Connect with your child in everyday ways
For example, try to give your child your full attention when you pick them up from school. Watching your child when they play is also important to them – time to put away that mobile phone! With older children, you may find that a car journey is a good time to talk, or to connect over some music that you both enjoy. Be ready to listen to them.
2. Talk to your child about important connections
For example friends, neighbours, childminders and people in the local community.
3. Talk to your child about their friends
Friendship groups become increasingly important to children as they grow older – be open to listening to them about their friendships and try to listen without judgement.
4. Connect by taking an interest in your child’s world
As adults, we can be dismissive about our children’s tastes in music, fashion and other interests – however, if we do take an active interest, we may feel better connected to our children and the important things in their world.
5. Find time to connect as a family
For example, cooking together, watching a film, playing a game, going to the park can all break up the busy and stressful treadmill of modern life.
6. Try to resolve conflict and reconcile arguments
It is important that children learn to disagree in appropriate ways, as well as how to say sorry and to make amends when they do something wrong. They learn a lot about this from their parents, so try to model the behaviour you would like to see from your children.
Most importantly of all, let your child know that they should always talk to an adult if they are worried about something: this may be you, a family member, a teacher, or someone else in their school.
For a list of organisations that provide advice and support, please visit the Place2Be website:- www.place2be.org.uk/help
Simeon Bowen-Fanstone is a solicitor in our family law team, and helps clients resolve their disputes about child arrangements, and handles divorce and financial matters as well as domestic abuse injunctions. For a conversation with Simeon, call for an appointment on 01630 411226.
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