OPPORTUNITY
“I didn’t know what I needed - but I got it!”
“I was inspired, motivated and feel enthusiastic and excited about getting onto the right career path.”
Comments from our 2019 Evaluation
The third strand in our work is Opportunity. As a parent, many feel that, however much they love their family, they have little time to develop themselves. Many parents know they want to do ‘something’ outside the family but don’t know what that something is. Our role at the Parent House is to help parents to find that for themselves. Once it has been discussed and agreed, and this may take several meetings, the Parent House offers a range of opportunities either at the house or elsewhere if we cannot provide what the parent needs. Staff help parents to set realistic goals and support them to develop the learning and skills they need to achieve them.
The story below is fictional but based on our experience of working with parents. With a little help from the Parent House, Mariam was able to develop her communication skills as a Mentor and in turn this gave her the opportunity to develop her work in the community
Mariam
Mariam’s children were now at school and she felt that she wanted something to do outside her flat. She didn’t know what that would be, but in her introductory meeting at the Parent House said she enjoyed meeting other people and sometimes acted as interpreter for people in her community.
We felt she would make a good mentor, so after more discussion she was encouraged to sign up for the Mentoring Project. She completed the training successfully and has just taken on her first mentee. She is also considering joining our Outreach Team and to focus on reaching more people in her community who she knows are isolated. Mariam says she has met many people from different backgrounds through the Parent House and is enjoying her wider circle of contacts. This has been an opportunity to develop her personal skills and to do what she is good at for the benefit of others which gives her great satisfaction. The experience has started her thinking about a possible career, maybe in counselling.