Parent-Child Attachment Play (PCAP)

Parent-Child Attachment Play (PCAP) is a very innovative and empowering early help attachment programme for parents and their children from 3-15+. It can be delivered with groups, 1:1 or through a home-visiting model.  Parents and carers are often concerned about their children’s behaviour and that by adopting a playful attachment approach they will somehow lose control over their family life.  In fact, the opposite is true.  When the parent-child relationship is working, helpful child behaviour generally follows and family life becomes more manageable.

 This 10-step programme is based on the latest attachment research which shows that supporting the parent-child attachment relationship sets the scene for the best outcomes for children right into adulthood. 

 PCAP involves sharing three skills with parents and carers through interactive workshop-style sessions;

1.  Play (and the creation of a shoebox or bag of toys/activities designed around the preferences of the child)

2.  Containment (managing time, environment, emotions and helping children to make helpful choices)

3.  Head, Heart and Hands (an attachment tool based on evidence-based Reflective Functioning)

Once parents and carers feel confident in the skills they begin a short weekly “You and Me” play or activity time at home with their child.  This creates a short “ring-fenced” opportunity to practice the skills and enjoy a new way of being with their child.  Once the skills are well-established, the parent or carer is helped to transfer them to problematic areas of home life.  Throughout the process, the parent or carer is supported by a PCAP practitioner. The 10-step process usually takes around 10-12 hours of practitioner input. Some families may require more support.

Parent-Child Attachment Play practitioner training (2-days) gives you all you need to become a PCAP practitioner including:

·       A strong grounding in the latest attachment theory and research including what we now know about how attachment security is operationalised within the parent-child relationship

·       Practical skills sessions equipping you with all you need to deliver the 10-steps in an interactive workshop style

·       Access to online printable resources to support and enhance delivery

·       Pre- and post-programme outcome measures

·       A fully-accredited Practitioner Certification with 12 CPD points

Next training

21st & 22nd September 2024,

The Courtyard Hotel, Leixlip, Co Kildare