Sessions to foster family bonds

A number of sessions are to be held to help support families with children who are about to become teenagers.

Perth and Kinross Council’s strengthening families programme will be offering free evening sessions over seven weeks to help support families across Perth.

The sessions are designed to support families with children aged 10 or 11 to prepare them for becoming teenagers by focusing on improving family relationships and preventing potential issues faced by many young people, such as managing peer pressure, recognising and managing stress and anxiety, and issues around substance misuse such as alcohol.

An evening meal and free childcare for younger siblings will be provided at each session, and transport can be arranged if needed.

Sessions will run on a Monday starting from January 29 in the Fairfield Neighbourhood Centre, and on Mondays from January 22 at the North Inch Community Campus.

A third series of support sessions will also run on a Thursday from January 25 at Viewlands Primary School. All sessions run from 5pm until 7.30pm. A spokesperson for Perth and Kinross Council said:“The sessions are designed for young people and their parents and carers to attend together, and over the course of the programme, families will develop their understanding of each other’s strengths and qualities. This will enable them to then better support each other and have a positive experience of the young person’s teenage years.

“With a mix of group learning time and family activities, young people will develop skills to appreciate others’ feelings, and learn how to handle peer pressure which can often be experienced around the subjects of drugs and alcohol.

“They will also learn how to set personal goals for the future, to encourage success at school and beyond. In addition, parents and carers will learn different ways to support young people and how to set boundaries for them as they get older.”

To sign up for the strengthening families group, complete and application form at www.pkc.gov.uk/strengtheningfamilies