New champions aim to restore good relations
ROCHDALE Council has trained over a hundred ‘relationships champions’ who they say will help support others across the borough.
120 staff at the children’s centre will wear a distinctive badge, which means they are trained to listen and support.
Since the launch of the council’s Relationship Manifesto, they have been training as many frontline practitioners as possible, over 600 so far, so they have the skills to support couples who are worried about the impact that their arguments might be having on their own and their children’s emotional wellbeing.
Councillor Kieran Heakin, cabinet member for children’s services said: “We’ve been really bold in our commitment to relationships and this is only the start of our revolution.
“It’s so important that people know they have somewhere to go to get support around relationships and arguments.”
Staff leading on this initiative at the council recently presented their work on the Rochdale Relationships Matter initiative programme to MP’s in Parliament as part of the Family Hubs Network.
Gail Hopper, director of children’s services at Rochdale Council, said: “Ultimately we want people across the borough to get couple conflict support from anyone who is trained and in a position to help, such as; health visitors, social workers and housing officers, so that we all give the same clear message – arguments that are frequent, intense and resolved badly are not good for us or our children.
“The good news is we can do something about it by getting the right help.”
To obtain more information on relationship support and reducing family conflict visit rochdale.gov.uk/ rochdale relationshipsmatter