Reflective Parenting

What is a Reflective Parenting Group?

As a qualified Early Years Practitioner and Teacher with a foundation in group analysis from the Institute of Group Analysis (IGA), I facilitate termly group workshops for parents.

These Reflective Parenting Groups take a supportive, collaborative approach, helping you to strengthen family bonds, foster sensitive and thoughtful parenting, and reduce conflict. The goal is to create positive change and greater harmony at home.

At the heart of the group are ideas of expressing and exploring one’s mentalization: a parent’s ability to recognise and understand the thoughts, feelings, and needs of both their children and themselves. There is strong evidence of the value of understanding the intentions beneath a child’s behaviour, as well as developing a clearer awareness of one’s own inner world. This process of mentalizing plays a key role in healthy relationships and secure attachment. Research also shows that when parents reflect on the feelings, thoughts, and intentions behind both their child’s behaviour and their own reactions, it can act as a protective factor against difficult behaviour and conflicts.

Benefits of the Group

Parents who participate can expect to…

• Understand your child more deeply: Gain insight into your child's emotions and actions, building a stronger connection.

• Strengthen your family bond: Help your child feel recognised, valued, and understood, which fosters a closer relationship.

• Manage challenges with confidence: Learn to calm difficult moments, reduce emotional outbursts, and ease behavioural struggles.