Parenting Education Programme a success

The Parenting Education Programme which was implemented in 2017 to teach parents effective parenting strategies without coercion and abusive actions, has been hailed by the programme manager of the the Citizen Security and Justice Programme (CSJP) III, Orville Simmonds as one of its most successful intervention programmes.

Simmonds was speaking at the graduation ceremony for 284 parents and 22 community parent trainers at the Spanish Court Hotel in New Kingston last week.

“Today we can say that hundreds of families have been positively impacted. Hundreds of households are now living in better relationships because of the parenting programme. This has been one of the most successful interventions of the CSJP. It has had its gaps and its weaknesses, but beyond a shadow of a doubt, it has been one of the most successful parenting interventions, not just through the CSJP, but anywhere in Jamaica” said Simmonds.

He added that although the programme is coming to an end, the benefits and the impact of it will continue through the graduates for generations to come.

“People might say, ‘Oh, oh, why is CSJP coming to an end?’ We are a project and we are coming to an end, but that is not the end of the game. The ministry will continue its support towards programmed interventions that can treat with crime and violence.

“It will in a way continue through you, because you are now practising better parenting that will continue. So the name of a programme called CSJP does not matter. What matters is that you will continue for the rest of your lives to practise positive parenting. The biggest vaccine against crime and violence is for children to be raised in a loving, caring, positive environment,” said Simmonds.

Representatives from international development partners, the Inter-American Development Bank, Francesco De Simone, and David Osborne from the Department for International Development also hailed the programme as a success.

Over the duration of the Parenting Education Programme, which started from November 2017, 422 parents from 30 communities across Jamaica were trained by 62 community parent trainers in two phases.