The team were nominated by Consultant Clinical Psychologist Dr Nicola Connolly.

In the picture above, from left: Katy Fitzgerald, Nicola Connolly, Wendy Franza, Laura Tozer and Stephanie Bremner.

Nicola wrote:

“ReConnect staff work with parents whose children are on child protection plans. They work hard at engaging difficult-to-reach clients who already have a sense of mistrust of professionals.

“The staff in ReConnect demonstrate an engaging and curious approach when working with clients but at the same time hold the child’s welfare in mind. The team will share information with social care where there are safeguarding concerns, but they manage to hold both the child’s welfare and the client’s perspective in mind at the same time.

“The team recognises that they are continually learning from clients and their experiences, and client feedback is central to shaping the service.

“Ex-service users have contributed to attending the first session of our group therapy programme to help allay current clients’ fears. Service users have contributed to joint presentations about the service.

“ReConnect has helped many service users reduce the risks that they had posed to their children with three quarters of clients coming off child protection plans, and cases closed to social care. The service offers intensive early intervention to parents to bring about change to intergenerational cycles of abuse/neglect.”