It can be delivered over 6-12 sessions to groups of parents or to individual families.
The Early Years Programme can be delivered as a universal programme for parents of children aged 1 to 6 years including those with additional needs such as ADHD, Autism, and other developmental differences.
Supporting Parents
By attending Parents Plus training to become a facilitator for the Early Years Programme, you will learn how to support parents to:
develop good attachments and relationships with their children
understand and manage tantrums and meltdowns
build their children’s communication and learning
problem-solve challenges as they arise
reduce their own stress as parents
promote their children’s self-esteem and well-being
establish positive daily routines for their family
Making an Impact
Studies in primary schools, mental health aIn a large study of primary care, mental health Studies in preschool, mental health and early intervention settings have shown that families who complete the Parents Plus Early Years programme report:
Increased child positive social behaviour
Increased school readiness
Reduced emotional problems
Decreased parents stress
Increase parental confidence
The Parents Plus Programmes are backed by over 25 years of research and have a strong evidence base that demonstrates positive outcomes for families who complete the programmes. Learn more about the Parents Plus evidence-base and research.
We see the evidence. The Parent Plus Early Years Programme has proven to be very successful for the parents we work with and is now a valuable and regular part of our multi-disciplinary team work.
Kathleen O’Hara, Early Intervention
Train as a Parents Plus Early Years Programme Facilitator
What will you learn?
The Early Years Programme facilitator training is practical and solution-focused and will provide you with the essential skills to achieve the best outcomes for the parents and families who attend your service.
You will learn how to deliver the Parents Plus Early Years Programme as:
One-off short workshops tailored to the needs of your parents
A six to twelve week group intervention, combining group and individual sessions
An individual programme delivered to parents in the home over a period of up to one year.
By the end of the training, you will:
Understand the core components of the Early Years Programme and be ready to use the programme with parents and children, both in groups and individually.
Demonstrate key skills in solution-focused group facilitation including engagement, retention and responding constructively to challenges; strengthening inter-agency and community partnerships; and using solution focused video feedback with parents.
The training is interactive with lots of opportunities for participation and group learning.
Attendance at our facilitator training for this programme is compulsory prior to delivering it to families attending your service.
Parents Plus programmes must be co-facilitated, therefore, at least two facilitators need to be trained before a programme can be delivered to families in your agency.
Facilitators who go on to complete our accreditation process are licensed to run the programme without a co-facilitator.
Tailored for services and agencies, this option allows us to deliver the training directly to your team online or at your chosen location. It includes the same comprehensive content as our scheduled training but can be customised to meet the specific needs of your team.
Prior to training we can work with you to:
Identify the specific outcomes that you want to achieve within your service or community
Identify the target families you wish to deliver the Parents Plus programmes to
Conduct an assessment of family needs and goals
Match specific Parents Plus programmes for target groups to achieve best outcomes
Plan training for facilitators in the relevant programmes
Avail of post-training support to implement your programmes and ensure sustainability
Follow the Parents Plus quality protocol as you deliver the groups to guarantee the best results
Support your facilitators through the accreditation process to ensure that your programmes are run consistently in your agency
Both tailored facilitator training and scheduled facilitator training include access to the full suite of Parents Plus resources, ongoing implementation support, and an opportunity to join the Parents Plus Community of Practice.
If you are a manager, service commissioner, or a lead facilitator and you would like to avail of our tailored training or discuss your service needs and programme implementation, please contact our Impact Lead, Vicki Byrne at ivpxv%40cneragfcyhf.vr.
The next facilitator training for our Early Years programme will be delivered on 29th, 30th September & 1st, 6th, 7th October 2025(9.15am-1.30pm).
It will consist of five online workshops via Zoom. Participants are also invited to complete a short assignment between workshops. A summary of the training is provided below and a detailed breakdown can be accessed here.
29th Sept
PPEY programme background, delivery formats, and content
30th Sept
PPEY core delivery content and modules
1st Oct
Groupwork and Session Delivery Practice
6th Oct
Individual family delivery ( parent goals, portfolio folder, video practice)
7th Oct
One off workshops, recruiting parents, group skills, quality protocol
Community of Practice
On completion of the above training dates, facilitators are encouraged to avail of our Community of Practice sessions which are included in your training package. Dates and registration are availablehere
Five modules
Parents Plus offer a small number of part-sponsored places on the training when accessing finance is difficult.
The Parents Plus Early Years Programme package includes a wide range of materials to ensure it’s effective delivery.
Access to video clips with 2.5 hours of footage of real family interactions, with comments from professionals and parents.
A comprehensive facilitator’s manual with detailed guides to plan and structure each session, for all delivery formats.
Parent Book – Bound parent book for six to nine session group course format, containing all the programme handouts and worksheets for participants.
Parent Pack – Folder of handouts to be given one by one to parents for the Core Delivery format.
A copy of the book ‘Parenting Preschoolers and Young Children‘ by John Sharry, Grainne Hampson and Mary Fanning.
Posters to highlight key programme concepts.
When running subsequent courses, trained facilitators can purchase additional parent books at cost price. Trained facilitators are also licensed to copy worksheets and handouts from the parent books, as an alternative.
The Parents Plus Support Package
Research shows that families achieve the best outcomes when facilitators and their managers are supported pre and post-training to deliver programmes. We provide a comprehensive package of pre and post-training supports to our facilitators and managers in order to ensure a sustainable and effective delivery of the programmes within their agency.
After training, practitioners join our Community of Practice, where they receive ongoing mentoring and support with programme implementation and delivery as well as access to additional resources. We believe that continued support is key to successful programme delivery and achieving positive outcomes for children, young people, and families. The Parents Plus Community of Practice is highly-valued by practitioners once they train.
Read on to learn about the supports that we offer and our accreditation process.
What supports do Parents Plus offer?
Parents Plus provide a comprehensive package of supports to our facilitators, including:
Implementation support to get groups off the ground, including planning workshops and coaching for managers.
Individual and group supervision sessions with an experienced Parents Plus Trainer.
Advanced training workshops on specific topics.
Extra resources to facilitate delivery, e.g. fliers, posters, certificates, practice articles, parenting articles, supplementary handouts.
Support to promote your Parents Plus courses in your community.
Advice and guidance on evaluating and monitoring outcomes in your agency to ensure your groups are effective.
Access to two individual supervision sessions free of charge in the first year post-training.
Sponsorship for further supervision is available on application.
How do I become an accredited facilitator?
For facilitators who want to take their practice to a higher level, Parents Plus also has an established accreditation process which supports you to refine your facilitation skills and professional practice and reach a high standard of delivery.
Representing a major CPD achievement, accreditation allows you to deliver our programmes independently and to work towards becoming a Parents Plus supervisor. You can read more about our accreditation process in the resources section.
The Parents Plus Quality Protocol is the basis of becoming an Accredited Facilitator. We recommend that facilitators continue to follow the Quality Protocol post-training and post accreditation to ensure fidelity to the principles.
Parents Plus are here to support you every step of the way in your implementation process.
We provide coaching to managers and project leads, and can facilitate planning workshops for large multi-agency community roll outs.
If you are a manager, service commissioner, or a lead facilitator and you would like to avail of our tailored training or discuss your service needs and programme implementation, please contact our Impact Lead, Vicki Byrne at ivpxv%40cneragfcyhf.vr.
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