The Creative Communication guide is an essential resource for professionals working with children and young people, particularly in child protection and social care contexts. This guide showcases tools and techniques that support meaningful engagement with children, helping them express their thoughts, emotions, and experiences in a safe and creative way. Rooted in the Signs of Safety approach, it provides practical strategies for involving children in assessments and decision-making processes, ensuring their voices are heard and respected.
What’s This Resource About?
This guide highlights various creative communication methods that professionals can use to build trust, reduce anxiety, and empower children to share their stories. It focuses on tools designed for children who have experienced trauma, neglect, or abuse, and aims to provide a framework for understanding their perspectives while developing safety plans and solutions.
Tools, Techniques and Templates Featured:
- Three Houses Tool: Helps children map out their worries, strengths, and hopes for the future through drawing or writing.
- Safety Circles and Safety House: Enables children to identify people and actions that make them feel safe.
- Words and Pictures: Explains complex situations like family changes or safety concerns in a way children can easily understand.
- Fairies and Wizards: A playful approach to exploring problems, solutions, and dreams using magical characters.
- Customisable Templates: Includes materials that can be tailored to the needs and interests of each child, such as visual aids, scaling tools, and drawing exercises.
Who Can Benefit?
This guide is ideal for social workers, educators, therapists, and other professionals who want to enhance their communication with children. By fostering creativity and emotional expression, it helps professionals develop comprehensive assessments, address safety concerns, and create child-centred solutions that truly reflect the child’s voice.
With its innovative approaches and practical insights, Creative Communication with Children and Young People is a valuable tool for anyone committed to supporting children through challenging circumstances in a compassionate and effective way.
