The Race Equality Foundation is delighted to announce that it is part of a range of projects launched today by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to reduce parental conflict.
The Foundation is part of the Challenge Fund 2, which will enable the charity to extend its high-quality support to more Black, Asian, and minority ethnic parents and carers. Its goal is to help parents effectively manage parental conflict and reduce stress within their families.
The Challenge Fund 2 has eight new projects launching across England to reduce parental conflict and put children first with:
- Funding to target families at risk of conflict and catch problems early, including those with more complex needs;
- Face-to-face and digital support to promote healthier relationships between parents, helping families lead more fulfilling lives.
The Foundation is excited about the opportunity to build upon the knowledge gained from the successful Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities Programme. This evidence-based programme has provided valuable insights into engaging with and meeting the needs of Black, Asian, and minority ethnic parents. Its focus with this project will be on reducing parental conflict.
To achieve its goal, the Foundation plans to work with co-parents in various situations. This includes couples who live and parent together, parents who do not live together, and extended family members who play a significant role in raising children. It will offer online learning, facilitated group sessions, and in-person programmes to support these individuals.
The Foundation is particularly pleased that the funding will allow it to collaborate with expert community organisations. Together, it will co-produce innovative workshops that assist co-parents living in separate households. The aim is to help them develop workable parenting plans without involving the courts.
The Foundation also wants to highlight the importance of evaluation and learning within the Challenge Fund 2. This focus will enable it to gather evidence on the most effective strategies for reducing parental conflict among Black, Asian, and minority ethnic families. Over the next 18 months, the charity will collect this valuable data and share it with the wider sector.
Leandra Box, Programme Manager, Race Equality Foundation, said:
“We are really pleased to receive this support from Challenge Fund 2. It will allow us to do more to help more Black, Asian, and minority ethnic parents and carers. Building on the success of our Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities Programme, we aim to engage with and meet the needs of these parents, focusing on reducing parental discord, with parents in various situations. We look forward to working collaboratively with expert community organisations to help create workable parenting plans and support more families to thrive.”
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Race Equality Foundation
Race Equality Foundation is a national charity tackling racial inequality in public services to improve the lives of Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. The Foundation believes that everyone should be provided with the opportunities to flourish. The charity was established in 1987 as part of the National Institute for Social Work (NISW) and was first known as the Race Equality Unit. It became an independent charitable organisation in 1995. In 2006, the Race Equality Unit changed its name to the Race Equality Foundation.
Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) is an inclusive evidence-based parenting programme, designed to promote protective factors which are associated with good parenting and better outcomes for children.
SFSC has enjoyed success with parents from a number of backgrounds, including Black and minority ethnic parents, teenage parents, parents with learning disabilities and parents from marginalised communities, including those with experience of drugs, alcohol or violence. SFSC also offers supplements to the main 13-week curriculum to address parenting children under five, issues relating to serious youth violence, radicalisation and extremism, employment and training, improved sexual and reproductive health and wellbeing, and reducing parental conflict.
Challenge Fund 2
The DWP’s Reducing Parental Conflict was launched in 2018 to support children growing up around difficult relationships at home – whether their parents are together or separated.
The Reducing Parental Conflict programme understands how exposure to frequent, intense, and poorly resolved conflict can lead to much poorer life outcomes for children – their educational attainment, emotional and social development and later life employability. The programme seeks to address parental conflict where there is no evidence of domestic abuse.
The Government has committed up to £33 million to continue running the programme between 2022 and 2025.
DWP’s research on Reducing Parental Conflict is available here.
The £2.8m fund is managed by Ecorys UK in coordination with other government departments’ programmes including Family Hubs and Supporting Families. Ecorys UK will oversee the delivery of final projects.
The projects will run for 18 months from June 2023 to November 2024.
