Testimonials

Comments from previous Parenting from the Inside Out course participants:

  • ‘Thanks so much – Parenting From the Inside Out has helped me deal with so much. It has made me grow as a person.’
  • ‘I believe that this service should be available to everyone as I have learnt a lot about myself and relationships around me and have greater respect and understanding for my own relationships and parenting as I understand my children a lot better and have learnt to work together, not against.’
  • ‘This course has helped me realise a lot about my children, myself and our lives and has given us enormous strength and courage to begin our journey to a whole new life. Thank you.’
  • ‘I’ve learnt a lot about my daughter’s actions and why she is doing it because of doing this course. Thank you for being great teachers.’
  • ‘Ways to connect and create good relationships with my children.’
  • ‘A better understanding of why children do what they do and how to handle it.’
  • ‘Great course – I highly recommend it for all parents and people considering parenthood.’
  • ‘Gives you a better understanding to know the whys behind behaviour not only for your children but also for your partner and your parents and other relations/friends.’
  • ‘That it is a brilliant course that gives you a different perspective and understanding on parenting.’
  • ‘Thoroughly enjoyed this course, it has had an impact on me and I will be practising it at home.’
  • ‘This course helped me with issues that I wouldn’t have coped with.’
  • ‘Fun, exciting, learnt a lot. Very helpful. Feel that I can go home and become a better understanding parent.’
  • ‘Very different to other parenting courses. Insightful and understandable. Makes sense.’
  • ‘More courses in the future because this has helped me so much.’

Comments from foster and kinship carer workshop participants

Beyond Behaviour workshop participants have said

  • ‘This information has been extremely timely for me. It all makes sense now and has given me a very different direction to what I felt was a ’dead end’.
  • ‘The whole course was very informative and I learned many insights into our children’s behaviour. Helped to look beyond the square.’
  • ‘To be made aware to think of what you bring to the parenting interaction and then think of the child’s feelings.’
  • ‘It was very interesting and beneficial and able to be put into practice.’
  • ‘Great training and useful content for practical parenting.’
  • ‘How to identify attachment behaviours and to practically put learnings in place.’
  • The delivery – please don’t take offence – it was like “The Two Fat Ladies Cooking Show” which I found very refreshing. Social worker and psychologist working in partnership – there should be more of it.’
  • ‘All the workshop was beneficial. All that was presented was great! The handouts were good.’


Comments from Putting Principles Into Practice (PPIP) participants:

  • ‘How well it was run. If you have a problem with a child or children there is answers with this course.’
  • ‘It was a great experience. You can learn the difference between bringing up your own kids to bringing up foster kids.’
  • ‘It is definitely recommended for all carers, as you learn the skills to work with difficult children.’
  • ‘How to manage/support children in my care more efficiently and effectively. I feel far more empowered now which has created more calmness and a better outcome.’
  • ‘I have been using this in my own family. That the behaviours can be managed and that your reaction is important and take time away from the situation and think about what needs to be done.’

    • Comments from adoptive parenting course participants

    • ‘I feel more confident to be the best parent I can be – armed with knowledge.’
    • ‘Both lecturers were easy to listen to and knowledgeable.’
    • ‘I like your informal style – it puts people at ease.’
    • ‘An overall positive experience – I feel very good about my ability to be a parent and raise resilient independent children.’
    • ‘I will definietely be suggesting that everyone who adopts needs to do some form of attachment in adoption study!! It is truly the most valuable stuff I have come across in adoptive parenting.’
    • ‘Every parent in the country need to do this course! Not just the adoptive community.’
    • ‘I enjoyed this day; it gave me more skills and insights.’
    • ‘Very good – clear – friendly – well presented.’
    • ‘It would be great to have regular workshops like this. Please come back. Thank you.’
    • ‘It should be mandatory for all adoptive parents to go to this course so the awareness of some of the issues is there. Well done Narelle and Susan. Many thanks.’
    • ‘Well balanced course between instruction and participation, very flexible in approach.’
    • ‘Very impressed and grateful to have experienced it.’
    • ‘I think the course was well balanced and picked up on the level of knowledge of the group and adapted to that. The case histories/discussions were really good. Excellent, thank you.’
    • ‘Very informative. Learnt a lot about what to expect and how to manage our child’s behaviour. Thank you.’

    Comments from youth group participants

    • ‘When I found out I wasn’t the only one who felt like that.’
    • ‘Everything and having two awesome new teachers!’
    • ‘Learning that people’s lives aren’t easy.’
    • ‘To be happy and learn how to control my anger.’
    • ‘Learning new things about emotional behaviour.’
    • ‘I do not know but I love it.’
    • ‘Learning that everyone’s life isn’t perfect.’
    • ‘It was fun and you get to learn new behaviour and to talk about your emotions.’
    • ‘They will love it and never want to finish it.’
    • ‘It’s just worth it and awesome.’

    Comments from previous professional training workshops

    One professional said about the workshop:
    ‘I attended the Beyond Behaviours course in 2008 when I was a Child Safety Officer working for the Department of Child Safety.
    It is undoubtedly the best training that I have ever attended. Although I am extremely familiar with attachment research, having worked in child protection for 13 years and having taught the subject at QUT, this course added a valuable therapeutic dimension to working with damaged children.
    I have long been dissatisfied with traditional behaviour management techniques, feeling that managing surface behaviour does not address the emotional and psychological states from which such behaviour is driven.
    This course not only provided the vital theoretical links between neurology, behaviour and emotional state, it provided practical, hands on support to carers in order to successfully address the problem behaviour we see in children as a consequence of attachment issues. This is not about “managing” behaviour – this is about really hearing children and thus eliminating the child’s need for the behaviour.
    I have also used the knowledge and techniques most successfully in my engagement with undamaged children, for the key message is actually about hearing what children need to say, so that they don’t need to say it any more.
    The presenters also provide a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere within which to achieve very successful learning, for professionals and non-professionals alike.
    I would recommend this course to anyone engaging with damaged children – therapists, social workers, parents, foster carers, and professionals within the Department of Child Safety.
    As a private practitioner working with foster carers, I recommend this course all the time. I have had very positive feedback from carers who have done this course, and who wish to do more work in the same vein.
    As far as I am aware, no-one else is providing this sort of training. If Narelle and Susan could be cloned, and their work duplicated throughout the state, we might have a chance at addressing this vital and under-resourced issue.’
    Others have said:

    • ‘Was very easy to understand, interesting and easy to attend to the information.’
    • ‘Great to have DVDs to break it up. Good to have discussion as think we know most of the content, just valuable to re-hash it and put it in perspective.’
    • ‘Insight provoking. Realistic approach.’
    • ‘This training should be provided as part of Department orientation to new workers and as part of pre-natal check-up based training for all mums-to-be!’
    • ‘Liked the flexible relaxed approach. Liked the way it was structured.’
    • ‘Excellent grounded workshop. Thank you.’
    • ‘The delivery – please don’t take offence – it was like “The Two Fat Ladies Cooking Show” which I found very refreshing. Social worker and psychologist working in partnership – there should be more of it.’
    • ‘All the workshop was beneficial. All that was presented was great! The handouts were good.’