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The Rainbow Parent Course is an eight-week interactive course for parents and carers of children who have recently received a diagnosis of autism, or are on the diagnosis journey. It has been designed for parents and carers of children between the ages of three to twelve years of age.
The aims of this course are to:
The course has been written and developed by Hazel Smee and Angie Purdy, independent specialist teachers and consultants for children and young people with autism. All of the course leads have previously been specialist teachers for autism within Essex Local Authority, and are passionate about supporting children and young people with autism and their families. The team present the Rainbow Parent Course through live online sessions, with places limited to twelve screens to give attendees the best opportunity to learn from each other and network with parents who are going through similar experiences. Two family members are able to attend on the same screen, allowing you to learn from the course with a partner, friend, or support worker.
"Through the course we have found the chance to meet other parents during the sessions who are in similar situations has been a great help, just to discuss issues and similarities has been comforting."
Peter & Sarah
We provide recommended resources for you to access for each session, including videos, useful links, and written content collated to encourage wider reading and show the breadth of resources available.
All information that you choose to share during the course will be treated in the utmost confidence by the course organisers - we aim to establish a safe space where all attendees feel supported and able to address any concerns or questions they may have.
Before the course begins, we begin by gathering some information to help us make our sessions together as helpful and supportive as we can. These questions cover details about the child's age, diagnosis, communication / language skills, and sensory sensitivities, as well as offering you the opportunity to say what you hope to take away from the course, and any specific topics that you would like covered during the eight weeks. In our 'Over to you' session at the end of the course, you will have the space to ask any questions and raise topics that may not have been covered, allowing you to get as much as possible from your time with us.
Course content includes:
Week One: Exploring Autism
Building on your understanding of your child
Week Two: The world through their eyes
How to help your child make sense of what is going on around them
Week Three: The art of communication
Understanding your child’s communication skills and how to support them
Week Four: Being social
How to support your child’s social understanding
Week Five: Sensational senses
Exploring differences in sensory processing and what it means for your child
Week Six: Nurturing well-being and emotional regulation
Anxiety and helping your child understand how they feel
Week Seven: Behaviour as communication
Making sense of the tricky bits
Week Eight: Over to you
A bespoke session covering topics not covered in other sessions and decided by the group
"Angie and Hazel are exceptional and their Rainbow Parent Course is the best course I have ever accessed in 20 years of teaching... their experience of what works is invaluable and this is reflected in the outcomes, not just for our daughter, but for our family."
Jane
Eight week Rainbow Parent Course attendance: one screen (up to two participants) - £400
A deposit of £50 must be paid to secure the booking, after which time the full cost of the assessment should be paid no later than 7 days prior to the appointment. Should you need to cancel for any reason, a refund will be offered if we are informed 7 or more days prior to the appointment. However, there will be a cancellation fee of 50% which will be deducted from your refund total. We must be notified of all cancellations no later than 48 hours before the appointment. All cancellations made within 48 hours of the first session will not be offered a refund. This includes non-attendance at the first session.
