Training and Education

Training the people who look after children and young people with disabilities

Between 2000 and 2019 we were at the forefront of providing many different training and educational programmes for Belarusian healthcare professionals, social workers, carers and teachers working with disabled children and young people. Over 20 professionals from the UK have donated their time and expertise to the programme to make real, long term difference to the lives of children in Belarus. Jean Holt Co-ordinated this programme for 12 years and then Geoff Wright took over as our training Co-ordinator.

By training Belarusian professionals in family placement for children unable to live with their biological parents we have helped to reduce the number of children living in large overcrowded institutions. You can read all about our role in deinstitutionalisation in Belarus here. We have delivered training in many aspects of child care and development from Early Intervention to Leaving Care; Child Centred Care; Managing Change; Fostering Children with Disabilities; Temporary Fostering for Babies; Restorative Justice; Family Group Conferencing; Working with Autistic Children; and a major training programme on Social Work Skills.

One of CCP’s biggest ever projects was funded by UNICEF and involved teams in three different areas working to support families with children with disabilities. The objective of the project was to encourage better co-operation between Education, Social Protection and Health Services in the future and 45 families were included in the project in Rechitsa, Rogachev and Gomel. A large element of this project involved giving training courses to the relevant project participants in Belarus. You can read Geoff Wright’s report describing one of his final training courses here: UNICEF Project Training October 2018

In a more recent special report, Geoff has reflected on his training in Belarus over the last ten years. The report provides a unique insight into the attitudes and methodology of a different culture and how, through activities and interventions such as those in CCP’s training, efforts have been made to change those attitudes and processes in a very positive way.