Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) has started a Parental Effectiveness Training (PET) programme for the staff at the Education and Training Centre for Children (ETCC), this weekend. A total of 15 staff members are participating in this programme, which is being run at ETCC in Maafushi, with 4 full day sessions, to be covered over a two week period.
The PET training is being conducted by certified instructors and is intended to create better communication between parents/caregivers and children so that they can better understand the problems and concerns of children in order to act more accordingly for their benefit.
As the staff of ETCC are tasked with taking on parental roles for 37 children presently living at the Shelter, ARC remains confident that this programme will not only help improve the quality of care received by the children but also improve the relationship between the care-workers and the children.
ARC also conducted a similar PET programme for the careworkers of Kudakudhinge Hiya in July 2011.