The effectiveness of a Learning Disability specific group parenting programme for parents of preschool and school-age children

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate whether a group parenting programme designed specifically for parents of children with a learning disability affected parental stress, confidence and understanding of children’s diagnosis and behaviour. It also aimed to identify any differences between parents of preschool children and parents of school-aged children, and to explore possible relationships between the variables measured.

Method: Parents of children with a learning disability (or global developmental delay if <5-years-old) were offered the intervention as part of routine practice and ‘opted in’ to take part in the evaluation. Parents of 34 children attended the ‘Confident Parenting’ group intervention and completed the Questionnaire on Resources and Stress – Short Form, and the Sheffield Learning Disability Outcome Measure.

Results: Results relating to the overall sample indicated a statistically significant decrease in parental stress and a statistically significant increase in parental confidence and understanding of their child’s behaviour following the programme. Within-group comparisons revealed statistically significant differences between preschool and school-age groups in terms of parental stress levels and changes in understanding of child’s diagnosis. Statistically significant relationships between variables emerged and are reported.

Conclusions: The study revealed that Confident Parenting can be an effective intervention for parents of both preschool and school-aged children. Differences in initial stress levels and impact on understanding of diagnosis were highlighted between the two age groups, thus Confident Parenting may be most effective as an early intervention.