Life Story Work Foundations

Life Story Work offers an approach that can assist many people, especially children and young people in out-of-home care, to develop a positive identity and cohesive narrative about their life. Life Story Work can also build family connections as well as provide ongoing opportunities to resolve past and continuing traumas, such as complex grief and loss that might be associated with their family of origin. This workshop will enable participants to explore frameworks, develop skills and discover a variety of methods to establish the foundations for effective Life Story Work. This will include ways in which a range of key adults can be involved in the process of Life Story Work.

This workshop will provide participants with the opportunity to:

• Define the nature, purpose and potential of Life Story Work
• Identify common areas of discomfort for adults when working with children's pain
• Identify a range of Life Story Work processes and methods which can be used with children and young people (including digital platforms)
• Discuss children's experience of loss within a developmental framework
• Discuss ways in which parents, care givers and caseworkers can complement each other
  in Life Story Work

Who should attend?

OOHC case workers, residential care workers, managers and carers