The parenting programme was developed jointly by 100 Black Men of London and BTEG. As the idea of a big society develops it is clear that the ‘family unit’ should be more than just mother and father. In the black community the family needs to include other key and influential and non family members who could also play an enabling role.

The research findings are based on interviews and workshops delivered over a ten week period with forty-seven parents from London during November 2010 - June 2011. All the workshops were held on Saturdays which demonstrated commitment from the parents. Some parents felt inadequate and powerless but were working hard to find practical solutions. Some parents were struggling to ensure their children were brought up with strong morals and values but were at the time mindful of the strength of relationships that were out of their control (.e.g. peer pressure) and which threatened to undermine the work they were doing in raising their child.

Social networking and technology were identified as key areas for development that parents needed to be better informed about.

The pilot programme showed that parents:

• Were better informed and felt more able to take greater control of their lives and access helpful information that they need e.g. parents found checklists and questions to ask schools invaluable.

• Were more aware of the things they can do, for instance attending parent’s evenings and taking a more proactive stance around their children’s education.

• Improved their communication skills and developed confidence (e.g. parents reported making changes to their child’s social networking activities. One parent remarked that the programme gave him ‘…the opportunity to show [his child] how important education was…’

The report’s author, Karl Murray, BTEG’s Head of Research says:

‘100 Black men and BTEG commend black parents for participating in this pilot programme. Parents are often cited as the reason why young people go off the rails and yet hardly any attention is being paid to the multiple pressures that they face and the sort of support they urgently need in order to undertake the role of being a parent.’

Olu Alake, the President of the 100BMOL, says: “the programme has enabled parents to better understand that parenting is a process. We should not parent out of fear but must communicate with our children continually.”

Download the report:

An evaluation of the Parents in Partnership Programme (PiP)
2011-11-16  264.97 KB  98

End.

Notes to the Editor

1. BTEG is a national charity which was set up in 1991 by Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) voluntary and community organisations from across the country. The charity works to support local Black and Minority Ethnic organisations that help people into work and advises government departments. BTEG is supported by Trust for London, City Bridge Trust, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust and Ministry of Justice.

2. As part of the Department for Community and Local Government’s Tackling Race Inequalities strategy: Improving Communities (2008), in February, 2009, the then Government announced proposals to support third sector organisations through the Tackling Race Inequalities Fund (TRIF) to explore concerns of racial equality. The funding came to an end in June 2011.

3. The research extended the work being done on the REACH national role model programme. The REACH programme activities focused primarily on the role models and engaging with local organisations working with young black males, the aim of the research was to focus on BME families to understand the issues and challenges that they are facing in accessing appropriate support services

4. The Executive summary report, entitled, Supporting and strengthening BAME Families - an evaluation of the Parents in Partnership programme (PIP) can be downloaded from the BTEG web-site. The full report can be obtained by contacting Karl Murray, Head of Research. Tel: 020 7843 6133 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

5. BTEG is a registered charity No: 1056043

6. The 100 Black Men of London is a charity dedicated to the education and development of children, young people and the wider community. They are a chapter of the 100 Black Men International Inc, an organisation first created in New York in 1963 by a group of concerned African-American men determined to bring about positive change in their local communities. The Parents in Partnership programme is the first programme to be directly linked to a mentoring programme (i.e. the Me I Can Be mentoring programme).

Contact: 08701214100, 100 Black Men of London, The Bridge, 12 - 16 Clerkenwell Road, London EC1M 5PQ or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it