8.30 Registration and
Coffee
9.00 Welcome and Opening Remarks from the Chair
Diane Vivian,
National Convenor, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust NZ
Dr Ian Hassall,
Research Associate, Institute of Public Policy, AUT University
9.10 Keynote Address from the Minister of Social
Development
In this
session, the Minister of Social Development outlines the Government policies
that will provide support for the role that grandparents play in caring for
children as primary caregivers in our society and discusses the Government’s
progress towards bringing New Zealand’s laws into line with the state’s
obligations under the UN Conventions on the Rights of the Child.
Honourable Paula Bennett, Minister for Social Development
9.40 Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust NZ: 2009
Research Report Update
A grandchild being raised by
grandparents is a growing global phenomenon with significantly more children in
grandparent care than in foster care in New Zealand. Yet by comparison they
don’t receive the same support and resources for costs associated with the
physical and psychological disabilities they suffer as they would in foster
care. In 2004 the GRG Trust NZ
commissioned an extensive survey of 323 New Zealand grandparent and other kin
caregivers, the results of which showed that two-thirds are raising
grandchildren on an income under $40,000 with nearly 40% struggling to do so on
less than $20,000 per annum! An updated survey has been completed in 2009.
·
Five years
later, what has changed?
·
What concerns
and issues still need to be addressed?
·
What has been
the impact (if any) of recent legislative and budgetary policy changes?
Jill Worrall MNZM, Honorary Research Fellow,
Massey University
10.20 Demystifying the Financial Support Available
for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
This session provides and update
to the various income support benefits available from Work and Income,
providing a practical guide with tips and information to ensure grandparents
are getting the financial support to which they are entitled in their important
role as primary caregiver of grandchildren.
Speakers from Work
and Income (to be confirmed)
10.50 Open Forum
Facilitated
by the Chair, this session provides an opportunity for questions, discussion
and reflection on the issues raised by the earlier speakers.
11.10 Morning Tea
11.40 Understanding the Complexities of the School System and
What You Need to Know Before Your Child Starts Secondary School
Choosing
the right school for your grandchild and guiding them through their secondary
schooling system is complex in today’s environment. However if
you know how the systems work, who does what and who to contact when
support is needed then familiarity breeds a confidence that enables
you to work alongside the school for the benefit of your
grandchildren. In this session key insights will be given as to how you
can ensure your grandchild makes the most of their education at secondary
school including:
·
School based programmes, staff: Who does what and how they can
help?
·
Accessing learning support for special needs
·
Systems of assessment, NCEA unit standards and achievement standards
·
Pastoral care, truancy, discipline, bullying, anxiety and depression
·
Community resources: Who is out there and how can you contact them?
·
Working as a team and cheering from the sidelines.
Julie Mulcahy and Debbie Knowles,
Springboardnz
12.40 Lunch
WORKSHOP
1.40 Personalities Unravelled
“Once we can understand the temperament
of the person whom we seek to influence,our interactions are much more likely
to be positive and we are more likely to see “Personality” rather than “Pest”. Diane
Levy
Much of our behaviour and that of
our grandchildren is the result of Nature rather than Nurture. Diane Levy believes that we are born with an
innate temperament and it is a parent’s/grandparent’s job to raise our children
so that they keep their innate nature intact, but modify “round the edges” so
that they can fit into the society they live in. In a light-hearted session, but with serious
intent, this workshop will help you understand your own personality and the
personalities of the people (both tall and short) with whom you interact.
·
Who am I?
·
Who am I dealing with?
·
Combination Personalities
·
Who do we choose as partners?
·
Who do we understand and who annoys us
·
What if we cannot be who we are supposed to be?
Diane Levy, Parent Educator, Family Therapist and Author
2.40 Afternoon Tea
3.00 SEX, DRUGS AND ROCK ‘N ROLL!!
“It wasn’t
like this in my day! Educating Grandparents on Educating Grandchildren!
"There is a lot of evidence that kids
are almost forced into sexual activity, are uncomfortable with it, and it
causes them a lot of anxiety. Without helping them to understand their bodies
better and to gain judgement, can we really imagine that they can resist the
hormonal urges, the peer pressure and the media-based sexual onslaughts for
five years or more? Just telling them to keep their legs crossed is not
enough." [Professor Peter Gluckman, Liggins Institute Director,
Sunday Star Times 12/10/2008]
Part I Sex and Drugs
Navigating the minefield of the ‘tween-age’
and teenage years is difficult for parents let alone grandparents. In this session
the multidisciplinary panel will provide an insight into:
Sex –
·
The facts and figures. What is happening amongst the youth of today?
·
Sexual health education. What is being taught in our schools and what
are its limits?
·
When and where to get professional help
Drugs –
·
The sub-culture of drug-taking and alcohol abuse amongst our youth today
·
Identifying the signs of drug use and alcohol abuse in teens
·
How and where to get help
·
Protecting yourself
Sergeant Deane McEntee, New Zealand Police
Kendyl Smith, Attitude Manager www.attitude.org.nz
Part II ‘Having the talk’ The How-To in Communicating
with your Grandchildren
‘Having THE talk’ and raising the issues of
sex and talking about drugs and alcohol abuse can put the fear of God into many
parents and grandparents. The reality is, however, that it is an essential part
of parenting and guiding your children and grandchildren through to adulthood
and not something that you can or should leave up to their peers or the school
to take care of. But let’s face it – with a generation gap between you and your
grandchildren - how do you talk to them about these issues in a way that won’t
get you both freaked out in the process?
In this insightful and entertaining session, the dos and don’ts of
communicating with your tween or teenager are explored.
John Cowan, Senior
Writer and Presenter, ParentsInc. www.parentsinc.org.nz
4.30 A Surprise Guest!
WORKSHOP
4.40 BabyCARES and Taking Care of You
Infants and young children need
more than efficient and well-managed care; they need one on one contact with
someone special with whom they can form a secure attachment relationship. The formation
of responsive and respectful relationships can determine life-long outcomes for
young children. But to provide that care for infants and young children it is
important that you first care for you.
This experiential workshop provides you with an opportunity to see
‘care’ through different eyes and confirm the importance of caring for you to
care for others.
Ingrid
Chettleburgh, PORSE In-Home Childcare and Educator Training Field Support
Manager
5.30 Closing Remarks from the Chair and Conclusion
of Day One
7.00 Conference Dinner
Day Two – Thursday 29 October 2009
NOTE: 8.00 - 10.00 GRG Support Group Coordinators Training
Forum – Novotel Ellerslie
Breakfast for Coordinators of
local GRG Support Groups will commence at 7.00am in the training room at the
Novotel Ellerslie.
The training session will begin at 8.00am until 9.30am,
which the Coordinators will rejoin the main conference delegates at the
Ellerslie Convention Centre at 10.00am.
9.00 Opening Remarks from the Chair
9.10 Grandparents as Educators to their
Grandchildren
Providing
practical tips for grandparents educating and raising their grandchildren, this
session will provide an introduction to the organisation; PORSE, and examine:
·
The importance of a grandparent’s role as an educator
·
How PORSE can help you become an effective grandparent educator
·
How you can become eligible for financial assistance in your role
·
How you can tap into the PORSE network of educators for support and
respite
Porse Facilitators
10.00 Supporting our Grandchildren through Angry
and Upset Feelings
The general
Kiwi way of looking at childish tantrums is to describe them as
“attention-seeking” and, in a previous generation, “just needs a good hiding.”
When we have an angry, upset child in front of us, we often have an urge to
ignore them or exile them so that they will learn that that they cannot get
away with that sort of behaviour. Diane Levy’s approach is a long way from
“praise or punish.” She will show us how
she developed a different way of thinking about our grandchildren’s anger, how
to sort out whether we are dealing with a wobbly of control, upset or despair
and practical suggestions about what we can do.
·
How I learned to change my mind
·
How we were designed to be raised
·
What doesn’t work
·
What works simply
·
Practical examples
·
But surely there are times when they might benefit from my advice!
Diane Levy, Parent Educator, Family Therapist and Author
11.00 Morning Tea
11.20 Understanding the
Impact of Loss, Separation, Neglect and Abuse on Children's Attachments to
their Caregivers
Children's brain development and the patterns in the way they form relationships
is profoundly influenced by the quality of care they receive from their
caregivers, especially in their first two years of life. This creates the
foundation for how they react to adverse events that may occur later in their
childhood, and how they respond to those who are caring for them.
·
What is attachment?
·
Four attachment patterns
·
The needs cycle of attachment
·
A two-year process of attachment formation
·
Brain functioning and the impact of neglect, abuse and/or trauma on its
development
·
Demonstration of loving and caring water
·
Practical ways for caregivers to start repairing the child's capacity to
form secure attachments
Judith Morris, Psychotherapist/Social Worker
12.20 Lunch
1.20 Getting our
Grandchildren to “Do as they are told!”
Diane
Levy believes that a well-behaved grandchild can be a pleasure to be with. If only we can just get them to behave, we
are freed up to enjoy their company. In
this highly practical, what-to-do session, Diane shows us effective steps to
get our grandchildren to do as they are asked.
She also tackles the difficult topics and how to sort out the sort of
mayhem that can happen when we deal with sibling scraps.
·
The Vicious Cycle
·
How to tell Grandchildren what to do
·
What if they don’t?
·
Time Out without punishment or consequences
·
What to do about hitting, biting, taunting and swearing?
·
What to do about sibling fights?
·
When ‘Time Out’ isn’t the answer
Diane Levy, Parent Educator,
Family Therapist and Author
2.20 Spotlights on the Care of Children Law
When determining what is in a
child’s welfare and best interests, The Care of Children Act 2004 enshrined a
mandatory requirement for the court to establish the views and wishes of
children. The Act was also designed to
break down the barriers to grandparents and other kin carers involved in the
day to day care of children, and their involvement in cases before the
court. Recent changes to the law also
affect the options and counselling resources available for children involved
in, or the subject of, disputes before the Family Court. Five years on this
session takes a critical look at the trends in judicial decision-making and
dispute resolution including:
·
The trends in interviewing children to ascertain their views and wishes
·
Are judges going too far and placing too much weight on a child’s stated
views and wishes when making decisions in their best interests?
·
Recent research and what it reveals about the impact the law is having
on grandchildren in grandparent care?
·
What changes to the law and system (if any) are necessary?
Professor Mark Henaghan, Dean of Law,
University of Otago
3.10 Afternoon Tea
3.20 Taking Care of Your Estate and Assets
In recent years there have been a
number of significant changes to the laws affecting wills and estates. For many grandparents there are concerns
about making adequate provision for their families along with the constant
financial pressures of meeting the day to day needs of themselves and their
grandchildren. This session will examine the various estate planning issues
Grandparents should be considering and the pitfalls to avoid.
Andrew Schnauer,
Partner, Schnauer and Co
4.20 Open Forum
Facilitated by the Chair, this
session provides an opportunity for questions, discussion and reflection on the
issues raised by the earlier speakers.
4.30 Closing Remarks from the Chair
4.40 Conference Concludes
