Patenprojekt Köln | Help for children of mentally ill parents

Mentors support children of mentally ill parents in their everyday life. This takes place by the hour during the week or at weekends ("stand-by phase"). The godparents take the children into their household if the affected parent has to be treated as an inpatient and no other care is possible for the child ("acute phase"). The godparents thus support the parents in their educational task and contribute to the stabilisation of the domestic situation with their offer.

The sponsorship is a voluntary offer to the parents and is not necessarily bound to other installed help by the youth welfare office. A written agreement between sponsor, parents and godparents regulates their assignment. They receive preliminary training and accompanying counselling. Target group Children of mentally ill parents between 0 and 14 years of age who do not yet have an intensive need for help themselves. The sponsorship contacts take place continuously (approx. 3 hours a week) and are subject to a commitment. The sick parent takes up help himself either in the context of a social-pedagogical family assistance, assisted living or other therapeutic help offers.

The aim is to support children in a particularly stressful family situation caused by the chronic illness of a parent. Families with a mentally ill member are often isolated and lack a support network. Reliable relationships outside the parental home should be established. Traumatising experiences during an upcoming hospital stay of the ill person and the possibly associated placement of the children in foster families and residential institutions should be avoided.

At the beginning, an "initiation" takes place together with the specialist counselling. In the initial phase, it should be seen how the "chemistry" is between the sponsors and the families and whether a sponsor contract is concluded. If such a contract is concluded, the weekly care time for the children should be about 3 hours.

In the "acute phase", the godparents take the children into their household if the affected parent has to be treated as an inpatient and no other care is possible for the child.

Services of the godparents in the "standby phase":

- Provision of continuous reliable relationship partners for the child outside the family

- Support of the child in play, leisure time or also in school matters such as homework.

- Care for the child during the specified times; possibly overnight stays by arrangement - Support for parents with school and kindergarten appointments, etc.

- Contact with the parents, exchange about educational issues - Picking up the child or transporting it back to the parents Services of the advisors or project management

- Training of the godparents - Networking with other possibly existing support systems - Accompanying counselling of the godparents, monthly individual counselling, additional telephone contacts

- Monitoring of the sponsorship; documentation of the sponsors, 3-monthly meetings of all participants

- Contacts with therapists, youth welfare office, clinics

- Consultation with the Youth Welfare Office in the event that a child is taken into the household of the godparents.

- Age: (at least) 18 years
- Certificate of good conduct: extended FZ necessary

Services:

• Guidance by professionals
• Exchange of experience
• Reimbursement of costs incurred
• Further training/qualification offers
• free use of further offers
• regular information
• Supervision
• Activity certificates
• Accident insurance