Parents Plus CLG is Seeking New Directors to be on the Board
Parents Plus CLG is a dynamic small Irish Charity that works to develop and disseminate evidence based parenting and mental health programmes for families. The Parents Plus Programmes are delivered throughout Ireland and internationally in the UK and further afield. Currently, the Parents Plus programmes are the most used parenting materials in Ireland.
Organisation Structure
Parents Plus was established as a registered charity under the auspices of the Mater Hospital in 2001 (Charity No. CHY 13664) and a company limited by guarantee in 2013 (CRO 530105). The conduct of our organisation is governed by our Memorandum and Articles of Association. All profits from sales of programmes and training are re-invested in developing new materials and sponsoring facilitator training. Parents Plus also receives funding through a variety of grants and government bodies, including An Pobal/ Department of the Environment and the ESB. Recently, Parents Plus was awarded an innovation grant via TUSLA to develop the Parents Plus Healthy Families Programme. Parents Plus is governed by a voluntary board and run by a small number of part-time staff. Parents Plus has signed up to the Charity Governance Code.
See www.parentsplus.ie/about for details of the current directors and key personnel.
New Directors – Person Specification
Parents Plus is currently looking for talented and motivated new Trustees who can advise and guide Parents Plus to the next stage of its development. We are also looking for potential Trustees who:
- Have experience of delivering the Parents Plus Programmes in frontline agencies and/or managing the roll out of the programmes to communities.
- Are parents who have attended a Parents Plus programme and who could represent the views of parents and families.
- May not be directly involved in the services above but who might have specific skills in:
- Organisation Development for Charities
- Finance and Accounting
- Collaborating with state bodies such as, the Department of Education, Department of Health/HSE, Department of Children and Youth Affairs and TUSLA - Rolling out national campaigns
Commitment of Directors
Directors are expected to attend five to seven board meetings a year and to participate in various subgroups that may be established from time to time. While the Directors are elected at the AGM each year, we envision that Directors who become involved consider they are making a three to five year commitment. As per the Charity Governance code, Directors are voluntary appointments.
Application Process
- Potential Board Members are asked to send in a CV and a statement of interest in the work of Parents Plus to john@parentsplus.ie
- CVs will be reviewed by the CEO and the Chair of the Board and suitable applicants will be offered an individual interview.
- Once a candidate is approved, then the person is invited onto the Board for a trial period of six months. This trial period allows both the candidate and the Parents Plus Board to decide if there is a good fit. At the end of the six months, if both the candidate and the existing Board members are happy then the candidate is invited to become elected as a director at the next AGM.
For more information
For more information or an informal discussion, please email John Sharry, CEO of Parents Plus at john@parentsplus.ie
Background - Parents Plus CLG
Parents Plus CLG was founded in 1998 and works to develop and disseminate evidence-based programmes for families in Ireland and internationally. In order to ensure long-term sustainable benefit, the charity adopts a ‘train the trainer’ approach to empower professionals and community leaders to deliver the programmes in their agencies and local areas. Specifically, Parents Plus provides programme materials and facilitator training, post training supervision and coaching, as well as evaluation and implementation support to local agencies and groups over time to build long-term family support capacity, particularly in disadvantaged communities.
Background - Parents Plus Programmes
Parents Plus currently has five flagship programmes, which are delivered as structured courses with small groups of parents, children and adolescents utilising DVD input, handouts, group exercises and homework. The programmes are delivered over six -12 weeks to small groups of parents and adolescents by community professionals who have undergone Parents Plus training.
The five programmes are:
1) The Early Year’s Programme (parents of children 1 - 6 years)
2) The Children’s Programme (parents of children 6 - 11 years)
3) The Adolescent’s Programme (parents of adolescents 11 - 16 years)
4) The Working Things Out Programme (targeted at adolescents aged 11 – 16 years)
5) Parenting when Separated Programme (targeted at parents post separation)
We have currently two new programmes in development notably the:
a) Parents Plus Pathways Programme to support parents with children with a disability.
b) Parents Plus Healthy Families Programme to support healthy, active and positive family lifestyles.
The Parents Plus Programmes have all been developed in partnership with Irish parents and children specifically including their individual experiences. There is now a substantial body of evidence demonstrating the high impact of the Parents Plus Programmes in terms of reducing emotional/behaviour problems for children, alleviating parental stress, as well as improving children’s learning within the home.
See www.parentsplus.ie/research for further details.