Responsible Parenting

• Roles & Responsibilities of the parents/carers

  • To provide basic needs (water, food, clothes, shelter)
  • To provide a safe environment
  • To provide a loving environment
  • To provide discipline
  • To encourage & foster interests & skills
  • To provide opportunities for social development
  • To provide financial support
  • To provide support for educational development
  • To assist in the development of morals & values
• Responsibilities of the child or young person being cared for

  • Cooking, cleaning, helping to dress or move around
  • Providing physical & emotional help
  • Helping brothers & sisters if parent unable to
• Different Family Structures


  • Child being looked after by a carer (child in care)
  • Child being looked after by a single parent
  • Child being looked after by step-parent
  • Child who has older parents
• Responsibilities of a child being looked after by a carer (child in care)

  • Follow the rules, behave appropriately
  • Attend school & work well, do any chores or duties
• Responsibilities of a child being looked after by a single parent

  • Help with chores & siblings, behave well
  • Be aware income may be reduced, respect & acknowledge hard work
• Responsibilities of a child being looked after by a step-parent

  • Try to get to know them, respect them
  • Do house chores, behave appropriately
  • Attend & work well in school, speak up if unhappy
• Responsibilities of a child who has older parents

  • Don't be embarrassed, accept they may have traditional values
  • Might not do much physically, more health problems
  • Speak up in a respectful manner
• Social, emotional & economic impacts of becoming a parent

  • Emotional issues (post-natal depression, stress, fear of failure)
  • Social stigma (can affect self-esteem & confidence)
  • Social life (less interaction with friends)
  • Financial issues (reliance on family, friends, benefits)
  • Career prospects (difficulty staying in full-time education)
  • School (education dramatically affected)
  • Health (teenage mothers more likely to suffer complications)
  • Absence of father (responsibility weighs on one person)
• Opportunities of being a parent

  • Enrichment as a family is created
  • Better mental health from caring for another person
  • Better physical health to continue caring for child
  • Child to look after parent when older
• Challenges of being a parent

  • Time
  • Impact on social life
  • Financial
  • Pressure of responsibility
• How a parent can help a child's development

  • Physical (balanced diet, exercise, hygiene, health checks)
  • Emotional (identify strengths & weaknesses, self-soothing, awareness of others' emotions, sharing & compromising)
  • Social (encourage friendships, talk about feelings, exposure to other children)
  • Intellectual (encourage thinking, problem-solving, learning through play, reading, independence, curiosity)
  • Moral (teach right from wrong, lead by example, praise good decisions)