UNDERSTANDING LOSS

4 sessions

The 'Understanding Loss' course is specifically for women in prison who are 'stuck' in the grieving cycle and need help to move on.

UNDERSTANDING LOSS COURSE OUTCOMES

Women in prison begin to face aspects of their loss, whatever that is for them and are able to talk about it.

One of the big barriers to dealing with any type of loss in prison is the inability to trust anyone that they might open up to for fear of appearing weak or vulnerable. Having a “safe” confidential space to talk with a small group of people that are going through the same thing, and beginning to look at their loss is extremely important in the process of moving forward.

The women begin to understand that there are common emotions that they might be feeling.

Prison can be a very isolating place and women in prison will hide their emotions if possible. Understanding that other people share the same emotional turmoil can be very reassuring and help them to find a little peace in what they are facing.

Women in prison begin to understand the concept of being “stuck” and how that can affect them and others around them.

Because prisoners are not able to go through the same processes or rituals of loss as those “outside”, such as attending funerals, talking easily to family members, discussing with someone who knows them well how they are feeling etc., they will often get stuck at a certain stage of their loss and not be able to move forward. Realising that they are stuck can often help with the process of getting unstuck.

The women understand they are on a journey and begin the process of “letting go”.

Knowing that you have begun a journey with help and with others creates an encouraging and supportive environment in which to address issues. Helping women to begin the letting go process in this environment opens up the possibility of change.

Attendees learn how to ask for support in their situation and are signposted to further courses or support groups if required.

We spend time talking about where they can get support should they need it in prison and on the outside. Help and support after the group ends is vital to the on-gong process of letting go and coping with loss. Addressing the issues around not wanting to appear vulnerable in prison or outside is a key to helping them ask for help in the future.

The women acquire tools they can use to help them in difficult times going forward.

Gaining tools to cope with sad days empowers them to walk out their healing process in a way that works for them as an individual. Listening to how others cope in prison with their loss is important to show them that they don’t have to go through their journey alone and that they can learn from others.

Feedback from the 'UNDERSTANDING LOSS' Course

“A really insightful course and gives invaluable tools to use.”

“I want to thank you hugely as this course has helped me immensely and given me a new found knowledge on loss that I think I really needed.”

“I learnt that guilt is very normal and that letting go and moving on is also ok.”

“This course has helped me greatly, making me think and accept my loss.”

“I found the course very helpful, it brought my emotions to the surface and I was able to talk about how I feel rather than suppressing them. I would highly recommend the course to others.”

 UNDERSTANDING FORGIVENESS

4 sessions

Forgiveness, whether it be forgiving oneself or forgiving others, can be a difficult challenge for women in prison.

Our ‘Understanding Forgiveness’ courses sensitively explore the issues of forgiveness, guilt and saying sorry so that women can move forward and live a full life.

UNDERSTANDING FORGIVENESS OUTCOMES

Women begin to understand what forgiveness is. 

We discuss forgiving others and forgiving ourselves.  Many women carry a tremendous amount of guilt within themselves or anger against those they feel have wronged them in the past.  To be able to forgive, you need to know what it actually means to forgive someone.  We stress that it doesn’t mean that you continue in a place that causes you harm or continued distress and talk about how to keep themselves safe should they need to.   

They learn to understand the benefits of forgiving. 

Not forgiving and holding on to anger, guilt, resentment and bitterness has been shown to cause both emotional and physical problems.  We discuss these issues and help the women to understanding that forgiving is not just important to them now but to their ongoing health and well being.  Letting go of anger and guilt can be a huge step towards finding emotional freedom and peace.  It can also improve behaviour in a prison setting.  

Women understand what is involved in forgiving others and themselves.  

We go through practically what it means to forgive.  How we do that in a healthy way and how it might look for them as an individual.  This process gives them on-going tools they can use in everyday life and enables them to take these skills and use them going forward.  We also look at forgiving in any close relationships they might have.    

They understand that learning to listen to others is important as well. 

We look at forgiveness in relationships, understanding why healthy relationships need to work in the benefit of forgiveness, either saying sorry or forgiving others.  We look at communication styles and what is helpful and not helpful when addressing issues they might have with people in their lives.  

The women gain tools they can use to help them to forgive and let go going forward. 

We go through exercises around letting go of negative emotions against others and in themselves; be that anger, bitterness or guilt.  By the end of the course the participants should understand what forgiveness is and how to forgive, say sorry and most importantly, let go. 

Feedback from the 'UNDERSTANDING Forgiveness' Course

“Really enjoyed this course, I can now move on and ask for forgiveness.”

“All resident’s should participate in this course, it’s the first step to one’s healing process.”

“I found it very helpful. It made me realise that I need to forgive in order to move on.”

“This course made me see that I cannot change what has happened, I can’t make someone forgive me but I need to forgive myself and live for the future, not for the past.”

FLOURISH

6 sessions

FLOURISH is a course written by women for women. We believe that every life matters and that every person has worth and value.  More than that, this course was written to show women that they have a purpose in life and that they can give back to the world by using all the amazing talents and gifts they have been given.  

The more we have worked with women over the years we have realised that we all struggle with the same kind of things even though we may come from very different backgrounds, and cultures and may have had very different experiences in life.

The course looks at:

IDENTITY | WHOLENESS | DESTINY

The course includes: 

Who am I and how do I tick?

What do I value in life?

Why comparison is damaging.

Managing emotions.

What does living a “whole life” look like?

What does a healthy relationship look like?

Why are boundaries important in relationships?

If my life has a purpose, what is it?

How can I live the life I want to?

Feedback from the ‘FLOURISH' Courses

“How I see myself now on week 6 is a lot different to how I saw myself on week 1”

“I have learnt that I am powerful and can achieve my goals.”

“I learnt to like myself again.”

“I have learnt that I am unique and can achieve my goals. I feel more confident.”

“My opinion of myself has changed over this course.”

PARENTING

6 sessions

The Parenting Course material has been primarily written by Care for the Family and adapted specifically for women in prison. It bears in mind the fact that these mothers have very limited contact with their children, often only by telephone.

We cover three different age groups, Early Years, Primary Years, and Teenage Years.

Being very practical and involving group work, the sessions involve personal reflection, group discussion, and interactive participation.

The core aims of these weekly sessions include giving women in prison the practical tools to enhance their parenting skills and knowledge whilst parenting from prison and ready for when they are reunited with their children.

The sessions specifically explore: 

What being a parent is really like

Children’s needs

Feelings & listening

Boundaries & parenting styles

Keeping children safe

Building strong families

Feedback from the Parenting Courses

"I have learnt a lot of parenting skills – I can’t wait to implement it and have quality time with my children. I have learnt that my children are different individual persons and should be treated with respect and care."

 "I have learnt that me being too soft and letting things go needs to stop, I need to stick to what I say. And I’ve learnt that I want to be a better mother and be there for my 2 wonderful children."

 "I have learnt that it is very important to communicate with my children’s carer, and to be a positive role model. I have learnt that they need a happy healthy stable and safe mum."

VICTIM AWARENESS

4 sessions

"There is no such thing as a victim-less crime."

This course looks at the wider impact of crime on both the victims and the offender, and teaches the principles of restorative justice. It teaches about taking responsibility for one's own actions, with a view to reducing reoffending.