Supporting Both Parents: Rebuilding Safety, Stability and Connection After Restoration

This story reflects a restoration journey involving both parents of a three-year-old child, each with complex needs and support requirements.

At the time of referral, both parents were experiencing significant substance use issues alongside histories of childhood trauma. The mother, in particular, struggled to consistently engage with services. As a result, the primary focus of Jannawi’s work became supporting the father, who had separated from the relationship but remained committed to reconnecting with and caring for his daughter.

From the outset, the father engaged consistently, attending every appointment and demonstrating a willingness to reflect on the factors that contributed to his child’s removal. Through therapeutic work, he began to understand the impact of substance use, instability, and limited routines on his daughter’s wellbeing. He was also supported to process grief and loss as he worked toward rebuilding his parenting capacity.

As insight and stability grew, the father implemented structured routines and safer parenting strategies, strengthening his ability to meet his child’s emotional and developmental needs. The court ultimately granted restoration of the child to his care.

Following restoration, Jannawi provided intensive support focused on stabilisation. The child initially presented with significant dysregulation, limited attention, and difficulty responding to boundaries, consistent with early experiences of instability.

Staff worked across home, centre, and childcare settings to provide consistent routines, model safe relationships, and support emotional regulation. The father received ongoing psychoeducation about trauma and child development, helping him reframe behaviour through a developmental lens rather than seeing it as defiance.

Extended family members were also engaged to strengthen the child’s support network and ensure consistency. In addition, structured contact visits with the mother were supported at Jannawi, allowing safe opportunities for connection while maintaining clear boundaries.

Over time, the child demonstrated significant change. Three months after restoration, she was calmer, more engaged, and better able to participate in play, follow directions, and sustain attention. These improvements reflected the stability, structure, and relational safety now present in her life.

This transformation was not the result of a single intervention, but sustained collaborative work grounded in consistency, safety, and therapeutic care.

At Jannawi Family Centre, we recognise that restoration is not an endpoint, but the beginning of ongoing work. Supporting families through this stage requires patience, collaboration, and a commitment to working with both parents wherever possible, always centring the child’s safety and wellbeing.

This story shows what is possible when children are given stability and parents are supported to sustain it.