Research: 'Aspirational' new family project

<p>This week we hear from research about a very important and exciting new project from NSFT Research which aims to develop an intervention to build resilience in young people who have experienced Adverse Childhood Experiences called ASPIRE. Lead researcher on the ASPIRE Project, Brioney Gee and Research Assistant Psychologist on ASPIRE Isabela Tavares Junqueira, explain a few months into the project what is involved, the huge role co-production has and how the project is going. ASPIRE is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>This study is about co-producing, together with people who have relevant personal experience, a new support package for families. The new support package will aim to empower a child’s caregiver – be it their Mum, Dad or someone else who is looking after them – to use evidence-based techniques to build their child’s resilience, rather than a professional working with the young person directly.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>We hear from two members of the stakeholder team who have relevant lived experience, Rachel a parent of three and Seb who is a young person giving input on various parts of the project. </p><br><p>The intervention will be designed to support children who have experienced Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) which are traumatic or stressful events that occur before the age of 18. These include experiences such as abuse, neglect, family break-up, being bullied, or experiencing a serious illness.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>These ACEs have been linked to increased risk of a wide range of negative health outcomes across a person’s life. We now know there is a strong link between the number of ACEs a person is exposed to and their odds of experiencing mental health problems. </p><p>However, not all children who experience ACEs develop mental health difficulties. Some young people have social support and personal strengths that allow them to remain healthy despite difficult experiences, something known as ‘resilience’. The amount of resilience someone has is