Information for children

• Do you feel lonely?
• Are you unhappy in your family?
• Do you miss the people closest to you?
• Are your parents splitting up?
• Are things not going well at school?
• Are you worried and would you like some help?

A family meeting

will help you find what you need. Together with the people closest to you, you will look for a solution to your situation.

Who comes to a family meeting?

Everyone who is important to you: parents, brothers and sisters, grandmas, grandpas, aunts, uncles, friends and…

YOU, if you want to…

Someone you like can come to the meeting with you. They will help you speak up and feel comfortable.

There will also be a coordinator, who helps prepare the meeting and visits everyone you would like to have at your meeting. A social worker may come too, perhaps a teacher, and other people who will only stay for the beginning of the meeting.

What can you talk about at a family meeting?

• How do you feel at home?
• Who will you live with, and for how long?
• What could your family do better for you?
• How do you feel at school?
• What would you like to happen?

What happens before the meeting?

You and the coordinator will talk about what the people at your meeting can discuss.

The coordinator will ask you what you would like to talk about and whether you need any help.

If you want, the coordinator will help you send invitations to everyone who is coming to the meeting.

At the family meeting

The whole family (and invited friends) talk about what needs to happen so that you feel better. They turn their ideas into a plan.

You can stay for the whole meeting, or, if you like, go to another room at any time. If someone doesn't feel well, they can also leave and come back whenever they want.

…and at the end of the meeting

Everyone talks through the plan and then agrees to it. They decide who will check whether it is working.

What did children say about their family meeting?

"Everything got sorted out. The plan could actually work. I wouldn't change anything about the meeting."
(Lucka, 14)

"I know what will happen to me."
(Tereza, 12)

"Almost my whole family came, my best friend, my neighbour Pavel and my carer too. They all came because of me!"
(František, 10)

"I had fun. I met nice people there."
(Jirka, 9)

"I was scared to speak in front of the others. My aunt Helena helped me. She said what I needed for me."
(Lenka, 8)

"It was fun. I played with the other kids and grandma baked me a cake. I hadn't seen grandma for ages."
(Evička, 7)

"I was afraid my parents would argue. Uncle Tomáš came and dad stayed calm."
(Katka, 10)

"I was sad that grandma Vlasta couldn't come, but she sent me a letter. It made me happy."
(Veronika, 9)

"What I wanted most was to see my dad more often. At the meeting my parents agreed on it and made a plan. It works, I go to my dad's more now."
(Zdeněk, 12)

Are you thinking about having your own meeting?

We will organise a family meeting for you free of charge.

Would you like more information?