Family Recovery Champions

Between 2013-18 Adfam received funding from the National Lottery to deliver the Whole Family Recovery Project in Greenwich, London.

Through this project Adfam provided family members with the training, resources and support to understand the impact of drugs and alcohol on their lives, build sustainable relationships and positive futures. We did this by empowering families to develop, deliver and evaluate sustainable services for themselves and for other families living in the Greenwich area. They became visible Family Recovery Champions (FRCs), peer mentors that would inspire other family members to make positive changes in their lives and redress the negative impact of drug and alcohol use in their families and communities.

Training

Adfam developed a FRC training package, designed to be delivered either as a one day or two half-day training sessions. The training was designed as a tool kit approach to empower family members to take up the role of FRC.

The learning objectives of the FRC training included:

• Understanding boundaries and the importance of managing them effectively in the context of working with family members;
• Exploring boundaries and effective forms of communication, including body language, active listening and how to communicate in a manner that provides family members with a safe, supportive and effective space;
• Understanding how to implement a safeguarding and confidentiality policy effectively; 

Support

FRCs were able to offer flexible and social peer support to meet the needs of family members, this included:

• Fortnightly peer support group, called Taking Steps, where people offer one another practical and emotional advice, help and support in a friendly and non-judgmental environment.
• Regular information and skills sessions
• One-to-One meet ups for a coffee and a chat with a FRC and also weekly peer mentor support.