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As we move into the Autumn months in the UK and Europe we are preparing for the next stage in our work to regulate practice in the field of parental alienation. Our next meeting is in Strasbourg in November, where we will move onto the practical steps of opening membership of the European Association of Parental Alienation Practitioners.

The purpose of EAPAP is both to protect parents and children by providing them with the services which are designed to treat and heal the problem of parental alienation and to protect practitioners from the negative impacts of working in such a difficult therapeutic space. The need for regulation is obvious. This week alone I have been reading misleading claims from a group claiming to be ‘the only practice delivering forensic assessments in parental alienation’ which is so manifestly untrue that Trading Standards have been notified.

This is not about whether or not I or anyone else agrees or disagrees with the manner in which individual services are delivered. This is about clarity with the families we work with and transparency about the services being delivered. There are several specialists who deliver forensic assessments in the UK in this area, none of which make the claims above. To do so is therefore to mislead and prevent parents from being able to make informed choices. This kind of false claim and lack of integrity is what EAPAP will work to prevent across Europe.

This same group who claim to be the only forensic assessors in the UK, also claim to be working to international standards on their website. Which again is simply untrue.

International standards of practice were introduced at the EAPAP conference, which was attended by 18 of the international authorities in parental alienation, all of whom support and endorse the standards as set out by EAPAP.

Websites which claim to the ‘the only…’ and which state that they are working to international standards of practice should be avoided in future unless they hold EAPAP membership. EAPAP is endorsed by leading mental health and legal figures across Europe and will increasingly provide a safe framework of trusted service delivery for all families affected by parental alienation across Europe.

At our Strasbourg meeting we will be setting out the frameworks and completing the work which must be done to open up the membership to practitioners across Europe. We already have almost 100 expressions of interest in membership including enough in the UK to ensure that parents and children can access a comprehensive network of services.

As we go forward in this field we will be working to expand those services in the UK and right across Europe so that there is a strong pool of skilled practitioners you can trust to work with you in the internationally recognised standards of practice which are curated and endorsed by EAPAP which is directly linked to the Parental Alienation Study Group, the worldwide group of experts in this field.

EAPAP NEWS

The EAPAP Steering group meets in Strasbourg in November.

EAPAP News and Website updates including slides and film clips are being worked on now and all conference participants will receive notification of these directly.

Membership of EAPAP will be open in the coming months, to register your interest in joining please email office@eapap.eu

FOR PARENTS

If you are considering an expert or expert services in your family case, please ensure that you seek evidence in the form of written or telephone references from anyone purporting to be expert in this field. References should include evidence of successful intervention and successful intervention should always be that a child has been reunited with a parent within a twelve week period of work.

Psychologists and Psychiatrists who are acting as part 25 experts will be able to give you references to published cases in which their intervention has resulted in the resolution of a case.

Therapists who claim to be expert in the field should be able to give you references for you to follow up which show their successful intervention in a short period of time.

It is expressly contraindicated to offer therapy in a PA case where a parent has personality disorder. All of the research evidence demonstrates this and internationally recognised standards of practice do not allow for this to happen. EAPAP will provide alternative services which meet the needs of parents and children in these circumstances.

Any practitioner who is unhappy about you asking for such references or who uses your requests as evidence that you have somehow contributed to the problem of PA in your child is acting against internationally recognised standards of practice. This is the kind of misleading and damaging practice that EAPAP will seek to prevent.

Remember that you do not have to agree to any therapy or assessment which you are uncomfortable with and which makes you part of the problem.

If you are uncomfortable with the service you are receiving anywhere in Europe you can contact EAPAP at office@eapap.eu for advice and guidance.