Stage 3 · Put it into practice · Coming soon
Level 2: Putting Trauma-Informed Parenting into Practice
Practical, everyday ways to use PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy), listen well, settle big feelings, hold kind boundaries and handle school, bedtime and change.
7 modules · about 7–8 hours in total (estimate) · for parents and carers, not professionals
Who this course is for
Birth parents, foster carers, adoptive parents, kinship carers and grandparents who have done the Foundation course or Level 1, or already know the basic ideas, and want to put them into practice at home. It is written for families, not professionals.
What this level adds
- Use Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy in real family moments, and know when not to joke.
- Listen without pressure, help your child settle, and hold kind boundaries, then put things right afterwards.
- Make your own practical family plan for school days, bedtime and times of change.
What you will learn
- PACE in real family moments, including when not to use humour
- Listening without pressure
- Helping children settle, and staying calm yourself
- Boundaries and repair without punishment
- School mornings, bedtime, transitions and change
- Working with other adults in your child’s life
- Your own family action plan
The 7 modules
Times are estimates. Go at your own pace, and take breaks whenever you need to.
Module 1 · about 60 minutes
PACE in everyday family life
Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy (known as PACE) in ordinary moments, including when not to use humour.
What you will be able to do
- Explain PACE as an attitude rather than a technique and credit where it comes from
- Use the four parts of PACE together in real family moments
- Recognise when humour could hurt and choose warmth instead
- Offer curiosity without pressure or “why” questions
- Separate accepting feelings from accepting every behaviour
Module 2 · about 60 minutes
Warm communication and listening
Listening without pressure, wondering aloud, side-by-side chats, and what to do if a child tells you something worrying.
What you will be able to do
- Listen without making a child explain or share more than they want to
- Notice feelings and offer gentle guesses that a child can correct
- Use your voice, face and body to support short, clear words
- Find comfortable ways to talk side by side
- Respond calmly to worrying information and seek the right help
Module 3 · about 65 minutes
Staying calm together and helping children settle
Finding your own calm first, then helping your child settle, with ideas for calm, wobbly and overwhelmed moments.
What you will be able to do
- Notice your own body signals and choose a safe way to pause
- Match your help to calm, wobbly and overwhelmed moments
- Plan a welcoming calm space or kit with your child
- Use fewer words during big feelings and offer care afterwards
- Make a realistic plan for your own rest and support
Module 4 · about 60 minutes
Kind boundaries and putting things right
Clear, kind limits without punishment or shaming, and how the adult leads the repair after a difficult moment.
What you will be able to do
- Explain why kind, clear limits can help a child feel safer
- Use a few simple rules with calm, predictable follow-through
- Choose safe, related ways to put things right without punishment
- Offer time-in and lead repair, including saying sorry when you get it wrong
- Help a child make amends without making comfort depend on an apology
Module 5 · about 65 minutes
School, bedtime, transitions and change
Practical ways to make school mornings, homework, bedtime, everyday changes and bigger moves feel more manageable.
What you will be able to do
- Plan school mornings that include preparation, connection and a comforting link to home
- Recognise why after-school behaviour can be hard and offer a gentle way to decompress
- Create a bedtime routine that helps your child feel safe, without using bedtime as a punishment
- Use warnings, choices and timers to ease everyday transitions
- Prepare your child for bigger changes by telling the truth simply and keeping some things the same
Module 6 · about 60 minutes
Different families, working together
Birth, foster, adoptive and kinship families. Protecting important connections and working with the other adults involved.
What you will be able to do
- Recognise different family pressures without making assumptions about a child
- Respond to divided loyalties without asking a child to choose sides
- Agree a few shared routines across homes and carers
- Share useful information while protecting your child’s privacy
- Manage adult disagreements and identify support for kinship carers
Module 7 · about 70 minutes
Your practical family action plan
Bring your learning together in a small, realistic plan, with support for the harder times and a date to review it.
What you will be able to do
- Bring together learning from Levels 1 and 2 to guide everyday choices
- Identify your child’s strengths, needs and predictable hard moments
- Choose one to three priorities and turn them into small, specific goals
- Create a what helps plan with clear support from other adults
- Review your plan after two and six weeks, noticing progress and making adjustments
How each module works
- Short lesson sections in plain English, with no jargon
- Everyday examples from family life
- A family story with what might be happening, what to say, what to do and what to avoid
- One thing to try this week and a short reflection
- A worksheet to fill in for your own family
- A five-question knowledge check with an explanation for every answer
- A printable workbook for the whole level, with every lesson, family story and worksheet
What we’re preparing
These are not available yet.
- Online enrolment and payment, once the courses open
- A confirmed launch date and the start of the early bird offer
Free sample · from Module 1: PACE in everyday family life
PACE: warmth, not a script
PACE stands for Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy. It was developed by Dr Dan Hughes, a clinical psychologist, as part of his work on Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, a therapy for children and families that he developed. This course is independent. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Dr Hughes or the organisation that oversees that therapy, and it is not training in that therapy. We share everyday parenting ideas, not therapy.
As Level 1 explained, past fear can make everyday closeness feel difficult. PACE is an attitude of warmth and openness, not a technique for making children behave. It shows in your face, voice, pace and willingness to understand. A clumsy but caring response matters more than perfect words said without interest.
The full course will be available to learners when it opens.
These courses provide education and practical information. They are not therapy, diagnosis or a substitute for individual professional advice.
If your family needs more support
Asking for help is a strength. If you would like individual support for your child or yourself, your GP, your child’s school or your local family support service is a good place to start.
In an emergency, call 999
Our contact form is for course enquiries only and is not monitored as an emergency service.