Christmas 2011-- James's Story
When James first moved into Mater Dei on the 19th July 2010 with his son and daughter-- one year old twins, he didn't have very much confidence as a parent. He left Scotland and brought the children to Northern Ireland to escape a lifestyle of drugs and domestic violence at their mother's home, as he did not think this was a good environment for the twins. Upon arrive to Northern Ireland, however he found himself and the children at risk of homelessness and in need of support.
James was not long out of jail and as a result of all of the change; the twins were very withdrawn and sheepish. They didn't like to be around other children and would shy away from any adult attention. Social services and other agencies were involved with the family as there were concerns about the children's welfare.
Over the past 18 months living at Mater Dei and engaging with keyworking support, James renewed his willingness and commitment to giving his children a good home and lifestyle. James attends weekly service user meetings and is a service user rep in Mater Dei. As a result of all of these improvements to the stability of the family, social services felt confident to disengage with James and the twins were able to come off the child protection register.
James's engagement with Depaul Ireland keyworking staff, child support worker and volunteers has led to major improvements in his relationship with his children. James has become a more confident parent. He is much more relaxed around the children and is much more organised. With the help of Mater Dei staff and volunteers, James recognised the importance of play development and he has maintained a good solid day and night routine with the twins. He also ensures that as a family they regularly attend play sessions, healthy eating lunches, as well as arts and crafts workshops.
The twins have grown to become much more sociable than when they first moved in. They love to come down to play in the communal lounge and are always ready to engage in any activities. Their speech which was very poor at first has improved tremendously and they're always ready for a chat with staff and anyone else they meet.
James is also taking steps to improve his skills and explore his creativity outside of his parental role. Just this summer James took part in Photoshop workshops at Mater Dei facilitated by Westcourt Centre. As a result he had three of his pictures displayed at the Red Barn Gallery in Belfast for homeless awareness week. He is now planning to further his knowledge of photography by doing an additional photography course in the New Year.
This Christmas is much different than last year; James is now enjoying full custody of the twins and has no other outside agency involvement in their care. With the support of Depaul Ireland, the happy family will celebrate a joyful Christmas together and are looking forward to an increasingly positive New Year.
