The iiP Parent Programme

The invest in play® Parent Programme support children and their caregivers by providing the most current and culturally appropriate, research-based interventions that are easy to scale.

iiP Parent Programme

The iiP Core Parent Programme, Six Bricks for Kids model, outlines research-based strategies that help caregivers build a strong foundation for their child's life. These include:

  • Play and positive attention to create solid parent-child relationships and trust.
  • Support for children’s learning, emotion and social skills.
  • Caring boundaries that create a predictable and safe framework for children to thrive.
  • Self-regulation strategies for caregivers and children.

The 12-session iiP programme can be delivered in groups or with individual families in prevention or treatment contexts for parents of children aged 2-12 years. The strategies in this core model build on 50 years of research on what works to support all children, both neurodiverse and neurotypical, including those with challenging behaviours, social difficulties, anxiety, ADHD and autism.

There are specific modules that augment the core programme with information about neurodiversity for parents of ADHD and autistic children. Read more

Why start with the Red Brick

In families where children have challenging behaviours, it is easy to get into a negative pattern of corrections and “no´s” in the attempt to improve the child’s behaviour. This often leads to a stressful relationship between parents and children, and parents can feel frustrated and powerless. That is why we start with the Red Brick: Thoughts, feelings and behaviour.

We use this brick throughout the programme to build parental confidence and self-regulation because that is an important foundation for making positive change.

Hear parents tell about their experience with iiP

test book

Parent Book

The Six Bricks Parenting book is written to support children and their caregivers using practical and compassionate strategies that have been proven to work over many decades. It provides an introduction to the Six Bricks for Kids and can be read on its own to provide a new framework for parent-child interactions.

It is also used as the text for our 12 week parent intervention.

Research Show Positive Effect

A pilot study compared measurements before and after the intervention from four invest in play (iiP) groups in Denmark. The outcomes were compared to control and intervention groups derived from a meta-analysis of 14 European trials of a well-established evidence-based behavioural parent-training programme.

The results show that:

  • The iiP programme effectively reduced child behaviour problems with effects comparable to the well-established intervention.
  • The iiP programme effectively reduced parenting stress with considerably larger effects compared to the well-established intervention.
  • Parents in the iiP groups were more satisfied with the programme materials.
  • Fewer sessions were needed.
  • Costs by delivering the iiP- programme were 48% lower at a specific clinic in Denmark.

Add-on Modules

iiP have developed modules that augment the core programme with information about neurodiversity for parents of ADHD and autistic children.

iiP Training

iiP offers high quality 3-day trainings that prepare facilitators to deliver the iiP programme with parents. The training is appropriate for anyone working in mental health, social services, education, family support and other caring professions.