Karen Duke is a home visitor in a programme run by the Area Based Childhood programme in Co Louth. The aim of the ParentChild+ programme is to model good parent-child interactions for parents who often grew up in emotionally charged or physically disruptive family environments. “We bring it back to basics, as it can be hard to practice playing with your child if you didn’t have that experience yourself,” says Duke. “Many of these parents won’t have been talked to, read to, or played with, as children,” says Moore. Lara Williams is the coordinator for the ParentChild+ programme and other family support programmes in Drogheda and south Louth.

Source: The Irish Times March 03, 2026 09:01 UTC