The Working with Children and Families group was renamed The Time Bandits. It was the only group within this cluster to develop more than one initiative, delivering a total of three initiatives. These focused on creating practical tools to support the integration of trauma‑informed practice into everyday work. The initiatives included a sensory pack, a groupwork intervention designed to bring siblings together, and a whole‑team approach to foster care.

Resources 

1. A sensory pack to enhance the travel experience for children in care that promote choice, engagement, and emotional expression. These packs support relational connection with access workers, fostering collaboration and trust while empowering children to manage transitions: TARA Project_The Time Bandits: Sensory Pack
2. Bringing Kids Together is a TARA- informed inclusive groupwork approach for foster children and children who foster: BKT - Bringing Kids Together groupwork intervention.
3. Trauma-Informed Practice (TIP) within the Tusla, Dublin South Central (DSC) Fostering Team has been developed through the TARA Project as a whole-team approach. It represents a deliberate shift away from viewing the child as the “problem” to be fixed and instead adopts an ecological lens that recognises the impact of traumatising experiences and ongoing stressors within a child’s wider system. This approach promotes shared responsibility across professionals and foster carers in understanding trauma and responding in ways that support recovery and resilience: Whole Team Foster Care