Children of Alcoholics Awareness Week (9 - 15 Feb 2020) aims to raise awareness nationally of the needs and vulnerabilities of children affected by parental addiction. Oasis Project is running a campaign during this week to share stories of its work from the perspective of staff and clients which highlight the need for a dedicated services such as Young Oasis.

Young Oasis provides 16 weeks of 1:1 therapy to young people in Brighton & Hove and East Sussex, aged between 5 and 18 years who are affected by a parent or family member's substance misuse. During sessions, Oasis Therapists use arts & creative play and work with children's specific needs to enable them to explore their experience of living with substance misuse in the family, and build psychological and emotional resilience.

Parental substance misuse can and does cause immediate and long-term harm to children from conception through to adolescence. Around 75% of the children we currently work with have a Child Protection Plan, indicating high levels of need.

The types of harm that the children affected by substance misuse may encounter include physical, sexual, psychological and emotional abuse and neglect. Children are particularly at risk when families are dealing with multiple disadvantages like domestic violence and mental illness. Many of the children we work with live in single-parent households and are faced with poverty and housing problems, which contribute to their risk of neglect.

Through engaging with therapy, young people will be more likely to have increased feelings of hope and see a decrease in feelings such as rejection and shame. Children & young people who complete a full course of therapy will have a more positive sense of themselves, and feel more able to respond to adversity than when they began.

Our Young Oasis Therapy service relies on the support of donors and Foundations to keep going. Our Children's of Alcoholics week campaign is aiming to raise funds to support these provisions so Young Oasis are able to continue providing the support we do, to children and young people aged 0 - 18.

We would like to thank you for your support. If you do wish to find out further information about Oasis project and the services we offer, please check out our website below, or contact info@oasisproject.org.uk today.

https://www.oasisproject.org.uk/