Interactive supervised contact involves a highly experienced and skilled supervisor engaging with all parties in a therapeutic manner. The nature of engagement varies and is influenced by the circumstances leading up to the provision of this service.
If there has been a period of estrangement, the supervisor acts as a kind of intermediary between the child and adult. A child often feels more comfortable engaging with a skilled child therapist than a parent who they have not seen for some time. This is especially the case where the child has, for whatever reason, a negative opinion of that parent. Therapeutic supervisors are trained in building a bridge between the parent and child and, most importantly, in ensuring the child is emotionally supported throughout the visit.
If the parenting ability of a parent has been questioned, therapeutic supervisors provide in vivo direction and actively guide the parent around appropriate, child-friendly responses and behaviour. They will directly intervene if a parent says or does something – even unknowingly, that is not appropriate in some way.
After the visit, the supervisor will provide clear feedback about the visit and may even suggest changes to subsequent visits and/or details of courses/interventions that a parent and/or child might benefit from.