BARNARDOS Suzanne Connolly was formerly the Director of Children’s Services for Barnardos, a role which she held for 17 years. She became the CEO of Barnardos in late 2018. Connect Magazine sat down with her to learn about how The Ireland Funds is helping Barnardos bring hope to families facing adversity. What brings children and families to Barnardos? A. Parents can feel overwhelmed for a variety of reasons which brings them through our doors. There may be issues in the home around poor mental health, domestic abuse, addiction, parental separation or perhaps a bereavement. All of these issues are exac- erbated by high levels of disadvantage and poverty. A child may be experiencing behavioural or emotional problems and the family is simply in need of additional supports with parenting or a more seri- ous intervention depending on the situation. What happens when a child is referred to a Barnardos centre? Can you share an anecdotal story around Barnardos impact on a particular child or family? A. We often receive referrals from schools. A teacher may observe that a child is withdrawn or acting out in the classroom and refer the child and family onto Barnardos. Barnardos will meet with that child to determine what might be going on in his/her life that is causing them upset. We never work with a child without involving their parents and so we would meet with the parents as well to get a full picture of the family’s needs. We work with a lot of families where the ‘toxic three’ exist; mental health difficulties, domestic abuse and addiction. One of the most challenging issues we deal with is domestic abuse and the devastating impact it can have on families. Last September we began working with a six year old boy in our project in West Dublin. Finn* was a very quiet and tense child that presented as having high levels of anxiety. He was living in a home where violence and addiction were present and Barnardos was working with him and his mother through our family support and after school service. Finn was finding it difficult to concentrate at school and his mind used to wander to the thoughts of what might be happening at home. He hardly ever spoke a word and was silent much of the time. He found it difficult to make friends and was a very nervous and jumpy child. Domestic abuse is present in many of the families we work with. Its effects on children are often over- looked or underestimated, but they can suffer profound and long- lasting consequences. Finn has slowly begun to tell his story and my colleagues are working with him to help him make sense of his experiences and feelings. As we have a very low turnover of front- line staff in Barnardos, he can return to us if he needs to in the future and feel a sense of connection and safety, this is hugely important in bringing about positive outcomes for a family. Once isolated, scared, distracted and withdrawn, Finn now has a chance now to make friends with other children in his after-school group. He has a place to play with them without fear and space to forget his worries and be a child again. *Finn is not his real name. The Ireland Funds Flagship Grant Support: Individuals and Families supported from March 2017—December 2018 62families / 152individuals connect 2019 • 52 Q. Q.