The Genesis Programme is a consortium of over fifty Partner Organisations that is delivering the Incredible Years® suite of programmes and other evidence-informed interventions to children, families and communities in Dundalk and Drogheda in County Louth as part of the Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme.

The ABC Programme is a cross-departmental initiative and is co-funded by the Irish Government through the Department of Children & Youth Affairs and the Atlantic Philanthropies. It is jointly managed by the Centre for Effective Services (CES) and Pobal.

The ABC Programme targets investment in evidence-informed interventions to improve the long-term outcomes for children and families living in areas of disadvantage.

It aims to break “the cycle of child poverty within areas where it is most deeply entrenched and where children are most disadvantaged, through integrated and effective services and interventions” in the following areas: child development, child well-being, parenting and educational disadvantage.

In line with the Government’s commitment to draw on best international practice and existing services to tackle aspects of child poverty, the ABC Programme focuses on the implementation of interventions and approaches that have been found to significantly improve child outcomes in an Irish setting. These interventions and approaches within the target areas should also be integrated with mainstream services such as health and education.

The Partner Organisations of The Genesis Programme are made up of Early Years Settings, Schools, Community Groups, Louth Children’s & Young People’s Services Committee,  Louth County Childcare Committee, Dundalk Institute of Technology, National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS), Educational Disadvantage Centre at St. Patrick’s College, Irish Primary Principals’ Network (IPPN) as well as a range of departments within the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Tusla – the Child & Family Agency.

Louth Leader Partnership is the lead agency.

The Incredible Years® is a series of interlocking, evidence-based programmes for children, their parents and their teachers, supported by over thirty years of research.

Their goal is to prevent and treat young children’s behavioural problems and promote their social, emotional and academic competence.

The programme was developed at the University of Washington in Seattle by Dr. Carolyn Webster-Stratton.

The programme has been implemented widely within a number of countries including Canada, Denmark, the UK, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, the Netherlands, the USA and of course here in Ireland.

Currently there are 8 accredited trainers, 63 mentors and 52 peer coaches providing training and support across these countries.

Whilst each programme has been designed as a stand-alone intervention, taken together, they provide a cohesive and uniform strategy to address and eliminate behavioural difficulties in children.

As outlined earlier The Incredible Years® (IY) Series is a set of interlocking and comprehensive training programmes for parents, teachers and children.

There are a number of parent programmes that target key developmental stages and those being utilised by The Genesis Programme are:

• IY Parent & Baby Programme (0-12 months)
• IY Toddler Programme (1-3 years)
• IY Parent Programme (3-6 years)

There are two child programmes using the Dinosaur School Social, Emotional Skills and Problem Solving Curriculum:

• Small Group Dinosaur Child Treatment Programme (ages 4-8 years)
• Classroom Dinosaur Prevention Programme (ages 3-8 years)

Finally, there are two teacher/childcare practitioner programmes:

• Teacher Classroom Management Programme for teachers of children aged 3-8 years
• Incredible Beginnings Programme for teachers and childcare practitioners of children aged 1-5 years

The short-term goals of the Incredible Years® programmes are:

• Improved parent-child interactions, building positive relationships and attachment
• Improved parental functioning, less harsh and more nurturing parenting, and increased parental social support and problem solving
• Improved teacher-student relationships, proactive classroom management skills and strengthened teacher-parent partnerships
• Prevention, reduction and treatment of early onset conduct behaviours and emotional problems
• Promotion of child social competence, emotional regulation, positive attributions, academic readiness and problem solving

The long-term goal of the Incredible Years® programmes is:

• Prevention of conduct disorders, academic underachievement, delinquency, violence and drug abuse

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