Lighthouse Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) Parenting Programme: An Introduction

About this training  

The Lighthouse MBT Parenting Programme draws on advances in Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) and aims to improve parental reflective functioning and strengthen the parent–child relationship through a unique combination of psychoeducation, and individual and group-based psychotherapy.

This two-day introductory training is skills-based and designed to support practitioners to begin applying Lighthouse-informed approaches within their current roles, including developing practical skills in establishing and maintaining epistemic trust with parents and families.

Lighthouse MBT-P supports mentalizing and sensitive parenting across a range of settings, including CAMHS services and early intervention programmes with parents who pose low or no risk to their children. While it was developed initially for a high-risk clinical population of parents who have caused, or pose a risk of causing, severe harm to their children, it has been shown to be effective more broadly.

The programme aims to enhance parents’ capacity to mentalize, particularly in relation to their children; to improve attunement in parent–child relationships; to promote secure attachment; and to support the development of secure attachment in children, while reducing the risk of harm and the transgenerational transmission of psychopathology, including BPD traits and attachment difficulties. In addition to MBT-informed interventions (group, individual, and adapted MBT-Parenting techniques), the use of images, metaphor and story—such as the lighthouse, the sea, and the shore—helps parents engage with key mentalizing, attachment, and psychoanalytic concepts.

Parents are invited to think of themselves as a lighthouse: offering a steady, attentive light to guide their child’s journey, and providing a safe harbour when difficulties arise. The programme supports parents to better understand and respond to their children’s needs, to foster epistemic trust in the parent–child relationship, and to reduce the risk of harm.

A key strength of the programme is its ability to engage parents who may not have benefitted from other parenting programmes. It has been adapted for different populations (e.g. Lighthouse Family for multi-family work, Lightship outreach for social care in Early Help/Intervention settings, Lighthouse Perinatal in Specialist Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Services) and across a range of cultural contexts (e.g. Chile). Ongoing research is being conducted in the UK, Germany, Denmark, Lithuania, Portugal, Chile, Spain and Ireland.

Aims of this training 

We recognise that participants already possess sophisticated skills in engaging parents and families. This two-day introductory training will strengthen and extend these skills by offering:

• An understanding of how crucial mentalizing is to the development of a sense of self, and how deficits and failures in mentalizing can increase risk to children

• An overview of the Lighthouse and Lightship programmes, including adaptations for different populations and cultural contexts

• Opportunities to strengthen skills in establishing epistemic trust, including through observation of role-play and facilitated discussion

• Practical skills in adopting and maintaining a mentalizing stance in work with parents and families, including managing moments of heightened emotion or breakdown in understanding

• Practical approaches to supporting and enhancing a parent’s capacity to mentalize, particularly in relation to their child

• An opportunity to experience the programme directly through participation in ‘real-play’ and small reflective group meetings

This introductory training will support participants to begin applying Lighthouse-informed approaches within their current roles. It does not equip participants to deliver the full Lighthouse group programme. Practitioners who wish to do so are required to complete the full five-day Lighthouse basic training.

Who should attend?

This introductory training will benefit professionals working with children, adolescents and families across a range of settings, including CAMHS, social care, early help and education. It is suitable for practitioners with experience of working with parents and families who are interested in strengthening their practice through a mentalizing approach.

Elements of the programme can be applied in individual work with children, adolescents, parents, or adults within ongoing therapeutic work.

It will be particularly relevant for professionals working with families where there are concerns about relationships, attachment, or emotional wellbeing, including those working with families where there may be increased levels of risk or complexity.