Our team at Shoreline Therapy Center recently completed a 24-hour virtual training hosted by Supervised Visitation Network (SVN). SVN is an international, non-profit organization that consists of a network of agencies, including Shoreline Therapy Center, that they educate and train to be able to ensure children an opportunity to have safe access to their parents or caregivers during times of family conflict or transition.

We are proud to share that we will be able to expand our services offered now that our team members are certified to do supervised visitation. This blog post will introduce supervised visitation and answer some questions people may have about it.

What is supervised visitation? 

Supervised visitation is a court-ordered arrangement in which parent/child interactions are overseen by a third party (the visit supervisor) to protect the safety of both children and adult participants. Supervised visitation provides an opportunity for the parent/child relationship to develop and grow within a safe space. Our staff members received education and training on safety during supervised visits and are confident in our ability to provide this service.

Is supervised visitation a form of therapy?

No, supervised visitation is not the same as therapy. However, families involved in supervised visitation may also be involved in reunification therapy. Check out our blog post on the difference between supervised visitation and reunification therapy to learn more about this!

Is the visit supervisor a therapist?

No, the supervised visitor is a neutral, third-party that observes the visit and ensures safe interactions between the parent and child. Since our therapists at Shoreline Therapy Center can provide supervised visitation, they will “remove their therapist hats” during these visits. This means that they will not be working in the role of a therapist during supervised visits, will not be providing therapy, and will instead show up as a neutral supervised visitor. 

What does it mean to be “neutral”?

Being neutral means being unbiased and objective. Also referred to as “neutrality”, it means the supervised visitor will not take sides between parents. Neutrality ensures all participating members are respected while prioritizing the protection of the child(ren). However, it is important to know that being neutral does not mean that behaviors such as violence of any kind will be tolerated. 

Why would families need to do supervised visitation?

There are a variety of situations that may result in supervised visitation being necessary. There are two main categories for these situations: domestic relations and child welfare.

• Domestic relations cases: conflict between parents/caregivers or the individual problem(s) of one parent/caregiver put the child and/or other parent/caregiver at risk of harm; child(ren) referred to supervised visitation to protect child(ren) from conflict while also maintaining contact between the child(ren) and their parent/caregiver.
• Child welfare cases: child(ren) removed from the home because of abuse or neglect; child(ren) referred to supervised visitation to facilitate restorative relationships and work towards reunification.

To learn more, check out SVN’s website: 

https://svnw.memberclicks.net/