The Partnering Not Parenting 8 Week Course
A compassionate, connective and proven approach to supporting your child's mental health

Why Partnering NOT Parenting?

"Shouldn't I parent MORE when things are challenging?"

In short, no. When your child has a mental health issue, it changes everything - how we live, how we love and how we see the past, present and future. From the dynamics of communication and possibility to expectations and beliefs to our own ability to think straight, we can become consumed by trying to help our child to wellness.

In our haste to help and with a focus on fixing - because that's what us parents do, isn't it? - we can find our homes become a battlefield and our heads are quickly filled with all the what ifs, conflicting information and overpowering feelings like guilt, shame and fear. Our behaviours, while done to try and help, can often lead to a greater sense of disconnection and we can wonder if we'll ever recognise our child - or our family -again.

'Partnering Not Parenting' is a compassionate, proven approach for parents of children with poor mental health that helps reframe the challenges and offers pragmatic and practical tools to help us understand how to reconnect, communicate and build trust in a deeply challenging time.

The course helps deal with the grief, shame and distress we experience having a child with depression, anxiety or other mental health condition while helping them to a place where they feel emotionally safe, seen and heard by us.

But this is most certainly not about perfect parenting! That doesn't exist. This is about using the challenge you face as an opportunity to reflect, to set down some old behaviours and beliefs, and to move forward with greater clarity, connection and hope, and to transform your relationship with yourself, your child and your family.

And while parenting harder isn't helpful, Partnering Not Parenting is not about letting your child 'get on with it' or not having boundaries. Partnering Not Parenting is about adding to your existing parenting to meet the unique challenges that your child's poor mental health brings, building connection and change at a time when you feel there is no fix and often, there is no hope.
And Partnering Not Parenting isn't about changing your child; it's not a therapy or quick fix. It's a powerful, compassionate approach to understanding more about what your whole family is going through as well as the challenges and opportunities this adversity brings. It gives you the understanding, the tools, and the support to begin to calm, connect and converse with your child.

The next course begins on March 25th 2024 and runs for 8 weeks. You access the audio and video training week by week online and via the Thinkific app on your phone or tablet, and complete them in your own time. There is also a weekly workbook to help you reflect on your thoughts and document the changes - and challenges - as they happen.

Suzanne also runs bonus regular Live Q&A sessions through the course as well as being present to answer questions and support you in the closed Facebook community, filled with other parents who get what you're going through and are there to help support you and offer hope, understanding and strength.

The course cost is £150 for 12 months' access and there are payment options of 3 x £50 or 6 x £25 payment plans available too.
Having 12 months' access means you can go through the coached course up to 5 times in 2024/25, giving you space if you're concerned about your capacity or just want to continue to reflect, learn and grow. Any time the resources are updated in the 12 months, you'll get free access to them as well.

The charity Parenting Mental Health also funds a number of scholarship places for low income parents - if you would like to apply, there is a link at the bottom of the page.

What parents say about the Partnering Not Parenting course

E

Parent of young adult son

I can't recommend this course enough.
It is mind blowing. It is informative, in depth,
interactive, it makes you think and reflect but the most important thing is IT WORKS.
I wanted, needed to change as I love my son and I yearned for connection. I actively participated and listened to the course content and began partnering my son. This course has helped me find and build CONNECTION again. I can't praise it enough.

A

Parent of 2 children

I love Partnering! Thank you for giving me the tools and the confidence to partner my kids. J had an unbelievably positive first couple of days of 6th form but became hugely overwhelmed and had a big wobble on Tuesday night. She was able to communicate effectively with me the extent of her anxiety and we talked it all through. After a day at home to reset yesterday and some adaptations, she’s back in today!

N

Parent to early teen daughter

I did the course last year after spending years searching for and reading about approaches that might help my daughter. Partnering not Parenting is the only approach that has worked.
I can honestly say it has been life changing and quite possibly life saving for my family.
What also sets it apart is the fact that it isn’t just about parenting a child with poor MH; it is also a journey of therapeutic self discovery and self compassion for us as parents. It is also about connection - with our child, ourselves and others who are sharing a similar ‘normal’.
It can be hard work at times, but you absolutely will not regret signing up for it.

D

Parent of teenage son

Yesterday evening he asked if I'd like to eat together. I played it calm and simply said, yes sure. He suggested we watch a show while we ate and I went along with it. Tonight he came down again to eat with me, and watch another episode! He's not been prepared to eat with me for years. All thanks to Partnering.

A

Parent of 4

Having read Suzanne’s book, 'Never Let Go: How To Parent Your Child Through Mental Illness', and embraced the Parenting Mental Health Facebook group, I joined the course thinking it would be an extension of the book. How wrong I was, it is SO much more than that!!! You think you are joining with it being about your child as the focus, but it is a course that looks at you predominantly. You can choose to dig as deep as you wish, and go at your own pace, share with others in the group or not – there’s no pressure.

A

Parent of teenage son

The Partnering not Parenting course is worth so much more than the money you pay to do it. The resources are so well thought out, extensive and just full of empowering knowledge, education, and insight. There is constant support within the group and Suzanne is always at hand too, and so approachable. I think this course would be valuable for anyone, even those without a child with a mental illness. Fantastic course and couldn’t recommend it more highly. The course has not only helped me in my parenting role but even more as a person, for which I am eternally grateful.

L

Parent to early teen son

Partnering Not Parenting has revolutionised how we speak to, deal with, view, manage, frame, perceive, support our son's life/responses/views/actions.....the 3 of us have lived pretty much in each others' pockets for 4 years straight.....our situation has improved beyond measure BECAUSE of PNP.

J

Parent of 2

Hubby and I did this course and it changed our house and especially my hubby in how he would respond or react to our teen, well worth doing and great to hear others stories and know you're not alone

G

Parent of teenage son and daughter

Suzanne Alderson's Partnering Not Parenting approach really does work. Not just with kids but husbands too!!! Since reading Never Let Go and putting Partnering into practice our life is so different. My husband is taking initiative and getting involved in supporting our child's MH recovery. #gratefulgratefulGRATEFUL

How much does the course, calls and community cost?

Pay in full or pay over 3 or 6 months - at no extra cost

Meet Your PNP Guide

Suzanne Alderson

Founder, Parenting Mental Health and 'Partnering Not Parenting'

Suzanne is the founder of Parenting Mental Health, a global community and UK registered charity that supports, skills and empowers over 40,000 parents of young people with mental health issues as they navigate the practical and emotional impacts on themselves, their families and their lives. Suzanne started the community on Facebook in 2016 because she couldn’t find the information, support or connection she was desperate for when her 14 year old daughter became depressed, anxious, self harmed and attempted suicide. She is a fierce advocate of the parent and believes in their powerful role they can play in positively impacting on their family’s mental health.

Suzanne’s bestselling book 'Never Let Go - How to Parent Your Child Through Mental Illness' was published by Penguin RandomHouse in 2020 and shares her experience and the approach she devised - ‘Partnering Not Parenting’ - to support her daughter to recovery. The book has helped thousands of parents to make sense of the extraordinary experience with the 3 step Partnering Not Parenting approach, because parenting a child with a mental health issue is very different to parenting a child. She also runs the ‘Partnering not Parenting’ course and mentors parents 1-1 on how to cope when your child has a mental health issue.

Suzanne believes passionately in the power of community to build meaningful connection and change outcomes in health and wellbeing and was recognised by Facebook in 2018 as one of its 100 most meaningful global community leaders when she was selected for the Facebook Community Leadership Program and, in 2020, Parenting Mental Health was chosen to join Facebook’s inaugural Community Accelerator and named one of the 16 most impactful communities in EMEA.

Parenting Mental Health (PMH) has been a registered charity since 2020 with a mission to improve the experience of parenting a child with a mental health issue and a vision to support and skill 1m parents by 2026. PMH actively supports parents and reduces isolation in its closed Facebook group with peer support, training, mentoring and emotional support services like Listening Circles.

She is also a regular speaker and media contributor on how to parent through poor mental health as well as adolescent mental health and its impacts on families, is a Zinc VC Mental Health Fellow and was named Digital Mother of the Year.

Suzanne’s daughter, Issy, who illustrated the Never Let Go book, has recently graduated university after being out of school for 2 years.

THE COURSE CURRICULUM

What do we cover in the PNP course?

Welcome to the course!
What is Partnering and how can it help you?
Taking care of yourself
You are the Blueprint
Your Week 1 Workbook to Print
Your Week 1 Workbook - digital version
Zoom Replay 26/3/24
Welcome Zoom 5/6/24
Welcome Session 5/9/24
Welcome Session 14/11/24
What's really going on? Acknowledgment & the stories we tell ourselves
Understanding your child's reality
Framing the challenges - how changing your mindset can help everyone
Introducing the Curve & how it can help you to feel more in control
The Quizzes
Week 2 Workbook
Your Week 2 Workbook - digital version
Zoom Replay 4/4/24
Your Wellbeing Zoom 10/6/24
Your Wellbeing Presentation
Wellbeing Session Replay 13/9/24
Your Wellbeing 19/11/24
Building Capacity
Introduction to Stepping Down
Communicating to Connect
How to move towards Acceptance
Managing Grief
Week 3 Workbook
Your Week 3 Workbook - digital version
Zoom Replay 9/4/24
Exams Replay
Chat & Connect 22/6/24
Chat & Connect 18/9/24
How to live well with uncertainty
Managing Expectations - yours, theirs and others'
Assumptions
Dealing with Parental Guilt
Week 4 Workbook
Your Week 4 Workbook - digital version
Zoom replay 18/4/24
Chat & Connect - Guilt 27/6/24
Step Down Replay 24/9/24
Standing Beside Our Child
Building Patience
Building Trust
Boundaries
Week 5 Workbook
Your Week 5 Workbook - Digital Version
Zoom Replay 23/4/24
Zoom Replay 5/7/24
Chat & Connect 1/10/24
Consistency and connection
Dealing with frustration and anger - yours, theirs and others'
Advocating for your child
Encouraging agency and choices in your child
Your Week 6 Workbook
Your Week 6 Workbook - Digital Edition
Zoom Replay 1/5/23
Introduction to Travelling Together
Dealing with Friends and Family
When you wonder if it will ever change...
Week 7 Workbook
Zoom Replay 9/5/23
Zoom Replay 18/7/24
Chat & Connect 16/10/24
New Opportunities - framing the present
Difficult decisions
Heuristics and how we think about decisions
Illness, condition, destiny? How to reflect on what you're going through
Reminders on your power & what's really important
Week 8 Workbook
Zoom Replay 15/5/24
Zoom Replay 23/7/24
Reflections Session
AMA 21/10/24
Reflections Session - New Questions

About Partnering Not Parenting

Partnering Not Parenting is a 3 step approach to
practical change and emotional connection.


Step Down

Step Down

Change the dynamic in your home by Stepping Down from your emotions, judgement, experience and authority. It sounds like letting go, but it's actually the fastest way to reconnect. In the course we look at your capacity to cope, ways you can create significant shifts through your own behaviour change, and how to manage your expectations and assumptions, how to communicate better, and how to wrestle your fear to the floor!

Stand Beside

Stand Beside

Stand Beside your child through this extraordinary experience with compassion and hope and you'll be building emotional safety and laying the foundations for a relationship for life. This adversity can, amazingly, offer us opportunities for understanding, advocacy and agency. In the course, we explore building trust and patience, redefining and understanding boundaries, and how we can reflect on the losses and the gains of what we face.

Travel Together

Travel Together

When our child's mental health declines, and maybe they can't engage in the world as we or they expected, or things just feel so different and heavy it can be hard to see that, within the adversity, there is opportunity to build a life that really serves them - and us - if we can manage our emotions and reframe the future that hasn't happened yet to Travel Together. In the course, we reflect on how we can open up new and often unexpected pathways, and encourage a sense of agency in our child.

How much is the course?

The course costs £150 for 12 months' access to course materials, digital community and live sessions.

There are also 2 payment plans - either 3 monthly payments of £50 or 6 monthly payments of £25

Partnering Not Parenting

Frequently Asked Questions

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The course materials take approximately 2-3 hours a week, but you can learn at your pace. There is no pressure to do everything each week - there are lots of opportunities to connect because we know that life is busy and hard. Everything is accessible via Thinkific so you can listen wherever you want to and as you get 12 months' access, you can go at your own pace and revisit parts of the course as you and your situation changes. 

You have 12 months' continuous access to the course resources as well as the bonuses - the community and the regular sessions on Zoom when the course runs.

The charity Parenting Mental Health offers a number of fully funded scholarship places for parents on low incomes that offer 12 months' access to the course materials, live Q&As and community. 

If you would like to apply for a place, please complete the form here:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PNP_Scholarship_0324 

Please note that you will receive notification of whether your application has been successful on or by 22nd March. There will be time to sign up over the weekend before the course materials go live on 25th March. 

Please DO NOT buy the course if you apply as we cannot refund the payment if your scholarship application is successful. 

If your application is successful, you'll be sent a voucher code which will reduce the fee payable to £0. 

If you have any queries about the scholarship, please email [email protected]


The course materials are accessible on Thinkific, a learning management platform that houses each week's resources. They are available on the Monday of each week of the course. 

The regular Q&As are held on Zoom so a phone, tablet or laptop and internet connection are necessary to join. 


The first live event is our Welcome Zoom on Tuesday 26th March at 5pm, then...


Wk 2 Thursday April 4th at 2.30pm

Wk 3 Tuesday April 9th at 6pm 

Wk 4 Thursday April 18th at 1pm

Wk 5 Tuesday April 23rd at 6pm

Wk 6  Wednesday May 1st 1pm

Wk 7 Thursday May 9th at 6pm 

Wk 8 Wednesday May 15th at 6pm


There's no need to speak if you don't want to or to have your camera on for any of the sessions. And don’t worry if you can’t make it. Every session I do is recorded and you can watch it back via Thinkific the next day. 

We don't offer refunds as a matter of course as the course materials are all accessible online so you can learn and connect on your terms and timescale. 


Partnering Not Parenting and the course is not dependent on any diagnosis. Coming from a place of compassion and understanding that all behaviour is communication, the approach and course is about you and how you might support your child and yourself. 

Lots of parents of neurodivergent children, of those who are traumatised, undiagnosed, and/or can't go to school or leave their rooms have taken the course. This is about you, not your child, but when you change, things change for them too.  



We support parents of children leaving primary school all the way up to adult children in their 20s, 30s and beyond. 

As the course is about YOU, it can benefit your family dynamic at any age. 

Suzanne does offer paid 1-1 support and mentoring as well as a number of free places (although these are currently booked up until July 2024) She has some availability for 1-1 paid sessions. Please email: 

suzanne at suzannealderson dot com 

for more information. 

Sorry - fixing isn't something we can (or should) do. What the PNP course can offer is a safe space to reflect, practical skills to shift the dynamic in your home, and connection to others who get it! 

What does the 'Partnering not Parenting' course include?

The course has been designed to give you the practical information, insight and support you need to 'Partner not Parent' through this extraordinary time. But we know that life gets busy and that change takes time and effort, which is why you get 12 months' access to this course plus support from Suzanne and parents like you in the special course community

  • 12 months' Access to the online video lessons, transcripts and presentations

  • Live Q&A Sessions on Zoom - all recorded

  • A safe, supportive community on Facebook to share your thoughts, challenges, lessons and wins and connect with other parents who are going through it and get it

  • Join any other (or all) Partnering not Parenting courses during the 12 months

  • Hope and connection. This approach works, when you do! ;)

Ready to Sign Up?

We start on March 25th

If you want a different way of approaching the challenges in your family, are ready to commit to the work, and want to learn in a compassionate and supportive community of parents who get it, Partnering Not Parenting is a comprehensive, compassionate course that offers you a deeper understanding of what's going on and how you might change it.