About

PETAL Objectives are:

Adults across Scotland who have the experienced loss of a family member or friend through murder, culpable homicide and suicide, will report increased skills and techniques to self manage and move on to make positive changes in their lives.
Children and young people across Scotland who have experienced the loss of a family member or friend through murder or suicide, will report increased skills and techniques to identify their own needs and consider a range of solutions to make positive changes in their lives.
Volunteers, sessional workers, therapists and staff will develop improved skills and consider a range of solutions to help young clients manage the diverse issues they face within their family, social and other networks and make positive changes in their lives.
The members of the board will report improved skills in measuring, tracking and reviewing outcomes, have techniques for setting clear goals and objectives to better manage resources and improve the delivery of services to all our members.
PETAL Support will deliver a long term management and support structure and identify the necessary funding required to continue the support facility and the possible expansion of the support facilities within 2 additional geographic locations. Adhere to clear goals and objectives for managing resources and improving service delivery.
PETAL Support will report quarterly on the actions and outcomes of participation in decision making and policy influencing groups, have a positive influence on policy in areas that affect our clients and continue to establish formal partnership agreements which clearly define roles and responsibilities and value added to national programmes, objectives and policy.

We provide Training for Staff & existing Volunteers and proposed New Volunteers.
Training is based around the Psychotherapeutic Interventions (A programme Integrating Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Client- Centred Counselling devised and formulated by: Findlay Collins RMN, A, MPhil- University of Paisley and Dave Deady RGN, RMN, DN, DTMN, BA(Hons) Dip.Couns. University of Paisley) and our own in-house course P. A. L. S. ( PETAL’s Accelerated Learning by Sharing).

We know of no other course available that integrates Cognitive Behavioural and Person Centred Therapies at a practical level of delivery.

Though coming from contrasting perspectives both approaches value the importance of the therapeutic relationship as a means of enabling, teaching and facilitating healthy coping mechanisms with a client experiencing psychological pain and/or disharmony.

The workshops for the course are held at PETAL's premises.

This course was been very well received and has proved to be beneficial to all those that participated and it is our intention to continue with this.

PETAL Management Infrastructure
PETAL Support is managed by a voluntary Management Committee (Directors) who are responsible for all aspects of:

Service Delivery
Service Development
Employment/ Management of Staff in conjunction with the PETAL Support CEO

Major decisions affecting the operation of PETAL are ratified by The Management Committee Directors.
Decisions are reached democratically within the board by consensus of opinion, following consultations with employees on a regular basis.

In line with the criteria set by our individual funding sources Management Committee Directors manage the funds secured, and ensures that the set aims and objectives involving standards and outcomes are adhered to.
Regular reporting mechanisms are undertaken to keep PETAL clients informed of personal developments, with PETAL events and feedback being distributed though newsletters and other media.

The Management Committee Directors are also responsible for ensuring that PETAL employees receive:

Annual appraisals
Support and Supervision if required (sourced externally if requested)

Where appropriate or relevant to specific positions within PETAL Support, as and when appropriate, as the service expands opportunities for career development will become available to staff members on application.

Stakeholders

We have clearly established partnerships with the Justice Department at the Scottish Government and Victims Support Scotland, Police Scotland, North Lanarkshire Council and South Lanarkshire Council Social Work Departments and with statutory and voluntary organisations to identify roles, responsibilities and ways in which our services impact on national policy and the longer term sustainability of PETAL Support.

The organisations we work with

Police Scotland
Crown Office and Procurator’s Fiscal
The Victims & Witness Unit
Victim Information Service within Scottish Courts
Social Work Resource Departments.
Community Psychiatric Nurses
Local schools
Victim Support Scotland,
CRUSE
Choose Life Scotland & Regional Office
SAMH
Parole Board Scotland,
Chartered Institute of Housing
SCVO and local CVS

We contribute to debate and take part in consultations, which include issues such as preventing secondary victimisation (damage resulting from insensitive handling of a criminal case). The purpose is to improve the provision of information, recognition, consideration and support during the criminal justice process to families in homicide cases.

PETAL Support is part of The Victims Forum and the Lanarkshire Community Justice Authority with the remit to reduce re-offending. The emphasis is to reduce re-offending through information sharing, co-operation and effective joint working. The membership of the group represents statutory agencies who deal with offenders and also victims. The members co-ordinate inter- agency work, identify gaps in support to families, recommend improvements and new service delivery. PETAL represents the views of victim organisations; raise the awareness of the effect offenders actions have on victims and their families.