How do you run a useful kinship caregiver support group without turning it into therapy?

Information reviewed September 2026. Policies and service processes can change, so use the linked official source when a current rule matters.

Peer support works because participants do not have to explain the basic experience of kinship caregiving.

The group should create connection and practical problem-solving without drifting into therapy, legal advice or case management.

Set four boundaries at the beginning.

• Privacy: participants should not repeat identifying stories about other families outside the group.
• Safety: a disclosure suggesting a child may be unsafe may trigger legal reporting responsibilities.
• Advice: facilitators can share resources and lived experience but should not tell participants what legal or medical decision to make.
• Choice: nobody should be pressured to tell a private family story in order to belong.

Build each session around one useful question.

Examples include parent contact, school, benefits, grief, boundaries, holidays, housing or caring for a teenager. Keep enough open time for participants to raise what is actually happening in their families.

Use guest speakers carefully.

A lawyer, Family Law Navigator, health professional, school support, Housing Navigator or other guest can be valuable when the topic is clear. Explain that the session provides general information and is not a place to discuss an individual's confidential case in front of the group.

Have referral information ready before difficult topics come up.

Keep the PEI Who Do I Call directory available for Child Protection, 9-8-8, family violence, mental health, 211 and other urgent or specialized needs.

Open PEI Who Do I Call

Capture themes, not family files.

It can be useful to record that several caregivers are struggling with transportation or authority at school. Do not turn facilitator notes into detailed records of individual family crises unless the organization has a specific lawful reason and process for doing so.

Family Resource Centres can be useful community partners.

PEI's eight Family Resource Centres provide parent education, support groups, resources and outreach. They can be part of local referral and partnership planning for kinship caregivers.

PEI Family Resource Centres