Child to parent violence and other abusive, self-destructive, aggressive and controlling behaviours can become a feature of the interaction between teenagers and their parents.  It is also a regular occurrence in adoptive families and cases of placement breakdown as highlighted in the most recent research (Selwyn et al., 2014). This was highlighted in a pilot project I have delivered using the NVR approach with some adoptive families in East Sussex. 

A combination of Family Therapy and NVR can be effective in these situations which create a high level of anxiety and a sense of powerless in parents. This intervention does not require children and teenagers to attend sessions as it can work through discussing and teaching its key principles and techniques to parents. 

The success of the NVR intervention lies not only in a robust family support network but an equally robust professional support network to reinforce zero tolerance of violence and abuse and promote collaborative practice and corporate risk management.