Training Overview
Permanency Mediation is an advanced model for trained mediators with child welfare experience. You will learn two unique approaches to mediate a permanent plan for a child in foster care. The FREE 36 hour training is sponsored by the Trial Court. It includes a mixture of theory and practice and emphasizes “learning by doing,” followed by mediating a mentoring case under the direction of a qualified Mentor and Regional Supervisor.
*Please note: External basic mediation training is a prerequisite required for this training. Basic mediation training introduces participants to the core principles, structure, and skills used in mediation. For questions and information on scholarship opportunities for basic mediation training, please contact permmediation@plummeryouthpromise.org.
Training Qualifications
Permanency Mediation is an advanced practice built for experienced mediators working in child welfare settings. Becoming a permanency mediator is a meaningful way to support families navigating some of the most critical decisions in a child’s life. Plummer Youth Promise’s permanency mediation training is open to experienced child welfare professionals who meet specific eligibility requirements. Before beginning the training, candidates must meet foundational criteria that ensure they are prepared to engage in this specialized, relationship-centered work.
Please review the Pathway to Permanency Mediation Qualifications prior to submitting an application!
Training Approaches
You’ll learn two unique approaches: The Family Consultation Team (FCT) approach addresses what needs to occur for the child to return home, while simultaneously considering an alternative permanent plan (guardianship or adoption) if reunification is not possible. The FCT mediation unites parents, extended family, social workers, attorneys, and other service providers in a non-adversarial planning process.
When the goal is not reunification, the Cooperative Permanency Planning (CPP) approach uses a collaborative process to facilitate building a relationship between parents and foster parents as they work together to develop a permanent plan for the child’s future.
Training Design
- Specific skills in the Family Consultation Team process
- How to assess the youth’s needs for safety, support, continuity of relationships and permanence
- How to engage youth in permanency planning
- Clinical and legal issues involved in working with participants in child welfare cases
- Elements of Cooperative Open Adoption Agreements and Guardianship Agreements
- Kinship and guardianship issues
Training Schedule
All sessions are required to attend for qualification*
In Person Sessions
- Dates: Sunday, September 27 and October 4
- Time: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
- Location: 44 Portland St., 4th Floor, Worcester, MA
Virtual Sessions (via Zoom)
- Dates: Tuesdays & Thursdays — September 8, 10, 15, 17, 22, 24, 29, and October 1
- Time: 5:30 PM – 8:30 PM
Beyond the Model (via Zoom)
- Dates: October 15, 2026, November 10, 2026, December 10, 2026, January 12, 2027
- Time: 3:00PM – 4:30PM
Training Location and Parking Information
The Permanency Mediation in-person training sessions take place at 44 Portland Street, 4th Floor, Worcester, MA. Parking is available at the Worcester Public Library or at street meters nearby.
Training location
44 Portland Street,
4th Floor,
Worcester, MA
Parking at Worcester Library or street meters
Continuing Education
For those who complete Plummer Youth Promise’s Permanency Mediation Training and joined our roster, we offer an ongoing series of continuing education workshops designed to deepen your skills, expand your knowledge, and strengthen the work you do on behalf of children and families. For more information email PermMediation@plummeryouthpromise.org.
- Agreement Writing
- The Art of the Question
- Case Management: Managing Time, Process, and Case Related Issues
- Complicating factors in Permanency Mediation – how to spot them, deal with them, avoid them
- Core Issues in Adoption and Kinship issues Impact on Mediation
- Cultural Issues in Mediation
- Domestic Violence
- Ethical Issues in Mediation
- Effects of Trauma on Children and Families
- Dealing with Emotions
- Family Consultation Team Stages – A deeper understanding
- Group facilitation skills
- Gender issues
- Handling Strong Emotions/Domestic Violence Considerations/Impasse
- Juvenile Court Time Frames and Rules
- Legal Issues in Mediation
- Maintaining Personal and Professional Boundaries
- Maintaining and Supporting Connections for Children in Foster Care
- Mental Health issues impact on Mediation
- Safety Parameter’s Meeting: Understanding the DCF Process and How to Facilitate a
- Safety Parameter’s Meeting
- Separation/Loss/Attachment Issues for Children in Foster Care
- Strength Based Approach to Case Facilitation
- Substance Abuse Issues and its impact on Mediation
- Transitioning from FCT to CPP – how the conversation changes
- Voice of the child – Tools for including children
2026 Permanency Mediation Continuing Education Calendar
All training sessions will be Roundtables, from 3:00pm-4:30pm.
| Jan 15 | New MA Parentage Act |
| Feb 10 | FCT Process: Rules of the Road |
| Mar 3 | Case Closure Approval and the Team Member Form |
| Mar 19 | What’s the Goal: Adoption vs. Guardianship |
| Apr 14 | Agreement Writing |
| May 14 | DCF Guest Speaker |
| Jun 16 | Attachment, Loss and its Impact |
| Sept 10 | The Complexity of Transracial Adoption |
| Oct 15 | Screening, Safety, and Mediation in Cases Involving Interpersonal Violence |
| Nov 10 | The Power of a Name |
| Dec 10 | The Voice of the Child in Mediation: Purpose, Tools, and Practice |
