Brief interventions to reduce risky drinking in parents of children referred to children’s social care

PAReNTS (Promoting Alcohol Reduction in Non-Treatment Seeking Parents): Brief interventions to reduce hazardous and harmful drinking in parents of children referred to children's social care: a pilot feasibility study

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ISRCTN

Registry ID

ISRCTN60291091

Enrollment

180

Registered

2016-11-16

Start date

2017-03-01

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-03-02

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Alcohol use disorders Mental and Behavioural Disorders Alcohol use disorders

Interventions

Formative study Parents of children referred to children’s social care due to a wellbeing concern will be identified by social care practitioners from their caseload in the research sites (Newcastle,

it is estimated that n=20 will be required. The interviews will explore beliefs around parental alcohol usage, helpful interventions and acceptable approaches. Key behavioural issues and motivational

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: 1. Parents whose child is referred to children’s social care due to concerns regarding the well-being of the child and are an active case 2. Screen positive for risky alcohol use i.e. scoring =5 on the AUDIT-C 3. Informed consent given

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: 1. Already in active treatment with drug and alcohol services 2. Parents of children on a child protection plan 3. Parents of children who are placed on an emergency protection order 4. Have severe, chronic or acute mental health problems or who are severely distressed 5. Unable to give informed consent in English

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Formative study: 1. Parents’ beliefs around parental alcohol usage, helpful interventions and approaches is gathered though a qualitative interview prior to the commencement of the trial 2. Practitioner views and experiences of engaging and intervening with parents who drink alcohol is gathered through a focus group prior to the commencement of the trial Feasibility randomised controlled trial 1. Recruitment rate is recorded as the number of eligible participant who consent to participate in the study 2. Retention rate is recorded as the number of participants who complete the follow-up questionnaire at 12 months Process evaluation: Participating parents and practitioners views and experiences of trial processes and interventions will be gathered in one-to-one interviews on completion of the trial.	—

Measure

Time frame

Formative study: 1. Parents’ beliefs around parental alcohol usage, helpful interventions and approaches is gathered though a qualitative interview prior to the commencement of the trial 2. Practitioner views and experiences of engaging and intervening with parents who drink alcohol is gathered through a focus group prior to the commencement of the trial Feasibility randomised controlled trial 1. Recruitment rate is recorded as the number of eligible participant who consent to participate in the study 2. Retention rate is recorded as the number of participants who complete the follow-up questionnaire at 12 months Process evaluation: Participating parents and practitioners views and experiences of trial processes and interventions will be gathered in one-to-one interviews on completion of the trial.

—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Feasibility randomised controlled trial Intervention fidelity is measured (using a-priori criteria) according to extent to which the intervention is delivered in-line with the manual.	—

Countries

England, United Kingdom

Contacts

Public ContactRuth McGovern

r.mcgovern@ncl.ac.uk+44 (0)1912087894

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Mar 14, 2026