On 20–24 April 2026, students from the Social Work program at Vilniaus kolegija, together with Aušra Simoniukštytė, a lecturer from the Faculty of Pedagogy at Vilniaus kolegija, and partners from universities in Belgium, the United Kingdom, Malta, the Netherlands, and Finland, participated in the Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) “Compassion in Practice: Humility in Parent-Centred Working”, organized by the University of Nottingham Trent (UK) in collaboration with the International Parent-Centered Network (IPCN), of which Vilniaus kolegija is a member.
The intensive program consisted of lectures, practical workshops, dynamic group activities, visits to various institutions working with families, and meetings with parents. University academics and researchers shared their insights with students on the importance of compassion in social work with parents, drawing on an analysis of social discourses, theoretical models, methodological approaches, and organizational practices.
VIKO lecturer Aušra Simoniukštytė led a session titled “Polarising prejudices and their impact on social work with parents.” The lecturer also represented VIKO at the annual IPCN meeting, which outlines further joint activities for higher education institutions belonging to the IPCN network.
