As of 2022 Attachment Parenting Europe is no longer active as a registered charity.
The information on this website will stay online as an archive.
Mission
The mission of Attachment Parenting Europe was to empower and support parents in understanding their childrens’ growth and development, thus creating the foundations for healthy emotional bonds, by promoting parenting practices based on attachment theory through advocacy and research.
Organisation
Attachment Parenting Europe (APEU) was a registered charity (“Stichting”) in The Netherlands, a non-profit (member) organization, networking with parents, professionals and like-minded organizations around the world.
Why APEU was formed
For more than 50 years professionals in the child development and child psychology fields such as John Bowlby, Mary Ainsworth and Alice Miller have been warning us of the dangers of failing to teach and practice good parenting skills. For a baby it is vital, they say, to foster a reciprocal attachment to a primary care giver. This has also been established by studies into the difference between and the development of human relationships in various cultures, as well as medical research: the investigation into, among other aspects, the values of breastfeeding, touch and physical nearness. Thus insights from practical, medical, psychological and anthropological backgrounds come together to reveal alternatives in parenting: attachment parenting.
Amongst our goals is the aim to inform society of the psychological and emotional needs of babies and young children, and the possible serious social consequences when these needs are not met. We are a forum for parents and professionals, and strive for developing appropriate standards and guidelines to aid policy makers and child advocacy agencies in promoting the attachment process. Furthermore we are developing educational materials for parents and children.
