This paper focuses on the experience of conducting an analytic group for severely disturbed children between the ages of 7 and 11 years, and explores the issues arising for cotherapists in this context. Emotionally deprived children remain ambivalently and intensely attached to the parent but have difficulty making other positive relationships. Cotherapy with a group of children who had faulty object relations was found to facilitate parental transference so that the children experienced an adult relationship based upon mutual support, congruence and understanding. Whilst cotherapy can give rise to complications in work with groups, these were outweighed by the many benefits. Of primary importance in such work is trust and honesty in the cotherapy partnership, careful pre-group planning and good supervision.
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