Meeting documents

To receive a presentation.

The Committee received a presentation on Family Safeguarding. It was explained that the idea was to bring adult workers into integrated teams with children’s workers to strengthen capacity to assist the whole family. This would then help children to remain with birth families and not come into care, reducing the ‘care population’ – both in prevention and return home.

It was explained that the way the Council operated needed to change if it was to continue to deliver and achieve its aims within the financial realities of modern local government. After a period of hard work and tough decisions the Council had a projected, albeit short-term, period of financial stability.

Following a period of reduction in the preventative aspects of Children’s Services there would now be a focus on a new approach, to prevent rather than react, that would enable the Council to improve lives earlier, faster and in a way that was more joined up with partner agencies.

Family Safeguarding was described as bringing adult workers into new and integrated teams with children’s workers, to strengthen the whole family offer so that children could remain with birth families and not go into care. This new approach would enable the Council to work on Ofsted’s criticism of ‘less than good’ multi-agency working between services for vulnerable families, and was based on a recognised practice model for effective family intervention having been successfully introduced in Hertfordshire a number of years earlier.

Members were reminded that in 2015 Public Health Somerset had published a ‘Hidden Harm’ needs assessment and it had highlighted the issue of ‘mental health’, ‘substance misuse’ and ‘domestic abuse’ in households with children across Somerset, identifying areas of overlap between the three factors. It was noted that last August of the 3735 children in need of protection or support in Somerset 14% of those (528 cases) had all three hidden harm factors.

Social work assessments had identified that 70% (2,600) of those children had at least one ‘hidden harm’ parental factor identified and those were reported as being: 41% - domestic abuse (1530 children); 40% - adult mental health (1500 children); 21% - adult drug misuse (784 children); and 18% - adult alcohol misuse (672 children).

It was noted that improving the conditions for vulnerable children across Somerset would be best achieved by improving the life chances of the most vulnerable fastest, and the new Family Safeguarding model would be trying to do that. The new way of working would be introduced in the Bridgwater and South Somerset areas first, as those areas had historically had higher numbers of families that would benefit from the new approach.

A range of measures would be used to support families including the motivational interview, which all staff would be trained to provide, including senior managers and Directors. This was designed to encourage and stimulate families to help themselves so they would feel inclined and willing to make changes rather than having to respond to being told to do something.

It was explained that in Hertfordshire after the new approach had been introduced the number of children looked after had reduced, less children had experienced trauma, and more children remained with their birth family. The benefit would also be realised through prevention savings to Adult Services and reduced demand on emergency services such as the Police and NHS. In response to a question it was stated that Family Safeguarding was a recognised practice model for effective family intervention, and assurance was provided that the ambition of this new approach could be achieved.

It was suggested and agreed that an update would be provided in 6 months.