Agenda item
Working with Families update
The committee will receive a presentation on the Working with Families initiative.
Minutes:
Sara Williams (Acting Director, Children and Families) delivered a presentation to the committee on the Working with Families (WwF) initiative. It was explained that the WwF approach was family focussed and aimed to address all dimensions of need including unemployment, housing, parenting capacity, child development, health and behaviour. WwF encompassed a range of integrated and multi-agency support services, with appropriate step-up and step-down arrangements. It increased the resource base for early intervention and met Brent’s commitment to the national Troubled Families Programme.
Sara Williams explained that the WwF objectives were delivered through several key work streams including the Brent Family Front Door service. This was a multi-agency team, bringing together services across social care, the police, health and education and would act as a first point of contact for all referrals received. For those families identified as requiring further support through the WwF initiative, the Family Solutions Team, a multi-disciplinary network of specialist key workers, delivered bespoke packages of support. Members were also introduced to two new edge of care services; FAIR (Family Assessment and Intervention Resource) and FAST(Family and Adolescent Support Team). The FAST worked with families at the point of crisis to support families and prevent adolescents (10 years and over) from entering the care system whenever safe to do so. FAIR sought to address the gap in assessment and interventions services for families with younger children where care proceedings were under active consideration, working to help the family stay together where possible. It was emphasised that early intervention services helped reduce the often high costs of providing ongoing support for families.
A brief overview of the Troubled Families Programme was provided by Sara Williams. The payment-by-results programme required that the council work with at least 810 of the boroughs most vulnerable families by March 2015 to deliver evidence-based solutions and coordinate support required from a variety of agencies via a key worker. The council had thus far worked with 303 families (Cohort 1) and was currently working with a further 200 families (Cohort 2). Phase 3 of the programme would be accelerated through work to improve the involvement of other agencies and the provision of additional key workers.
In the ensuing discussion, the committee asked officers to comment on the availability and turnover of staff within the support teams and whether this impacted the ability of workers to build relationships with families. An explanation was sought of how the teams related to each other, how they were funded and the professional criteria for the workers within the teams. With reference to the online form which enabled referrals to be made to the Brent Family Front Door service, it was queried who this facility was aimed at and how it would be promoted. Clarification was requested in relation to the ‘basket of local criteria’ which formed one of the criterion established by the Communities and Local Government Department which must be met to claim payment by results
Sara Williams advised in response to members’ questions that the person specification for key worker posts did not require applicants to be qualified social workers and instead sought those with relevant skills and the necessary tenacity to undertake a very proactive and practical role. An intensive training programme was provided for Key Workers. It was emphasised that there was very little staff turn over for Key Workers. Sara Williams confirmed that whilst the FAIR and FAST teams were managed within the Children’s Social Services department, the WwF initiative formed part of the broader early help offer. The FAST team was funded via the Social Care budget, whilst the FAIR team was temporarily being funded through the Troubled Families grant; it was anticipated however, that the Social Care budget would accommodate funding for the FAIR team in the future as early intervention work reduced service pressure. The Brent Front Door Service had been established using funding from the Troubled Families grant but would be taken forward by Social Care. Further information would be provided regarding the respective budgets for the various teams. Councillor Pavey (Lead Member for Children and Families) explained that the budget for early intervention projects was ringfenced for 2014/15.
Members were further advised by Sara Williams that the option to complete an online form to submit a referral to the Brent Family Front Door Service was available to members of the public and was publicised via Brent’s website. Susan Gates (Head of Early Years and Family Support) advised that to claim payment by results three criterion had to be met; two must be drawn from the criteria set nationally and the third could be locally determined. Sara Williams explained that that the basket of local criteria had enabled targeting of those adversely affected by the Welfare Reforms.
Responding to a question regarding Social Worker case loads, Sara Williams advised that early help services provided an effective step-down service for appropriate cases. However, case loads remained high. It was agreed that further information regarding the impact of the WwF initiative on social worker case loads would be provided to the committee.
RESOLVED:
That the presentation be noted.