Children and Families Social Care Families First Partnership
Overview
The Government is proposing important changes to the children’s social care system.
The aim of the changes is to have a system where families and practitioners from social work, police, health, education, and beyond, all work together to promote the wellbeing of children and keep them safe from harm. The name of these changes is called the Families First Partnership programme – and this is what we’re seeking your views on.
One area of the Families First Partnership focuses on Family Help, Multi-agency Child Protection and Family Group Decision Making and is aimed at supporting families to stay together and thrive, increasing the number of children that can stay safely at home with their families.
The Government (and Somerset Council as the local authority) understand that any journey of change requires a multi-agency approach, based on strong relationships, and must be led by families and young people themselves. Only by working together can we transform the way we support families and vulnerable children, ensuring that we provide the right help at the right time, ensuring children can grow up safely, with the right love and support around them.
We want to hear from you. This is your chance to play a key role in shaping the Families First Partnership programme here in Somerset.
Why your views matter to us
We’re inviting you to share your experiences, ideas, and recommendations on what you think the Families First Partnership programme should look like. We want to know what you think is working well in children and family services currently, and what changes you would like to see to improve how we work together.
Consultation: Your engagement and feedback will help us co-design and co-produce how the Families First Partnership is developed and rolled out across the county. We will review all the responses provided and will let you know how this will or has informed any changes we make to improve support for children and families.
Focus Groups: We are planning to organise focus groups for those who wish to participate and contribute further to the conversation. These sessions will provide an opportunity for open discussion, sharing of ideas and collaboration. If you would like to be part of a focus group in the future, please provide your details once you have completed the consultation sections.
Thank you in advance for your interest and your time. For further information and background reading, we’ve provided the following resources below:
Families First Partnership Guidance - a toolkit for implementing the new Families First Programmes
Keeping Children Safe, Helping Families Thrive - a Government vision for children's social care - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67375fe5ed0fc07b53499a42/Keeping_Children_Safe__Helping_Families_Thrive_.pdf
Learning from regional Families First Pathfinders
Reform of Children's Social Care in England
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