Right Services –Right Time Meeting Children’s Needs

1. Right Services –Right TimeMeeting Children’s Needs My Agency’s Responsibilities

2. Ofsted Inspection 2012 Set out a requirement for BSCB to review the thresholds document and ensure that: • Delays are avoided when responding to concerns about children and young people. • All agencies understand their roles & responsibilities in referral practices and managing risk, • Inconsistencies in practice are addressed

3. Working Together to Safeguard Children 2013 LSCBs to publish a threshold document that includes: • The process for early help assessment • The criteria for assessment, including the level of need for when a case should be referred to the Local Authority Children’s Social Care and statutory services

4. Process • Multi–agency task and finish group • Reporting to OEG • Wide consultation • BSCB endorsement March 2013 • Launch May 13 • Implementation plan

5. Principles • Needs led approach • Changes the language, services for children not process (e.g. threshold, needs a CAF, IA, s47) • No wrong door • Acute and complex not only a SC response • Encourages a conversation that helps find a solution rather than a ‘stand off’ • Avoids the reframing of a concern into a child protection matter

6. Birmingham Basics • Always see the child first • Never do nothing • Do with, not to, others • Do the simple things better • Have conversations, build relationships • Outcomes not inputs

7. Focused on NEED • Child at the Centre • Support offered to the family • Birmingham’s model • All agencies use same indicators Right Services Right Time Meeting Children’s Needs

8. Benefit to children • Metaphorically holds the child’s hand throughout • Avoids multiple assessments • Provides advice and support to professionals • Provides additional services, shared ownership and responsibility

9. Child at the Centre • General needs met • Right to a wide range of services Universal Need

10. Right Services Right Time – Practice Examples • What is the appropriate nature of the support needed by the following children ? • Universal? • Universal Plus? • Additional Needs ? • Complex/Significant needs ? • What is the appropriate response from your own agency ?

11. Child at the Centre • Response required • Support offered Universal Plus

12. Chantelle - 3yrs old Chantelle aged 3 moved to the area a month ago with her mum, Karen, and her younger brother. They moved to be closer to Karen’s mum who now looks after the children when Karen is at work. They do not have a lot of money and are currently living in a small, one bedroom flat which is a little damp. Chantelle hasn’t yet started at a new nursery but Karen says she’s really keen for her to go to nursery once she’s found one. She seems rather small for her age and has a rash on her arm which she scratches a lot. Mum says she’s concerned about it but hasn’t yet managed to register at a new GP . She says she’ll take Chantelle to the GP as soon as she is signed up. Chantelle seems quiet and doesn’t talk much

13. Chantelle – Universal Plus While Chantelle does have some obvious needs it would seem that mum has a plan in place to address them. Therefore the appropriate intervention for her would be Universal Plus as she may just need the worker to support her and signpost her to the appropriate help such as GP and children’s centre. If no progress was made or mum identified that she was struggling to find her way, further discussion might mean that additional needs help might be required

14. Child at the Centre • Coordinated response required • Multi-agency support offered via fCAF Additional Need

15. Hassan - 9yrs Old • Father of the child, Mohammed, is a single parent following his wife leaving the family home 3 months ago. He is working but is struggling to keep his job and look after Hassan and his sibling, Aisha and get them to school. • Hassan is autistic and can exhibit some challenging behaviour at home and at school and this has worsened since his mother left the family home. • Mohammed does not find it easy to feed the children as he has never really learned to cook and look after the house so he and the children eat junk food. He has no family locally to help him out as they are all abroad. • He had found it very difficult to accept his wife’s departure and his mood is getting lower and he reports that he has started smoking khat. • The children’s attendance has suffered as it used to be excellent but they are often late for school and can look unkempt and scruffy. The children seem to have a loving relationship with their father.

16. Hassan - Additional Needs • It is clear that the family circumstances have undergone a significant change recently and Dad is clearly struggling to cope despite trying his best. • He and the children need some support from several agencies to help them so this is best coordinated by a family CAF assessment with support at additional needs. • Support is needed from Children’s and Adult agencies to support the family

17. Child at the Centre • Specialist response required • Multi-agency support offered • via specialist services Complex/Significant Need

18. Raj – 13yrs Old • Raj aged 13 has just changed schools and his parents are concerned that he is not making friends and not fitting in at his new school. • His parents raise this with the school and through discussions with them it becomes apparent that he is also isolated at home. An uncle, to whom he was very close, died recently and suddenly of leukaemia. • His school work deteriorates and there are attendance issues, the school finds out that he is not going off with his peers; instead he is hanging around quiet places by himself. He is caught trespassing on the nearby railway lines. • He then takes a significant overdose at home, is found quickly by his parents and rushed to hospital. When his computer is checked, his parents find articles and websites about suicide and a draft letter explaining why he had taken the overdose.

19. Raj – Complex/Significant • Raj’s attempted overdose and his emotional health are clearly an indication of complex and significant needs. So immediate and urgent support needs to be sought from the appropriate agency. • In the first instance this is provided by the local hospital with a referral to the CAMHS service. • Once this support is in place and Raj’s suicidal ideation is no longer a concern his family’s needs may be able to be met via a family CAF. • However, if further complex and significant needs become identified, may be identified particularly around the parent’s capacity to meet his needs and provide a safe environment he may need specialist social work support

20. Focused on NEED • Child at the Centre • Support offered to the family • Birmingham’s model • All agencies use same indicators Right Services Right Time Meeting Children’s Needs

22. What Happens When you make A Referral? Children & Young Peoples: Information Advice Support Service What Constitutes A Good Referral Supporting Documents Download from www.lscbbirmingham.org.uk/

23. Next Steps…… All agencies will need to report back to BSCB by October 2013: • Evidence to demonstrate how you have Incorporated ‘Right Services Right Time’ into your existing training packages. • Any audits carried out that can demonstrate the impact of and change in practice arising from implementation. • Any evaluation of the usability of the materials provided. • Details of how you have incorporated ‘Right Services Right Time’ into internal Quality Assurance processes. • Any evidence of case supervision demonstrating the use and understanding of the framework. • Information on the distribution of posters and leaflets. • Information on the communication strategy within your agency.