2.2.4 Family Intervention Project - Eligibility Criteria, Referral Pathway and Flowchart

SCOPE OF THIS CHAPTER

This chapter sets out the procedure to be followed under the Family Intervention Project, which has been funded as a pilot operating in Oxfordshire over a two year period. Throughout the chapter, the Family Intervention Project is abbreviated to FIP.

Please also see the FIP Flowchart.

Introduction
FIP Eligibility Criteria
Information Sharing
Requests for Service
Expectations of Referrers
Allocation
After Allocation
The FIP Contract
Casework, Review and Closure

1. Introduction

Targeted at families with children/young people aged 5-16 years who:

Have/have had an adult member in custody, OR
Are at risk of eviction/homelessness as a result of anti-social behaviour, or
In which there is an adult female who is a first-time entrant to the criminal justice system

And there is a high level of need arising from a combination of family risk factors and emerging evidence of poor outcomes for children, young people and adults.

Capacity of the project in the first two years is a maximum of 80 families across Central, Northern and West Oxfordshire. FIP workers will each hold 5 - 6 cases at a time.

Distinctive features of the project are:

Consistent and intensive support from an experienced caseworker (2-5 x weekly contact) including some out-of-hours contact.
An assertive FIP contract with each family which incorporates rewards and sanctions.
A whole family co-ordinated approach to the needs of different family members, including both adult and children’s services.
Multi-agency involvement based on Team Around the Family.
Plans that include access to parenting programmes, extended services and dedicated health support.
Access to alternative temporary accommodation provided through Cherwell, Oxford City and West Oxfordshire District Councils, where such provision is essential to the successful implementation of the FIP contract.
A budget of £400 per family to be used in support of the FIP contract.
6-12 months’ support (longer in the most complex cases).

2. FIP Eligibility Criteria

Referral criteria

An adult family member who is in or has been in custody, or
Risk of eviction/homelessness due to anti-social behaviour, or
An adult female first-time entrant to the criminal justice system (can include a woman who has previously had a fine or conditional discharge) and
Child/ren between 5 and 16 years
Evidence of 5 or more family risk factors (see below)
Evidence of children’s developmental needs being affected (see below)
Likelihood of benefit from the distinctive features of the project

Family risk factors:

Substance misuse

Mental ill health

Domestic violence

Offending

Relationship conflict

Neglect/abuse/poor family functioning

Physical ill health and disabilities

Learning disability

Poverty/debt/worklessness

Anti-social behaviour: risk of sanctions

Poor housing/homelessness

Low parental education and skills

Examples of children’s needs being affected (not exhaustive):

Involvement in/risk of offending

Involvement in/risk of substance misuse

Neglect/abuse

Failing to meet developmental milestones

Poor school attendance

School exclusion

Low attainment

Emotional and behavioural problems including conduct disorder, anti-social behaviour, self-harm, running away

Mental health problems

Teenage pregnancy

Relationship conflict

On the brink of care/periods spent in the care system

Further targeting. The Think Family Reform Steering Group has agreed that during the pilot period of the project (first two years) the selection process should, wherever possible, provide experience of delivering to a wide age-range of children and some BME groups. In addition it will prioritise parents with substance misuse and parents with mental health issues. The reason for the additional targeting is to complement strategic objectives being identified through Think Family.

3. Information Sharing

Information sharing is crucial to the success of the FIP, so that the appropriate families can be reached and work with the whole family can be coordinated. Professionals will work to the Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board’s Information Sharing Protocol.

Further guidance for children’s and adult services and health services is set out in Information Sharing: Guidance for Practitioners and Managers issued in October 2008.

4. Requests for Service

Requests for service are welcome from any professional known to the family.

It is anticipated that requests may come from a wide range of agencies, e.g. Children, Young People & Families, Probation Service, Child and Adult Mental Health/Substance Misuse Teams, District Housing Departments, Domestic Abuse Services, Police, Housing Associations.

Requests may be made by one agency on behalf of a multi-agency group working with the family (e.g. a Team Around the Family, a Core Group etc) when it is considered by the group that FIP will provide the additional and essential help needed to affect change.

The information required is a completed Request for Service Form plus an assessment or report which provides the evidence that the family fulfils the referral criteria (listed in Section 2 above). Consent of the family to share information should be sought. Acceptable assessment formats are:

Core Assessment (in accordance with the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families, 2000), used by Children’s Social Care
Asset used by Youth Offending Services
Onset (The Referral and Assessment Framework for children and young people at risk of committing crime or anti-social behaviour)
Care Pathway Approaches for adults and for children used by mental health services
Common Assessment Framework for children and young people with additional needs, accessible and used by all professionals coming into regular contact with families
OASIS assessment used by Probation Service

Where the referral relates to anti-social behaviour and there is not an assessment (above) completed within the last 6 months which could support the request, a tenancy report by the family’s housing provider should be submitted. This will outline the risk of eviction and the reasons. Non-payment of rent is insufficient, on its own, to justify joining the FIP. The housing provider will also need to indicate their willingness to join the Team Around the Family for the duration of the FIP.

In completing the Request for Service Form, the referrer should explain why the FIP is likely to benefit the family in comparison to other available services.

5. Expectations of Referrers

Referrers should approach the project manager for a ‘no-names’ consultation in advance to establish whether the referral is appropriate and the likely timescale for providing the service.
The referrer should be a professional who knows the family well and will stay involved and support them in achieving change. As part of this role the referrer should be willing to introduce the FIP worker to the family on an initial visit.
The referrer should discuss the referral with the family and be able to report on the family’s attitude to undertaking the work.
Where the case is being managed within a statutory framework, e.g. a court order or proceedings; a probation order or licence; safeguarding procedures; acceptable behaviour contract; the referrer should provide full details, including the plan that has been agreed or imposed. The referrer should also outline the consequences for the family if the plan is not achieved within a specific timescale. This is important information in developing the FIP contract.
Where the family has a statutory designated caseworker e.g. a YOT worker; probation officer; Lead Social Worker and a Child Protection Plan; the FIP caseworker will work in close cooperation but will not undertake statutory functions. The delegation of different tasks is part of the planning process and will reflect the family’s relationships with individual professionals as well as formal duties and responsibilities.
In the process of accepting a family into the project, the referrer may be asked to provide further information, particularly in relation to establishing baseline data from which to evaluate the family’s progress.
The referrer should be able to provide follow-on work after the FIP intervention, or assist in building a bridge for the family with the appropriate follow-on service.

6. Allocation

Allocation of FIP places will be monitored by a sub-group of the Think Family Reform Steering Group comprised of the FIP Co-ordinator, the Assistant Service Manager for Pre-Court and Prevention, the OBMH Think Family Adults’ Champion, Oxford City and Cherwell DC, Community Health Oxfordshire, Children’s Social Care, Thames Valley Police and Probation.

The FIP sub-group will meet monthly to review the allocation of places made by the FIP Co-ordinator according to the referral criteria, the level of need (highest having priority), the capacity within FIP workers’ caseloads, the added value that the project is likely to achieve for the family.

The FIP sub-group members will act as links within their agencies to ensure that FIP families access the range of help needed to achieve their contracts; and to assist unsuccessful referrers access alternative services.

7. After Allocation

Once a case is allocated to a FIP worker, the referrer and the FIP worker will begin by visiting the family to engage them in the project and gain consent to begin the work. Thereafter, the priority is to identify and establish the appropriate professionals to form the Team Around the Family, or Core Group, if none exists, and undertake the process of developing and agreeing the FIP contact with the family and professionals.

8. The FIP Contract

Components of a FIP contract

Individual to the family
Written so that it is clear and understandable to the family and all involved
May include any outstanding areas of assessment that are necessary to commence the FIP intervention
Outcome-focussed, including outcomes for adults in their own right as well as children
Takes into account the strengths, ideas and resources of the family and wider family network
Takes into account the needs of all family members: children, young people, parents and carers
Sets objectives which are specific, targeted, achievable and realistic so that change is measurable and celebrated
Specifies level of support to be provided, the interventions and services to be offered and the professionals involved.
Contributes to long-term success by including resilience-building strategies for children and young people
Sets out the consequences of success and failure in achieving objectives i.e. rewards and sanctions
Does not supercede care plans made in statutory processes, but can contribute to them
Sets out clearly which tasks in the FIP contract are meeting objectives in statutory care plans and how these have been agreed with the professionals responsible for statutory processes
Reviewed and updated at least 6-weekly via the TAF/core group

9. Casework, Review and Closure

Each family in the project will have a dedicated FIP worker and a Team Around the Family made up of the professionals who are working with them from different agencies. The FIP contract will be worked intensively and progress will be monitored by the FIP worker in collaboration with the family and professionals.

The TAF meeting, reviewing and updating the contract, will be recorded.

Once the FIP objectives have been achieved, the case will be closed with a clear plan as to the actions and support needed by the professionals and the family to maintain their achievements and move forward.

End