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Welcome to the latest edition of the Early Help newsletter. We hope this newsletter finds you safe and well.
In this edition you will find news about the launch of a new youth diversionary service called Climb, guidance from Jan Horwath, emeritus professor of child welfare at the University of Sheffield, on working with child neglect during COVID-19 and a new section on the Early help website focussing on reducing parental conflict.
If you have information on your service area you would like to share in the next early help newsletter, please email Kate.Bentham@shropshire.gov.uk
Whether you think a child, young person or family needs some support, or you are worried a child might be at risk of abuse or neglect, there is only one number you need – 0345 678 9021. From this number you will receive the support you need to get the right help at the right time to strengthen families and safeguard children.
During the month of April and period of Covid-19 lockdown, our Shropshire Council Early Help Teams have supported a total of 407 families, offering direct support to more than 314 parents/carers and more than 145 children. The Schools Family Support Workers financed through the Troubled Families funding have supported a further 226 families in total.
During this period the Early Help teams have worked with 48 families at Tier 2 that would normally access their schools and other agencies for this level of support and the Schools Family Support workers have offered support to 134 families from the schools ‘vulnerable list’.
The teams have worked innovatively to support families, parents and children, connecting with them over the phone, using apps for face to face support, hosting virtual family and professional meetings and utilising different virtual tools to support and connect in ways that best suit the family as a whole and individuals within the family. They have also offered extensive support to other agencies involved with families.
I couldn’t be prouder, especially in such challenging times. Well done to the whole team for the support they are continuing to offer families and partners.
Fran Doyle
Head of Early Help, Partnerships and Commissioning
Shropshire Council
As you are all aware, we are moving Early Help case management from ECINs to the Early Help Module (EHM) on Liquid Logic. Targeted Early Help have already migrated most of their cases and are now actively managing their cases on the system. Step 2 is to get partners on the system and support them to manage their cases. Due to Covid-19 we have reviewed how we had planned to do this.
The most important elements to getting partners on to EHM is that their organisation has returned the signed Information Sharing Agreement and professionals have completed their Me Learning online training. If you have not received your welcome e-mail for Me Learning please contact ShropshireStrengtheningFamilies@shropshire.gov.uk stating your full name and individual organisational e-mail, once the signed Information Sharing Agreement is received from your organisation the welcome e-mail will be sent.
- Week beginning 18th May 2020, we intend to close ECINS to all partners who have not been active on ECINS since 23rd March 2020
- By the end of May, we will contact all partners that have been active on ECINS since 23rd March to determine their needs. If their organisation has returned the ISA and they have completed Me Learning they will be given a date for the migration of their cases onto EHM and be given access to the system. This will allow the small number of Partners who are still managing Early Help cases to continue recording on a shared system.
- During the next few months all further cases will be migrated from ECINs onto EHM
- By September 4th 2020, all partners that have completed the Me Learning training and their organisation has retuned the ISA will be given access to EHM for Go Live on 4th September.
We are also developing training and support sessions that can be delivered live on-line to support partners, these are designed to support the Me Learning and put it into the context of Managing an Early Help Episode in Shropshire. These two-hour sessions will focus on:
- Raising awareness of everyone’s role in Early Help in Shropshire
- Using EHM to manage early help support for children and families.
More information to follow in the next newsletter.
If partners have any queries about the Early Help Module or Me Learning please contact the Strengthening Families Team via email ShropshireStrengtheningFamilies@shropshire.gov.uk or phone them on 01743 253921
Given the current situation, we recognise that completing consent forms, assessments and family plans is challenging.
If families require support and due to the current circumstances, partners cannot provide what is needed, we would therefore like to suggest that during this period of social distancing partners simply complete the revised Request for Intervention form, which can be found on the Early Help Website, under Forms for users of ECINS This form should then be sent to the Strengthening Families email ShropshireStrengtheningFamilies@shropshire.gov.uk
Our targeted Early Help hub teams will then follow up and plan how to best support the family during this challenging period by use of digital technology and telephone support.
If you have any queries about this process please contact the Strengthening Families Team via email ShropshireStrengtheningFamilies@shropshire.gov.uk or phone them on 01743 253921
In Shropshire we recognise that conflict between parents is normal, but sometimes conflict happens frequently and isn’t always resolved. With families living in lockdown, parental relationships might be facing additional pressure, so we have developed a new section on the Early Help website and leaflets and posters on Reducing Parental Conflict.
We know that conflict happens for several reasons such as job loss, financial problems, separation, death, parenting, having a new baby, and friends and family differences. This can affect parents and their children in many ways, including feeling unhappy, hurt, and frustrated. At times parents might need a little bit of help with their relationship and some support for their family.
Please visit the reducing parental conflict section of the early help website for lots of useful information and resources for you to share with parents.
Across the country, tens of thousands of children and young people are at risk of being exploited or exposed to criminal activity
Individuals and gangs are threatening, grooming and forcing children and young people to work, have sex or traffic drugs. Any child from any background can be exploited.
The Children’s Society have been chosen to partner with the West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner to stop children from being drawn into ‘county lines’ and other forms of exploitation. Using diversionary activities, they will improve the lives of the most vulnerable children and young people in society.
As part of the Commissioner’s West Mercia Diversionary Network, Climb will deliver an Early Intervention and Prevention service for 10 to 17 year olds.
The service will incorporate sports, dance, arts and music, and work with young people who are missing school or college, starting to be reported as missing, or at risk of being drawn into criminal activity.
The trauma children experience in their early life can greatly increase the risk of them being exploited or being forced to commit crime. This new service aims to draw young people away from criminals and into sports and other activities that will enrich their lives.
Climb will build young people’s resilience to reduce the risk of them being exposed to criminality, and work to raise awareness around the impact of adverse childhood experiences – so young people are seen as victims of their life circumstance rather than as perpetrators of crime.
This transformative service is the first of its kind and will help children to find new passions, form healthy friendships and learn how to recognise people and situations that might put them at risk.
Working with schools, police, social care, activity providers and many other groups across the region, together we will build safer communities for children and young people.
To make a referral to Climb fill out the referral form and send it to climb@childrenssociety.org.uk
If you have any questions, please email the team at climb@childrenssociety.org.uk
Employment Advisers are now available for family support. Please note that all contact will be by telephone and that capacity may be limited/temporary. They can support with the following: Benefit Enquiries including payment queries, Entitled to better off calculations, CV support, signposting to online training, Career discussion for future job goals, digital on line coaching including signposting to www.jobhelp.dwp.gov.uk (New dedicated website for Job help/advice in current climate) Contact ben.marr@shropshire.gov.uk (Central South) Amanda.osborne@shropshire.gov.uk (North/Central)
Please note, this support could change at short notice.
There are 2 initiatives to be aware of which could support victims of domestic abuse even more so during the current situation.
BOOTS the chemist are offering a safe place for those experiencing Domestic Abuse in their consultation rooms, for people to be able to safely phone for advice, support or to access a refuge. This is significant for many people who can’t make private phone calls etc.
Also, the National Rail Network are offering free train journeys to anyone trying to travel to a refuge or safe place. For further information please click here.
Let people know this when you are talking to them. Information is vital to people being able to think about their and their children’s safety and planning can be key.
Working with cases of child neglect in these difficult times is challenging. The situation is exacerbated by the lack of research and practice experience regarding family behaviour during a period of lockdown.
Jan Horwath, emeritus professor of child welfare at the University of Sheffield, offers some guidance that may prove useful in understanding parental behaviour and establishing the needs of the most vulnerable children experiencing neglect.
The Child Accident Prevention Trust provides safety advice during lockdown for parents and practitioners. Here they focus on the risks and serious injuries that are likely to be heightened during lockdown.
To mark Mental Health Awareness Week (Monday 18 May – Sunday 24 May 2020), Shropshire Council’s public health team has launched a series of mental health resources to help support people’s mental health and wellbeing, through and beyond coronavirus.
If you know anyone who is pregnant or have a baby under one year of age and are struggling with their mental health, the Specialist Perinatal Mental Health Services are still open and supporting Shropshire women and families.
Please encourage and support them to reach out and ask for help if they need it. They can speak to their Midwife, Health Visitor, GP or the MPFT Access Team on 0300 124 0365.
The Parenting Team is continuing their service of telephone consultations. Parents and carers can simply call the office on 01743 250950 or email parenting.team@shropshire.gov.uk to arrange a consultation at a time convenient to them. Professionals can also contact the office and arrange appointments for parents/carers if they have gained their consent to pass on their telephone number.
Taking the current situation into account the parenting team can support parents and carers with:
- managing difficult questions and worries from children due to the current situation
- managing challenging behaviour which might be a result of the changes to their everyday lives
- maintaining good relationships with children during this time
- suggestions on activities to do with children
- talk through and reflect on the online course content with a Parenting Practitioner
The online Understanding Your Child parenting courses are also still available:
- Clicking on the In Our Place website.
- Then put the access code DARWIN18 in the box
- Choose from the following courses
- Understanding pregnancy, labour, birth and your baby
- Understanding your baby
- Understanding your child
- Understanding your teenager’s brain
- Understanding pregnancy, labour, birth and your baby: for women couples
Covid-19 makes safeguarding more difficult due to reduced contact between professionals and vulnerable people with fewer support networks in place. Isolation, money problems and health difficulties increase the pressure and raises the possibility of abuse and mistreatment. There are particular risks for people isolated with abusers and those more vulnerable to being misled or mistreated so please read the SSCP's 7 Key Points for Safeguarding for Shropshire Volunteers
The NSPCC has provided guidance, for those trained to use GCP2 (Graded Care Profile 2) to assess risk of neglect, on ways to support your practice during the current lockdown. Including ways that you can adapt the use of GCP2 to help monitor and measure the quality of care a child receives.
Will the requirement for a health professional signature on the Healthy Start application form be waived?
We recognise that it may be difficult to obtain a health professional signature on the Healthy Start application form at the present time. The health professional signature is currently a legal requirement for Healthy Start applications. However, amending regulations for the Healthy Start scheme, which are due to come into force on 6 April 2020, will remove this legal requirement. Further advice on the health professional signature will be published on the Healthy Start website once the amending regulations come into force. In the meantime, the Healthy Start Issuing Unit are accepting any unsigned application forms and will process them once the amending regulations are in force. All applications should still be signed by the individual applicant.
What is the Government doing to support Healthy Start beneficiaries who are struggling to obtain infant formula?
The Department of Health and Social Care is in discussion with industry to ensure a continued supply of infant formula. Additionally, the British Specialist Nutrition Association Ltd who represent manufacturers of formula, have put out a note of reassurance to parents on both their website and via Twitter to allay concerns and to ask people to be considerate in the way they shop to ensure an adequate supply of formula remains available to all. This dialogue with the formula industry will remain active and we will continue to monitor the situation.
The Healthy Start helpline is also reminding people who wish to use their Healthy Start vouchers to purchase infant formula that they can use them in smaller local shops and pharmacies which are registered with the scheme, as well as in large supermarkets.
Why can’t Healthy Start vouchers be used for online shopping?
Healthy Start vouchers must be used with retailers who are registered with the Healthy Start scheme. There are over 21,000 retail outlets registered with the Healthy Start scheme across the UK, including many independent local shops and pharmacies.
Why are some retailers refusing to accept Healthy Start vouchers, due to a preference for contactless payments?
We have reminded retailers of the importance of continuing to accept Healthy Start vouchers, as Healthy Start beneficiaries may not have access to alternative forms of payment.
Why can’t Healthy Start vouchers be issued automatically during the Covid-19 pandemic, without people having to apply?
Healthy Start is a statutory scheme and vouchers can only be issued on the receipt of a completed application. People are not automatically enrolled but they are invited to apply - all families who are eligible for the scheme are sent a pre-populated application form. The application form is also available on the Healthy Start website. We have explored automatic enrolment as part of our work on the digitisation of the scheme, but some families have indicated that automatic enrolment would not work for them where they don’t wish to participate in the scheme.
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