|
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 an update on how targeted early help is continuing to support families, a free course on understanding trauma, information on safeguarding children affected by someone else’s substance misuse and a new campaign from Think U Know called Send me a pic - on the consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude images among young people
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.
Dear Partner,
I wanted to update you on the provision of Targeted Early Help in Shropshire and the measures we are taking to return to visiting families, whilst respecting the government recommendations for social distancing.
Over the last 10 weeks since lockdown began, our Targeted Early Help workforce has 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. We know from feedback that the support families have continued to receive has made a difference at such a difficult and uncertain time.
Recent announcements from the government to ease the lockdown measures means that we have put in place a plan for our Targeted Early Help team to return to visiting families, where there are particular concerns, and ensuring social distancing is in place. Staff have considered the needs of all the families they are working with and have identified those who would benefit from a visit.
Risk assessments will be completed before any family visits are carried out as the safety of our staff, their families, and the safety of the families we visit is paramount.
Well done to the whole Early Help workforce for the continuing support offered to families. I couldn’t be prouder, especially in such challenging times. If you need any further support or advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Yours sincerely,
Francean 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. 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.
Shropshire has free and unlimited access to the online ‘Understanding Trauma’ course until March 2021 (usually £45 each learner) for all professionals with a work-based postcode in Shropshire or Telford and Wrekin.
This is a 13 module course which could take up to 3.75 hours to complete, however it is not necessary to complete it in one sitting and is available from the Solihull Approach Parenting website.
To access the course for free please add in the code DARWINPRF
For any queries or difficulties accessing the course please contact Solihull Approach Technical Support, available Mon-Fri 9-5, via email solihull.approach@heartofengland.nhs.uk or call 0121 296 4448
New guidance has been published by the Shropshire Safeguarding Community Partnership to support practitioners working with families where drug and alcohol use is evident. Children can be adversely affected by drug and alcohol misuse in many ways and this may be presented through behaviours that may include emotional difficulties, self-harm/suicidal ideation, school problems and early use of substances, to name a few or result in physical maltreatment and neglect. Children and young people can often also become young carers and often miss out on the usual recreational activities enjoyed by their peers due to shame and stigma.
Issues can also escalate if not identified early. Research suggests alcohol is a factor in 33% of child protection cases and drug and alcohol misuse is evident in 70% of care proceedings cases nationally. A report by the Children’s Commissioner in 2014 found that children living with parental alcohol misuse comes to the attention of services later than children living with parental drug misuse. Locally, in 2018-2019 (latest data) 22% of all new adult presentations to Shropshire Recovery Partnership were parents currently living with their children, which accounted for 299 children.
As we understand more about the impacts of parental problem alcohol and drug use on children, it becomes more important that all health, social care and support organisations take a whole family approach. The purpose of the guidance is to support this early identification of children affected by drug and alcohol misuse by using the guidance and family matrix tool to identify families to ensure they receive the right support at the earliest opportunity, to minimise harm.
Treatment is a protective factor, however, many people in treatment use drugs and alcohol to self-medicate and may have suffered traumas themselves that are unresolved or have underlying mental health issues. As people address these issues their needs of support may change. Understanding this and working with families on this journey is important to ensure the best outcomes.
Over the coming months there will be team talks and training developed to support implementation of the guidance. If you are working with a family and do have concerns about any level of drug and alcohol use you can ring Shropshire Recovery Partnership on 01743 294700 alternatively you can chat on line
It’s a really uncertain time for our year 11’s and so we wanted to make sure they knew how to contact the providers they’re interested in for September, and to be reassured that colleges are still taking online and phone applications.
If you or your teams are supporting pupils in year 11 who are worried about their plans, please share with them the information we have added to the Early Help website.
There are links to online careers resources as well as the education providers, and the phone number to contact the Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) hub if they need some direct careers advice and guidance.
The Shropshire Young Carers service is continuing to provide much valued support to Shropshire’s young carers. The service is continuing to monitor and support our young carers and are providing virtual groups via Zoom.
If you know of a young carer who would benefit for support the best way to contact the young carers service is via phone on 07801 576326 or email simon.jones@crossroadstogether.org.uk
The Children’s Society have also developed some resources, advice and information for young carers during Covid-19 which is available on this website.
The support currently being offered by Beam is purely phone-based. They cannot provide support via email, text/messaging apps or on video calling platforms. Please note that they are not offering a crisis or instant response service.
Accessing call-back support:
Young people can email Beam at AskBeam@childrenssociety.org.uk asking for support. Once they have emailed, an automatic response will ask for some more information. When this has been completed, a team member will contact them to discuss what help they need, and when the best time would be for a practitioner to call them. Calls will be booked in with our practitioners within our usual drop-in times.
Accessing support without a call back:
Where a young person does not want to talk but still needs some support, they can still contact Beam via AskBeam@childrenssociety.org.uk They can send details of online resources, information and apps which can offer support.
Information for Professionals:
You can signpost any young people who you feel would benefit from knowing more about this offer to the Beam website.
You can also pass on the details as to how they get in touch with Beam. Please ask the young person to contact us via AskBeam@childrenssociety.org.uk.
Beam aren’t able to contact young people unless the request for contact from the service has come from the young person or their parent/carer.
For all young people who are aged 13 and under, their parent/carer will need to make a request on the young person’s behalf. As with the face to face drop-ins, the young person should want to engage with Beam, and be able to do so over the phone.
The Children’s Society and the Nation Police Chief’s Council have produced this poster designed for neighbours and key workers visiting premises during the Covid-19 crisis. These neighbours and key workers may be the person to spot signs of child abuse taking place at home and details how to report concerns.
Webinars – available to parents and practitioners
11th June- Autism & Social Interaction
18th June- Autism & Sleep
25th June – Autism & Behaviour
To book a place book via our online shop and details of how to register will be sent to you.
ZOOM Workshops for 12-18 year olds
Bookings are now being taken for the online summer workshops for teens. To book, the young person must be registered with All In (part of Shropshire County Council Short Breaks programme) Each person will receive a goody bag including an activity booklet! The cost for each workshop is £3 per person and taken place from 2-4pm.
29th July – Feeling good (self- esteem) & Fun Activities
31st July – Anxiety & Fun Activities
5th August – Autism & Me & Fun Activities
12th August – Anger Management & Fun Activities
19th August – Happiness & Fun Activities
For an application form and more information please contact Wendy: wendyc@autismwestmidlands.org.uk
Virtual Support Group for Parents
Online support groups will be run via the Zoom platform on Tuesday mornings from 11am-12pm and Wednesday evenings from 8pm-9pm. Join Autism West Midlands for an opportunity to talk with other parents, share ideas, and offer support. To take part in this group book a place by emailing Gemma at gemmae@autismwestmidlands.org.uk and details of how to join will be sent to you.
Oswestry Coffee morning
Oswestry Coffee morning is Autism West Midlands longest running support group and is attended by an established core group of parents. This group now has a closed Facebook group and will be providing opportunities to meet up virtually together with Emma via Zoom. If you are a member of this group, contact emmah@autismwestmidlands.org.uk
Online Dads Group
Autism West Midlands are offering an opportunity for Dad’s to meet online, share ideas, celebrate their children’s achievement’s, and offer support to each other with a member of Autism West Midlands present. For more information or if you would be interested in joining please contact Gemma at gemmae@autismwestmidlands.org.uk
Advice and support
Autism West Midlands continue to offer advice and support over the phone and via email. Parents and carers can contact the small team directly for phone calls either speak then or arrange a call back at a more convenient time. Video calls can be offered if required
Mon, Tue, Weds Wendy Cowton 07900784186
Weds, Thu, Fri Emma Hegenbarth 07881109480
Email shropshire@autismwestmidlands.org.uk
The Samaritans have launched a self-help app, which offers people practical ways to cope and stay safe if they're going through a difficult time.
Some people find it difficult to seek help, so they have created this app to help people explore their feelings when they're struggling to cope. Their volunteers are still available round the clock for anyone who needs to talk.
The app centres around a mood tracker, which anyone can use to record how they’re feeling and see patterns in their mood. It also recommends techniques to try, based on how they’re feeling at the time.
To learn more about the Self Help app please visit this website
NSPCC Learning has pulled together resources to help keep children and young people safe during the coronavirus crisis. Information and resources include: updated information on communicating with children via social media, including remote teaching; running online services, and support for parents and carers. The webpage also includes links to the Childline website which offers child friendly information and advice and confidential support. For further information please visit this website.
Send me a pic? is a brand new Thinkuknow education resource aimed at 12-14 year olds on the consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude images among young people.
Send me a pic? has been developed in response to learning from the Digital Romance (2017) research into young people’s relationships online, and through extensive collaboration with young people across the UK.
The resource pack contains three sessions plans based on short film clips. Each clip shows a fictional online chat where young people request, receive and discuss issues related to nude images.
For further information visit this website.
Many children are likely to be spending more time playing video games during lockdown. While some parents may be worried about this, it's important to recognise the positive experiences video games can bring.
The Parent Info article explores the hidden benefits of playing video games, and how parents and carers can help create a safe and enjoyable gaming experience for their children.
The NSPCC has published findings from a survey of 2,061 adults in England, Scotland and Wales which found that 26% said they are not confident they would know where to seek help if they thought a child or young person was being abused or neglected. When considering children and young people’s wellbeing during the lockdown imposed by the UK due to coronavirus: 76% said they were concerned about domestic abuse, 74% were concerned about physical abuse and 73% about emotional abuse. The NSPCC has launched a nationwide public campaign to ensure more people know they can contact the NSPCC helpline if they're worried a child is unsafe. For further information please visit this website.
We Are With You (previously YoungAddaction) are continuing to meet the needs of young people in treatment for drug and alcohol misuse during COVID-19. Young people were offered weekly or fortnightly telephone calls with top up texts such as Podcasts and Harm Reduction information, WhatsApp Video calls or to be placed "on hold" until back in school or college. There has been an 80% take up on phone calls, some have elected for weekly some fortnightly.
The service has also seen an increase in many young people visiting the their social media sites, where information continues to be shared, including webchat and on-line resources/advice, including
Advice for young people
Advice for family and friends
Information about the online chat facility
Managing substance misuse during Covid-19
|
