Welcome to the latest bumper edition of the Early Help Newsletter. In this edition you will find out the new Early Help Front Door Service EHAST – which is a new integrated Early Help Front Door Service as a single point of contact for partner agencies, families and young people, which goes live today, Wednesday 6^th September. There is also a new video for professionals which describes the processes for safeguarding all children in Shropshire which is recommended viewing for all who support children, young people and families. There’s also information on updated safeguarding procedures and exciting news with the Parenting help and support line now being available from Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

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  or if you know of a colleague who would also like to receive this newsletter they can also email to be added to the distribution list.  

‘By treating our children and young people with respect, love and trust and with the right amount of encouragement we can inspire them to dream big, build relationships and connections that matter and together with kindness and a sense of belonging we can do great things.’

Children and Young People’s vision statement

A number of community drop ins have been established in the south of the county. These offer parent carers the chance to drop in, have a cuppa and get information, advice and support with:

• Housing Support
• Children's Health and Wellbeing
• Healthy Living
• Family Life
• Home Fire Safety
• Domestic Abuse
• Drugs and Alcohol
• Financial Advice
• And lots more!

To find out when and where the drop ins are taking place please visit the Family Information Service Directory.

Is your family struggling? Would you like some support but don't know where to start? Why not come along to an Early Help Family Drop In. You can chat to a range of services who will help you to access the support you need. 

The Early Help Team support families with children aged 0-19 years (up to 25 years for young people with special educational needs and disabilities)

They aim to make it easier for you to get help and support when you need it.

You may meet:

• Early Help Family Workers (who can work with your family to provide support tailored to your needs)
• Parenting Support (for support around child development, behaviour, sleep, relationships) 
• Shropshire Domestic Abuse Service 
• Employment Advisor
• SEND Local Offer (support for families with children who have special education needs and/or disabilities)
• The Family Information Service (FIS) and others.

Although some services may differ week on week there will always be someone to help.

Drop ins take place at:-

• The Centre, Oak Street, Oswestry SY11 1LW every Monday morning from 9:30am – 12:30pm

• Raven House, Cheshire Street, Market Drayton, TF9 3AH every Tuesday afternoon from 1pm – 4pm
• Sunflower House, Shrewsbury, Kendal Road, Shrewsbury, SY1 4ES every Tuesday morning from 9:30am – 12:30pm
• Harlescott Grange Community Hub, Shrewsbury, Kynaston Road, Shrewsbury, SY1 3JR every Thursday from 10am to 12 noon.

 To find out more about the Early Help Drop Ins visit the Family Information Service online directory.

Relationships can be difficult, complicated, fun, satisfying, exciting, annoying bring out the best in us and bring out the worst in us. We are often in one, but we don’t often spend much time on them. So here is your chance to make the time and come to one of our workshops.

• Do you feel your relationship needs some attention?
• Do you feel you are drifting a bit lately or things have been difficult?
• Would you like to meet with others and share ideas and thoughts?
• Are you looking for a way forward?

Why not join us for our 4-week workshop with 2 hours session each week. There are 2 different workshops on offer this Autumn:

Starts on Thursday 28^th September 2023 from 10.00am to 12.00pm at Helena Lane Community Centre, 20 Hamlet Rd, Ludlow SY8 2NP

or

Starts on Thursday 16^th November 2023 from 10.00am to 12.00pm at The Centre, Oak Street, Oswestry, SY11 1LW

Please find a link below to the first newsletter from colleagues in the Compass team. Compass is the front door for children’s social care for receiving new enquiries regarding concerns for the welfare or protection of children and young people in Shropshire.

This first newsletter has a focus on data for quarter one – including overall numbers, and themes of contacts. The newsletter can be found here.

Good relationships with others are fundamental to our wellbeing but what happens when our most important relationships become strained?

This FREE conference brings a selection of speakers and activities to inspire change and improve the lives of children and young people.

There will be varied keynote speakers, and a marketplace of complementary services, perfect for network building.

The conference is held on Wednesday 11th October 2023, at the Barnabas Centre, Longden Coleham, Shrewsbury from 9.30am – 4.00pm.

To book your place on this FREE conference, please log into your learner account on our booking system Leap/Learning Pool here.

If you do not have a learner account on Leap/Learning Pool then please book your place via Eventbrite here.

Full conference programme will be emailed to all delegates before the event.

This Learning Event will take place on Monday the 13th of November 2023 from 10:00am to explore professional curiosity and consider how you can put it into practice in your role, whether you work with adults, children or whole families. This event is to ensure that learning is shared and can be acted on and therefore learning resources and handouts will be provided. To book onto the event, please click here.

Have you seen the Healthier Together website?

It provides advice for parents, young people and pregnant women, as well as clinical resources to support healthcare professionals.

You'll find clear information on common childhood illnesses for both physical and mental health, including advice on what 'red-flag' signs to look out for, where to seek help if required and how long symptoms are likely to last.

Visit the website  to find out more – the menu option in the top right hand corner is good for navigating the different sections.

The summer edition of the Together Reducing and Ending Exploitation in Shropshire (TREES) newsletter. This edition shares current patterns and emerging themes, hot spots of concerns in Shropshire, alongside lots of useful information and resources.

Please have a look at the newsletter to keep up to date with the issue of exploitation on children and young people in Shropshire. You can read the latest newsletter here.

Partners working together as Shropshire Safeguarding Community Partnership have launched a campaign encouraging people to speak out if they witness anything that causes concern about the safety and wellbeing of a child, including toddlers and babies.

Keeping children safe is everybody’s business and we all have a role to play if we notice signs or behaviour that worry us.  It is more difficult to spot the signs of abuse in babies and very young children who are not able to talk.

Abuse can be in many forms, including the following:

• Neglect
• Physical abuse
• Emotional abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Child sexual and criminal exploitation

Be alert to signs in children’s appearance, behaviour or communication and remember, you don’t have to be certain that there is a problem to raise a concern. 

If you notice anything, please report it to Shropshire Council first point of contact: 0345 678 9021.

Children’s services are on hand to offer advice and act where needed. Following these simple steps could provide a missing piece of information needed to keep a young person safe.

In an emergency, call the police on 101 or 999.

Shropshire’s Safeguarding Community Partnership website offers a wide range of information, advice and resources for practitioners and members of the public to help safeguard both children and adults. Visit Shropshire Safeguarding Community Partnership.

Early Help Network Meetings are held every term in each network area. These meetings are free of charge to attend and are an opportunity for professionals from all agencies working with children, young people or their families to share information about services available or issues affecting families within the relevant network area.

For sessions delivered via Microsoft Teams, ideally professionals should have Microsoft Teams enabled on their laptops. Dial in to the meetings will be possible but will not provide such a great experience as connecting in through Microsoft Teams. Please contact Tracey Bowen tracey.bowen@shropshire.gov.uk for the link to the network meetings taking place via Teams. Some sessions will be delivered face to face.

Central Locality Area (Shrewsbury and surrounding villages)

Tuesday 3rd October 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm via Microsoft Teams

Tuesday 14th November 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm face to face at The Lantern, Meadow Farm Drive, Sundorne, Shrewsbury SY1 4NG

North East Locality Area (Market Drayton, Whitchurch, Tern Hill & surrounding villages) Wednesday 18th October 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm face to face, at St Peter’s CE Primary and Nursery School, Shrubbery Gardens, Wem, Shrewsbury SY4 5BX

North West Locality Area (Oswestry, Ellesmere, Baschurch, Ruyton, Wem & surrounding villages) Wednesday 15th November 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm via Microsoft Teams

South East Locality Area (Shifnal, Broseley, Bridgnorth, Albrighton, Much Wenlock, Highley & surrounding villages) Monday 6th November 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm via Microsoft Teams

Also there is a Networking Event on Wednesday 27th September 2023 from 3.30 – 5.30pm at Bridgnorth Early Help Hub/Youth Centre, Innage Lane, Bridgnorth WV16 4HS (drop in whenever you can during this time to chat with those providing services/support to families in the South of the County)

South West Locality Area (Ludlow, Craven Arms, Church Stretton, Bishops Castle & surrounding villages) Monday 16th October 2023 from 3.30 – 5pm via Microsoft Teams

Invites will be sent to those on our Early Help Network Meeting database for you to accept if you wish to attend. For the Networking Event in Bridgnorth on 27th September you can just turn up on the day or if you would like to book a stand for the event, please email Charlotte Evans on shropshirestrengtheningfamilies@shropshire.gov.uk

If you have not received an invite but would like to attend any of our Early Help Networking Meetings, please email your name – agency – job title – email to Tracey Bowen, the Strengthening Families Training Administrator, at tracey.bowen@shropshire.gov.uk

We will then add you to our database and send you invites to the locality area meetings of your choice and keep you updated with any early help multi-agency training and information relevant to those working with families in the early help arena. You can unsubscribe from our invite and mailing list for early help information at any time by emailing Tracey Bowen, Strengthening Families Training Administrator, tracey.bowen@shropshire.gov.uk

Early Help Locality Development Officers:

Central Area – Diljit McCabe – diljit.mccabe@shropshire.gov.uk

North Area – Delia (Dee) Beckett – delia.beckett@shropshire.gov.uk

South Area – Charlotte Evans – charlotte.evans@shropshire.gov.uk

Strengthening Families Partner Support Officers – Early Help: Collette Dunk and Claire Rogers shropshirestrengtheningfamilies@shropshire.gov.uk  Tel: 01743 253921