1

Welcome

Introduction to

Early Help Offer and

Assessment

Aims of the Session

Introduce partner agencies to:

• Walsall Early Help Offer

• Issues of Consent

• Early Help Assessment

• Early Help outcomes

• Support available

2

Why are we here?

“Victoria had the most beautiful smilethat lit up the room”

Victoria Climbié died on February 25th, 2000, aged eight years

3

Baby Peter1.3.06 – 3.8.07

4

Walsall Early Help and Whole System Approach

Levels of Vulnerability

• What makes a child or young person vulnerable?

Use post-it notes to record scenarios

• At what level would you put each vulnerability?

Place at the appropriate level

5

Early Help and Assessment

Why do we use the Early Help Approach?

• To promote a consistent approach for children,young people and families, preventingduplication

• A framework to allow integrated working andearly intervention

• Shared responsibility across all agencies

• Understand and appreciate each other’s roles

6

Case Consultation

Consultation

Support offered from Screening Team

• Advice & guidance

• Access route for referrals: social work or early help (referral = name, dob etc)

• Access route to local Area Coordinator for support (referral = name, dob etc)

• 24 hour ‘window’

7

Referral

• Personal details

• Wider family – inc siblings

• Detailed involvement

• Do not pre-set a meeting date

• Is there consent to proceed?

Support offered from Early Help Coordinators

• Advice, guidance and support for meetings

• Completion of Early Help assessment

• As above re: services and access to Family Support Panel

• Support with review process

8

Consent

Parental Responsibility (PR)

• The duties, obligations and rights of a

parent

• Mum = automatic

• Dad is married to Mum = automatic

• Unmarried but sign the birth cert’ = PR

• No sign = no PR

9

Fraser Competence

Consent

Should be sought from those who holdparental responsibility

or

From the child/young person if appropriate

also ……

Consent can be disposed in certain situations ………..

10

Early Help Assessment

DOMAINS

11

• A local unified method of assessment tosupport earlier intervention

• Improve joint working and communication –using a common language

• Improve the co-ordination and consistency of assessments – Ofsted

Inspection

Walsall Early Help Assessment: Aims

• Inform whether further, specialist,assessment is needed

• Provide a picture of needs built up over aperiod of time

• With consent; shared between professionalsas a working document

• Provide better, evidence based, referrals

Early Help Assessment:Aims

12

Lead Professional

Lead Professional The lead professional is not a job title or a newrole; set of functions to be carried out as part ofthe delivery of effective integrated support.

– Act as a single point of contact

– Be supported by Area Coordinator

– Co-ordinate the delivery of the actions agreed by the practitioners involved, based on the outcome of the assessment and recorded in a plan.

– Reduce overlap and inconsistency.

– Not responsible or accountable for services delivered by other agencies.

13

ELECTRONIC DIRECTORY OF

SERVICES

www.mywalsall.org

www.mywalsall.org

14

CONTACT THE TEAM

IRS Screening Team

01922 658170Duty Area Co-ordinator

Further Training?

hrcoursebookings@walsall.gov.uk

01922 - 655670