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Children and Families First

Safeguarding is everyone’s business and whilst much of the assessment of risk takes place in the assessment service, the Children and Families First teams are here for those families where longer-term intervention at level 4 is required to reduce risk and achieve positive change.

Partnership working is a vital mainstream activity. The Children and Families First teams work with families where children have been assessed to be children in need or at risk of harm. Assessments and plans are reviewed on a regular basis to prevent drift and to ensure the child’s journey progresses in a timely way.

The team work closely with families and a range of other agencies to support children who are subject to child in need and child protection plans and in some cases children at the early stages of being looked after and those where decisions are being made about their care by the courts.

The teams use a range of interventions to address and reduce risk. Key areas for consideration in the teams are co-production, safety planning, strong relationships with children, early permanence planning and legal interventions in circumstances where children are not considered safe in their family.