A Guide for Agencies
What is Strengthening Families?
Strengthening Families is a way of providing better coordinated support for families/whanau with children under the age of 17, who are already working with a number of agencies, by using an interagency case management approach.
Strengthening Families not only benefits families and reduces the risk of poor outcomes for children and young people; it also benefits agencies whose services are likely to be more effective when coordinated with the work of other agencies. It can be effective practice for all workers, since it enables decisions to be made with the knowledge of all the issues, and in consultation with everyone involved.
Strengthening Families is a process, not a provider and works best when agencies are committed to working collaboratively.
How are meetings initiated?
Any agency representative or person who is prepared to work with the family can initiate a meeting. Your region will have a local management group, many of whom have a dedicated coordinator who can help you through the initial steps in setting up a meeting.
The initiating worker or agency is responsible for:
- ensuring full family participation in deciding
- where the meeting is to be held
- when it will be held (usually about three weeks away)
- what the key concerns are
- which agencies and support people should be invited.
- ensuring that the family is fully informed of their rights
- families can withdraw consent at any time
- families can withdraw consent to an agency participating at any time
- families can request that an agency withhold information
- families can access and correct information held by agencies
- families can make a formal complaint at any time.
- completing the initiation and consent forms with the family
- sending out initiation and consent forms to all invited participants.
What happens at the meeting?
- participants will be reminded of the principles of Strengthening Families
- an independent facilitator (provided free of charge) will ensure that the family’s needs, concerns and priorities are heard and understood
- the family will be asked what they would like to see happen
- all of the agencies involved will be asked to explain why they are involved and what service/support they are providing
- everyone will work together to develop a single case plan, according to the priorities of the family
- an agency will become the lead agency on behalf of the family with the family’s consent
- a review date will be set so that everyone comes together again to check the plan is working for the family
- the hoped for outcomes will also be:
- agreement on the key issues and their priority
- a plan that matches resources and support to the agreed needs
- an identified lead worker/agency to assist in coordinating the plan
- clear roles for agencies/workers involved
- clear and coordinated tasks for the family as appropriate
- a timeframe for actions to happen within.
The first meeting will probably take up to two hours, but follow up review meetings may be shorter.
Strengthening Families meetings will only occur with the custodial parent/caregiver’s consent, and only those agencies nominated by the family will be invited.
What are my responsibilities?
- Your agency has signed protocols at a national and/or regional level agreeing to support Strengthening Families and has made a commitment enabling staff to participate.
- The family/whanau have consented to you attending the meeting and sharing information about your agency’s involvement with them. This needs to be up-to-date and relevant (if you are unsure whether to share some details this should be checked with the family beforehand).
- Strengthening Families works best if the agency representatives come with knowledge of their agency policies and resources that might apply, and are prepared to work in a co-operative and flexible manner.
- You will continue to be responsible for the provision of services, support and resources to the family and/or child or young person unless it is agreed at the meeting that your agency has no further involvement in the case.
- The focus of the meeting is planning for the future and what needs to happen, not looking at the past.
What is a lead agency?
Agencies work independently with the family to achieve their aspects of the plan developed at the first meeting.
Review meetings are held as appropriate and agencies withdraw from the process as their aspects of the plan are addressed. The lead agency supports the family and co-ordinates the ongoing process.
The lead agency is chosen having regard to:
- the wishes of the family
- the willingness of an agency to undertake the role
- the capacity of the agency to undertake the role.
The lead agency is likely to be a participant who has worked with or can work with the family in an ongoing support role.
The lead agency’s role is to:
- act as liaison between meetings
- keep the family/whanau informed of progress against the plan
- keep agencies informed of progress
- maintain and send out action plans
- organise the review meetings.
Strengthening Families works
Strengthening Families works. It is already producing better outcomes for everyone involved. And it’s not as hard as you think. There are clear protocols, and you can easily access an independent facilitator for free. While it may take an investment of time and commitment initially, that investment is well rewarded over time.
Sometimes just getting together the family and key people from the agencies involved and sharing information is enough to turn around a situation, especially if it happens early enough.
A copy of your local Strengthening Families Protocol and the Best Practice Guidelines adopted for your area are available from your local Strengthening Families Management Group or Strengthening Families Coordinator.
For more information, contact your local Strengthening Families Coordinator.