Agenda item

Innovations Programme Update

To consider an update on the Innovations Programme.

Minutes:

The Committee received a presentation by Jannie Goussard, Team Manager Brambles Social Care Team on the Innovations Programme.

 

Some of the points made by Jannie Goussard are highlighted below:

 

·           This programme first started in Australia by Andrew Turnell and Steve Edwards, they really struggled with the concept of how to build a good working relationship with families and at the same time to be rigorous about safeguarding;

·           One of the differences between this programme and others was that this programme was developed by practitioners;

·           One of the core elements of the programme was to be able to get the family to understand what the local authority’s concerns were for the safety of the children;

·           It was important to break down the language to basic levels so that families could understand, and that children could understand in order to contribute to their own safety;

·           Another element of the programme was to create a balance between the professional judgement and the family’s understanding of the situation;

·           When developing a plan it was important to look not only at the problems, but to consider the strengths and build a plan with the family, so that this plan could work for the family;

·           It was important to look at the network around the children and the family, and to support not just one individual, but the whole network of families and friends (like a lightening system);

·           The Signs of Safety Practice Principles were aligned with the Council’s own priorities and  values;

·           One of the principals was to respect everyone who we work with as individuals (we do not agree with the abuse but still work with the person);

·           One of the principals was to help families understand that they have strengths and are capable of changes;

·           It was important to understand what motivates families to help them move forward;

·           It was important to treat every engagement as an opportunity for growth.  Most assessments models follow a sequence where there is an assessment, followed by a plan and then intervention.  With the Signs of Safety Practice the intervention starts at the first point of contact, and every contact with the family incorporates intervention, which runs alongside assessment;

·           It is a statutory duty of local authorities to use a recognised evidence based practice framework;

·           The Sign of Safety model was a recognised programme, and was now adopted by approximately 50 Councils in England and 17 countries;

·           Research showed that with Signs of Safety families felt more empowered and more able to understand the concerns and what needed to change;

·           One of the concerns of Signs of Safety was that only the right children came into care, and as far as possible families and wider networks were supported to keep the children in their care;

·           Practitioners that worked with the programme felt more job satisfaction;

·           Wokingham was now in the second phase of implementation of the Innovations Programme;

·           44% of staff had had advanced training in the programme, 41% had had the basic training and 15% had not had the training;

·           The score card was presented and how the programme was measured.

 

Following the presentation the following comments were made:

 

·           Councillor Bray asked what could be done when the victims of domestic abuse did not recognise they were being victims of abuse.  Jannie Goussard stated this happened by involving the family and everybody around them, by asking a lot of questions not just to the family and the victim but to the wider network around them.  Secrecy was a problem, the safety plan involved questioning a wide network around the family and enabling the child to learn about who to talk to;

·           Members asked what the scorecard was.  Jannie Goussard stated that officers looked at all the files and checked if all the tools were used to involve the network.  This was measured in a quarterly basis and gave a quantity measure;

·           JannieGoussard stated that the challenge was to develop questioning skills within the workforce;

·           In response to a question Jannie Goussard stated that the service was becoming more robust in accessing risk, the assessment process was rigorous.  However no practitioner could ever guarantee 100% no risk;

·           Members pointed out that taking a child away from the family was the last resort.

 

RESOLVED That the report be noted.

Supporting documents: