Introduction
The Scottish Government states that Scotland should be the best place for children to grow up. Over the last ten years, the Scottish Government has developed, Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC), a national approach to improve the wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland. This builds on a growing body of evidence demonstrating the value of supporting children and families at the earliest opportunity, rather than waiting until families reach crisis point to provide support. Building on the assets within families and communities to prevent children from becoming looked after is identified as a key principle in the Scottish Government’s (2015) Getting it Right for Looked after Children and Young People Strategy.
The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 was passed by the Scottish Parliament on 19 February 2014, and received Royal Assent on 27 March 2014. Part 12: Services in relation to children at risk of becoming looked after, etc. of the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (the 2014 Act) and the Relevant services in relation to children at risk of becoming looked after etc. (Scotland) Order 2016 (the 2016 Order) came into force on 31 August 2016. Relevant services are specified as: Family group decision-making services and support services in relation to parenting. Non-statutory National Guidance on Part 12 was issued by the Scottish Government on 14 December 2016 to support the implementation of legislation. The services provided to families whose children are at risk of becoming looked after (as per the legal duties set out under Part 12 of the 2014 Act) represent a critical component of the preventative approach, addressing any risk factors at an earlier stage, and thereby preventing the need for more significant intervention in the child‘s life.
In the publication of A Nation with Ambition: The Government’s Programme for Scotland 2017-18 there was a commitment to ‘commission a progress review on the use of family support services to prevent children going into care’ (pg. 85). This specifically relates to the implementation of Part 12 of the 2014 Act. The Scottish Government commissioned CELCIS to undertake this national review. The objective of the review was to explore the progress and journeys across thirty-two local authorities in supporting families where children are at risk of becoming looked after. The review included: an online survey of local authorities, health services, third sector and independent providers of support for families; focus groups with providers of relevant services; analysis of strategic Children’s Services Plans, and; a review of all published information by local authorities relating to relevant services as defined under Part 12 of the 2014 Act.
This report is divided into four sections: ‘What matters to families’ and background; methodology; findings; key learning points and conclusions. The background section outlines the evidence about support for families and in particular in relation to ‘relevant services’ defined as support for parenting and family group decision-making services. The methodology section provides information on who participated in the study and how. The findings are divided into three parts: engagement, exploration and implementation. Engagement with the new legislation is considered through participants’ observations, strategic planning documents and information published on support services. Exploration stage which considers the diversity of families and issues they face where a child is at risk of becoming looked after and the final findings section considers the opportunities and challenges with implementation. Drawing from the findings, key learning points are identified and conclusions provided.
