Families First Update for Safeguarding Partners – May 2026

Families First Update for Safeguarding Partners

Steering Group – May 2026

Work to introduce the Family Help model is now moving at pace, with a clear shift from planning into delivery. Across the partnership, there is a strong focus on making sure services are better connected, easier for families to access, and more able to support children earlier—helping prevent issues from escalating.

A key part of this is building the workforce needed to deliver Family Help. There has been good progress with new service managers, family help workers and additional frontline roles coming into post, alongside plans for newly qualified social workers later in the year. While there are still some gaps—particularly in more experienced safeguarding roles—the overall picture is positive, with active recruitment and a growing pipeline of staff to support the new model.

At the same time, partners are working hard to strengthen multi-agency working in practice. Plans are progressing to move the MASH into Partnership House and to make better use of space across family hubs and community buildings. There is also increasing partner presence within MASH, including probation and housing colleagues, which is helping to build a more joined-up front door to services. Some practical challenges remain around accommodation, ICT and accessibility, but partners are working together to find workable solutions.

There has also been significant progress in developing the systems and tools that will underpin Family Help. Work is underway to introduce a new Family Help assessment and digital forms, with a planned go-live in September. Alongside this, practice standards and a quality assurance framework are being developed to support consistent practice across services. This is an important step towards ensuring that families experience a more seamless and coordinated approach, regardless of which service they engage with.

Preparing the workforce is a growing area of focus. There is a clearer understanding of the training that will be needed to support the new model, and work is underway to align this with existing multi-agency training arrangements. Staff across services, including practice leads and managers, are beginning to take a more active role in supporting this. There is still more to do to clarify how training will be delivered and sustained long term, but this is being worked through collectively.

Financial planning is also aligning with the principles of Family Help. The partnership is participating in a kinship care pilot and looking at how funding can be used more flexibly to support families directly—particularly to strengthen family networks and avoid children needing statutory intervention wherever possible. This reflects a broader shift towards investing in earlier help and keeping families together.

In terms of implementation, there is now a clearer set of transition milestones, including changes to how cases move between services and how early help support is coordinated. Some areas—particularly step-down arrangements from statutory services—still need further clarity to ensure families experience smooth and consistent support. This work is ongoing and reflects the complexity of bringing different parts of the system together into a single model.

Overall, the programme is making solid progress. The focus is increasingly on turning plans into practice—embedding new ways of working, supporting staff through change, and making sure partners are aligned around a shared approach. For safeguarding partners, continued engagement will be key to making this successful, particularly in supporting integrated working, contributing to training, and helping shape clear, accessible pathways for families.