Agenda item

That the report be noted.                  

The Head of Children’s Services introduced the report to update the Committee with the progress of the Integrated Family Support Service since the Service became live in Flintshire.

She detailed the background to the service, explaining that a bid from Wrexham County Borough Council (WCBC) to become a pioneer site had been approved and funding of £650,000 had been provided at the start of the project.  A joint team had been established with WCBC and Flintshire County Council so some of the infrastructure was already in place.  The IFSS grant for North Wales for 2013/14 was £850,000 and it was projected that the full spend would occur against the grant as local authorities already up and running with IFSS were providing additional support to the new authorities setting up their IFSS teams.  It had originally been planned that the service would be rolled out to parents with mental health problems and where drug use was an issue but this had been scaled back. 

In response to a question from Councillor Stella Jones, the Head of Children’s Services said that if families were not referred to the IFSS cohort, then they would be dealt with by the Children’s Services Teams. 

Councillor Hilary McGuill asked about referrals for mental health and substance and alcohol misuse problems and also requested further details about the 13 re-referrals which had been accepted by the IFSS team.  The Consultant Social Worker/Operational Manager explained that the problems experienced by the families that the team worked with were complex.  Following referrals from social workers to the IFSS, assessments would be undertaken and this would highlight any barriers that would prevent the action that the social worker was requesting being undertaken.  If barriers were highlighted, then the necessary work to overcome these would be carried out to give the family the best chance to keep the children safe and once this had been undertaken, it could result in a re-referral to the IFSS.  The Consultant Social Worker/Operational Manager explained that the IFSS worked closely with the social workers and that significant assessments for the children were undertaken to ensure that if the need arose, the family would be referred to the IFSS.  The Head of Children’s Services advised that even when families were referred to the IFSS, their case could still remain open with the mainstream Children’s Services Team.  The Consultant Social Worker/Operational Manager said that if it was not possible for the adults in the family to make the necessary changes suggested, then the IFSS Team provided possibilities for further intervention.  Following a question from Councillor McGuill about the trigger points for identifying areas of concern, the Consultant Social Worker/Operational Manager said that they would be identified at phase one of an assessment whether the family was a safe enough place for the child to be.  Councillor Dave Mackie said that the information provided by the Consultant Social Worker/Operational Manager should be included in the report. 

The Chair referred to paragraph 3.18 on the funding for the IFSS and asked for further information.  The Head of Children’s Services explained that even though the level of grant funding had been confirmed for 2014/15, funding beyond that period had not yet been identified.  Of the £850,000 grant for IFSS for North Wales, Wrexham/Flintshire would receive 38% which was based on population; the £650,000 fund from WCBC’s successful bid had now ceased. 

In response to a question from the Chair about item number 2 under the priorities planned in paragraph 3.21, the Head of Children’s Services said that it was anticipated that Flintshire County Council IFSS team would replicate the work in place at WCBC. 

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.