What is the family help offer?
Family help in Liverpool is support for children of all ages that helps improve a family’s resilience and outcomes and reduce the chance of any problem getting worse.
The family help assessment (FHAT) is the tool used by professionals to better understand the needs and strengths of the family. The tool is completed following discussions with children and their parents or carers and with other practitioners as appropriate.
Family help is consent-based, meaning that we always work alongside parents and carers’ doing ‘with’ and not ‘to’.
Some Family Help is provided by an agency already supporting the family, through schools, early years settings or our Family Hubs and Children's Centres.
In these circumstances, the person leading the Family Help Assessment will be the professional from these agencies.
In other circumstances, where the needs are more complex, the family help assessment is led and managed by an Outreach Family Support worker within one of the local Family Help Teams. This is known as Targeted Family Help.
Targeted Family Help
Targeted family help is for families who have needs which are becoming complex and require targeted intervention from more than one agency.
Our Family Support teams are led by consultant social workers who manage teams of experienced outreach support workers.
Each team works together with a range of professionals who support the family help offer. These professionals include the Police, School and Early Years providers, Family Hubs, Housing and also services that support adults with issues such as poor mental health or addiction.
In addition, to our North, South and Central Family Help teams, we also have a number of additional specialist teams including.
0-9 Team
This team offers intensive family support to children aged nine and under and includes support for expectant parents.
Attendance Team
This team works directly with schools to identify and support children for whom low levels of school attendance have become a concern.
Early Help Domestic Abuse Team
This team of specialist workers are available to provide advice, guidance and support to families where there have been concerns about domestic abuse or violence within the family home.
Family Ties Reimagined
This team works with fathers in HMP Altcourse and HMP Liverpool to help rebuild relationships with their children and families. Support includes guidance around contact, parenting, and advocacy, as well as one-to-one support for children and practical help for families. Find out more about this support and how to refer children and families.
How to make a referral
Referrals for any family help support can be made by completing the online referral form on our Request targeted support page.
If you are parent or carer who would like to make a self-referral or find out any further information, please call 0151 233 1359 or email EHLH.Pre-EHAT@liverpool.gov.uk.