Multi Agency Benefits For Children And Families Social Work Essay Essay Example

Multi Agency Benefits For Children And Families Social Work Essay Essay Example Multi Agency Benefits For Children And Families Social Work Essay Essay Multi Agency Benefits For Children And Families Social Work Essay Essay †¦ there appears to be a famine of grounds to back up the impression that multi-agency working in pattern brings about existent benefits for kids and households The local authorization and authorities bureaus have been working together for a long clip and non wholly new pattern. Jones and Leverett quote However, the thrust towards integrated working which includes the full kids s work force ( that is, every person who works, on an employed or voluntary footing, with kids and their households across sectors such as wellness, instruction, early old ages and child care, drama work, societal attention, constabulary, young person support and leisure services ) under the interagency umbrella is a more recent and ambitious invention ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 123 ) Multi-agency working can be analysed utilizing three primary policy contexts. First, the context of influence, where policy discourses are constructed and cardinal policy constructs for illustration, partnership or multi-agency working are established. Second, the context of policy text production, or the paperss that represent policy ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 125 ) . These are normally expressed in linguistic communication which claims to be sensible and for the general public good ( Bowe et al. , 1992 ) . They include texts such as the SEN Code of Practice ( DfES, 2001 ) or the new Working Together to Safeguard Children guidelines ( HM Government, 2010 ) . Such texts are so responded to within the context of pattern, or what really happens on the land for illustration, schools, child care or wellness scenes as a consequence of a peculiar policy . ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 125 ) Jones ( 2000 ) added a 6th context, the context of concealed values . This means positive consequence results on policy ; such as, statute law that promotes interagency cooperation in kids s services. They aim to protect kids s public assistance and better well-being. However, Jones suggests that there may be a scope of concealed significances and results. At a cardinal degree, policy can be smartly constructed to mask a peculiar set of purposes, values and beliefs. Intentionally or otherwise, policy may be a wolf in sheep s vesture ( Jones, 2000 ) There is besides grounds that practicians construct their ain significances related to policy, whether these are intended or non. Commenting on the inclination of policy shapers to centrally design signifiers, e-templates and appraisal tools . ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 126 ) Both, Garrett ( 2006 ) and Axford et Al. ( 2006 ) note how these are sometimes resisted by practicians because they are perceived as exercising cardinal control over hitherto reasonably independent countries and suspected of being a cost-cutting device ( Axford et al. , 2006, p. 172 ) . Consequently, policy could really prolong or make fortunes that maintain or exacerbate jobs. Rather than being a solution to the perceived job, the interaction between policy and pattern may do a new set of jobs. ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 126 ) The cardinal point is that policy is at three degrees local, front line and cardinal. At cardinal degree the thoughts are made concrete and so articulated nationally and locally. At the clip the policy enters the work force such as schools, practicians perceptual experiences can accordingly be affected. The inquiry is: to what extent is the vision enshrined in cardinal policy on multi-agency working likely to alter as it travels on its journey from cardinal authorities to individual practician? ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 126 ) Governments have a inclination to build their vision for policy as a statement of purposes or intended results. Sometimes the vision is embedded within a wider model ; for illustration, authoritiess in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland ( Jones and Leverett, 2008 pg 126 ) In England, kids s well-being was defined as the five reciprocally reenforcing results originally presented in the Every Child Matters Green Paper ( DfES, 2003, p. 6 ) : SHEEP is an acronym that stands for: S Stay safe H Healthy E Enjoy and accomplish E Economic well-being P Positive part The following stairss is to interpret these visions into larning which can be implemented into pattern by people working in such sectors. The five results were integrated into the development of the common nucleus accomplishments and cognition for the kids s work force ( DfES, 2005 ) dwelling of: Effective communicating and battle with kids, immature people and households Child and immature individual development Safeguarding and advancing the public assistance of the kid Supporting passages Multi-agency working Sharing information . ( DfES, 2005 ) Despite fluctuations, the UK authorities agreed that all kids will profit from closer working between practicians and bureaus. The Common Assessment Framework ( CAF ) is a cardinal portion of presenting frontline services that are integrated and focused around the demands of kids and immature people. The CAF will advance more effectual, earlier designation of extra demands, peculiarly in cosmopolitan services. It is intended to supply a simple procedure for a holistic appraisal of a kid s demands and strengths, taking history of the function of parents, carers and environmental factors on their development ( ECM, 2008 ) . The CAF signifier is designed to record and, where appropriate, portion with others, appraisals, programs and recommendations for support. Section 11 of the Children Act 2004 places a statutory responsibility on cardinal people and organic structures to do agreements to safeguard and advance the public assistance of kids . ( HM Government, 2004 ) The ECM states all bureaus are required to hold: Senior direction committedness to the importance of safeguarding and advancing kids s public assistance A clear statement of the bureau s duties towards kids, available for al staff Safe enlisting processs in topographic point Effective inter-agency working to safeguard and advance the public assistance of kids Effective information sharing ( ECM, 2008 ) The principle for the CAF is to assist practicians develop a shared apprehension of kids, which avoids households reiterating themselves to all other bureaus. The CAF helps to develop a common apprehensions of what needs to be done and how. Do non reevaluate when the information is already there ( Parents in audience about appraisal, in Scots Executive, 2005b, p. 23 ) The statement is simple and on the surface persuasive, the drift based on assisting single kids. But the relationship between appraisal processs, their intent and their results is seldom straightforward ( Jones, 2004 ) . Assessment is a womb-to-tomb procedure with societal effects and may be influenced by contextual factors and professional value places. It is literally a point at which certain kids are judged to be different ( Tomlinson, 1982, p. 82 ) . Some parents and kids s positions of their services have highlighted their wanting a coordinated service that is delivered through a individual point of contact, a key worker , named individual or link worker ( Sloper, 2004, p. 572 ) . Within the CAF, a similar function was produced, the lead professional ( LP ) who takes duty for organizing the action identified as a consequence of the CAF procedure and will back up the kid and their household as necessary. One of the dashing facets of the CAF is the figure of professionals that practicians will prosecute with, such as wellness, instruction, societal services and voluntary bureaus. It can be besides rather dashing in happening out who the support services are and their contact inside informations. However, with the CAF procedure it can be off of get the better ofing tenseness antecedently encountered around multi bureau working and sharing information. Just as kids and their households have a part to do to determine the services they receive through the assorted signifiers of partnership discussed in old chapters, so they can lend to the development of pattern and practicians. This can go on at many degrees through rating, feedback, audience and research, every bit good as direct engagement in preparation. Practitioners and the administrations they work for demand to recognize that kids and their households have specific cognition that can non be learnt from anyplace else . ( Rixon, 2008 ) Children are party to the subculture of childhood which gives them a alone insider position that is critical to our apprehension of kids s universes . ( Kellett, 2005, p. 4 ) Like many who on a regular basis consult kids and immature people, we find that their positions are ever serious, concise, thoughtful and extremely relevant and cut through the preexistent dockets and diplomatic turning awaies that beset many audiences with professional grownups. We find that even really immature kids are more than able to analyze and give clear positions on many issues within their experience . ( Morgan, 2005, pp. 181-182 ) How is the success of more incorporate ways of working to be judged? One component of rating might be to see to what extent incorporate squads or new enterprises or constructions have overcome obstructions and enabled more positive ways of working . ( Stone and Rixon, 2008 ) As we have discussed, authorities policy and the literature on kids s services all emphasise the importance of bureaus working together and the value of partnership constructions, yet: Despite such exhortations, there appears to be a famine of grounds to back up the impression that multi-agency working in pattern brings about existent benefits for kids and households. ( Townsley et al. , 2004, p. 6 ) However, Michelle Warren quotes According to Consultancy 4Children ( Policy into pattern, 4Children, 2009 ) consistent grounds indicates that parents and kids are best served if the support on offer is joined up and good coordinated . It would be appropriate to recognize that although services may be provided in one scene, there is still a hazard of services non being joined up, because of different bureaus ( and viing interests/perspectives ) involved. ( Warren, 2010 ) However, Howell states Previously we really made it improbably hard by doing kids and parents and carers make their ain manner through the services all being assessed rather individually and acquiring really assorted messages. So multi-agency working is indispensable where a kid needs it. We must nt acquire baffled and believe multi-agency working has got to be the lone manner of working. In some instances it s really the school that will do the difference and that s the bureau where the huge bulk of kids will accomplish the best results . ( Howell, 2008 ) However, Townsley highlights the existent benefits for households and kids. Howell provinces There are tensenesss between bureaus, some of them driven by the different get downing point that different bureaus have. So the nature of the marks that bureaus are measured by are really rather different. The wellness marks that wellness services are measured by are significantly different from the sort of marks that schools work to and peculiarly are rather distant from the results of Every Child Matters . ( Howell, 2008 ) As with any Multi bureau working, it is important to measure whether any new undertakings or enterprises have been set marks against standards that can be measured. This is peculiarly a contemplation for grounds based intercessions which have been associated with issues, such as value for money. In relation to this, many have marks which have been set and necessarily raise inquiries whether it is the right one to be assigned with a peculiar mark. Practitioners recognise that marks can enable lucidity and equity, and concentrate attending on of import countries of pattern ( Banks, 2004 ) . However, Townsley et Al. ( 2004 ) states review a figure of surveies that reveal small grounds of improved results of multi-agency working across a scope of services and scenes. Their reappraisal besides makes clear that the undertaking of rating itself is a complex 1. Built-in jobs include: troubles in generalizing from single instance surveies ; diverse positions of different stakeholders as to what counts as success ; the length of clip needed to measure alteration ; and causality and ascription . ( Glendinning, 2002, cited in Townsley, 2004, p. 6 ) Consequently, Howell states Children s engagement and battle is cardinal to the redesign of services peculiarly with a multi-agency position. It s portion of the larning about what makes a difference the whole issue around personalisation puts the client, the individual having the services, as the co-designer of their solutions . ( Howell, 2008 ) To reason, A formative attack to rating that encourages duologue and on-going betterments to both policy and pattern would look to offer a positive manner frontward. However, this is non without its challenges and there are still issues to be addressed, non least preparation and elucidation of functions and duties. It is up to single practicians to advance an inclusive attack to professional difference and to develop a scope of different theoretical accounts enabling coaction, regard, reciprocality, pragmatism and risk-taking. ( Leverett and Jones, 2008 )