Getting it Right for every child
in Greater Glasgow and Clyde
Children’s Services
Learning Objectives. .
To increase knowledge and understanding of:
• the Scottish Government expectations under Getting it right for every
child
• the National Practice Model for Getting it right for every child
• how and when the roles of Named Person and Lead Professional are
applied in health visiting services
• The definition of wellbeing.
Moving away from ………
Ch/Fam
Education
Health
Social Work
Adult
Services
Moving Towards . . .
Children and Young People (Scotland)
Act (2014)
To improve the way services work to support children, young people and
families, the Act sets out a statutory requirements to:
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Ensure that all children and young people from birth to 18 years old
have access to a Named Person;
Put in place a single planning process to support those children who
require it;
Place a definition of wellbeing in legislation; and
Place duties on public bodies to coordinate the planning, design and
delivery of services for children and young people with a focus on
improving wellbeing outcomes, and report collectively on how they
are improving those outcomes
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2014/8/contents/enacted
The SG GIRFEC essential components
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improves outcomes for children through doing things differently so as to make
better use of existing resources
involves children and families in decision making and respects their
rights
consistently identifies at an early stage children who need help
increases the capacity of health and education to meet children’s needs
reduces paperwork and duplication of systems
draws help towards the child rather than passing the child from one service to
another
frees up staff time to take action that will improve the life chances of children and
families.
Scottish Government Guidance 2008
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/318937/0101828.pdf
A National Approach. . .
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To establish a
Getting it right
for every child
practice
approach across
Scotland
•
To establish a single
children’s services
system based on an
integrated framework
of developing children
and young people’s
wellbeing
To progress cultural
change which supports
the successful
implementation of
GIRFEC
Value children and families

Child or young person at the
centre informing how we
think and act
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The child’s whole world
right now and in the future.
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Early support to build
resilience, prevent
difficulties

The right support to
understand what’s
happening, to participate in
decisions about their lives
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Build from strengths and
resources
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The right to be physically
and emotionally safe
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Extra barriers need extra
effort - value diversity
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Dignity, respect, patience,
honesty, reliability and
integrity
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Respect different contributions,
expertise and pressures and cooperate with each other
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Value each other, show sensitivity to
the impact of your work on others
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Look after each other’s wellbeing as
well as the wellbeing of children and
families
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Respect the right to confidentiality
for children and for families, while
recognising the duty to promote,
support and safeguard children’s
wellbeing
•
Come together as one system,
bringing help around the child and
family in a coordinated and unified
way
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Involve, consult and actively build
relationships across professional
boundaries
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Treat each other with dignity,
respect, patience, honesty,
reliability and integrity
VALUE PROFESSIONALS
Principles of the strengths based approach
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All people have strengths and capacities
People can change - given the right conditions and
resources, people’s capacity to learn and grow can be
harnessed and mobilised
People can change and grow through their strengths and
capacities
People are experts in their own situation
The problem is the problem; the person is not the problem
Problems can blind people from noticing and appreciating
their strengths and capacity to find their own solution
People have good intentions
People are doing the best they can
The power for change is within us
The five key questions of GIRFEC
1
What is getting in the way of this child’s wellbeing?
2
Do I have all the information I need to help this child?
3
What can I do right now to help this child?
4
What can my agency do to help this child?
5
What additional help, if any, may be needed by others?
What is assessment and planning?
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Developing relationships and ensuring that all relevant people are
supported to be involved
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Encouraging and recording the views of parents and children
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Gathering information
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Structuring information to make sense of it
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Analysing information to articulate the impact on the child/young person
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Planning outcomes - taking decisions about what needs to change in a
child/young person’s life
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Agreeing what actions need to happen to achieve the change
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Agreeing an acceptable time to complete actions
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Agreeing who is responsible
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Reviewing progress against desired outcomes
Safe: Protected from abuse, neglect or harm Healthy: Having the highest attainable
at home, at school and in the community
standards of physical and mental health. Access
to suitable healthcare and support in learning to
make healthy and safe choices
Achieving: Being supported and guided Nurtured: Having a nurturing place to
in their learning and in the development of their
skills, confidence and self-esteem at home, at
school and in the community
live, in a family setting with additional help if
needed or, where there is not possible, in a
suitable care setting
Active: Having opportunities to take part in
Respected: Having the opportunity
activities, such as play, recreation and sport which
contribute to healthy growth and development, both
at home and in the community
along with carers to be heard and involved in
decisions which affect them
Responsible: Having opportunities
Included: Having help to overcome social,
and encouragement to play active and responsible
roles in their schools and communities and where
necessary having appropriate guidance and
supervision and being involved in decisions which
affect them
educational, physical and economic inequalities
and being accepted as part of the community in
which they live and learn
Two roles under GIRFEC
Every child has a Named Person from birth who is normally a Health
Visitor or Family Nurse. This role continues when the child attends school
with a depute or head teacher becoming the Named Person. Their job is
to promote, support and safeguard the child’s wellbeing within the
universal service. They are the contact point for families and professionals
if there are concerns about wellbeing and their job is to decide on what
kind of help children need.
A number of children will require a Lead Professional when they have a
Child’s Plan. This is when the help that needs to be provided is not
accessible within the services generally available to the Named Person and
a targeted intervention is required to address the child’s wellbeing needs.
Their job is to lead and coordinate all the separate assessments and plans
from each agency into one integrated assessment and Child’s Plan.
The function of the Named Person
The Children and Young People (Scotland ) Act 2014
Part 4, Section 19, Sub-section 5
(5) The function referred to in subsection (1) are
(a) Doing such of the following where the named person considers it
to be appropriate in order to promote, support or safeguard the wellbeing of
the child or young person
(i) advising, informing or supporting the child or young person,
or a parent of the child or young person
(ii) helping the child or young person, or a parent of the child or
young person to access a service or support
(iii) discussing, or raising, a matter about the child or young
person with a service provider or relevant authority; and
Such other functions as are specified by this Act or any other enactment as
being functions of a named person in relation to a child or young person
The GIRFEC Lead Professional
“Depending on the nature of the child’s needs and
the coordination required to deliver the Child’s Plan,
the role of Lead Professional may be undertaken by
the Named Person or another relevant practitioner.
The agency taking responsibility for the
management of the Plan is referred to as the
Managing Authority.”
Proposal for the development of guidance to
support the GIRFEC provisions in the Children and
Young People (Scotland) Act 2014
So what does this mean for the HV?
• The Named Person should be routinely introduced at the point of first contact and
the role explained to families before any assessment takes place.
• Health Visitors should establish whether the parent knows whether their child has a
Lead Professional (HV should have been involved if this is the case).
• HV must utilise the Wellbeing Universal Assessment, My World Triangle Assessment
and Child’s Plan appropriately within their own service to understand the child’s
needs.
• Health Visitors must record all significant events in the Chronology of Significant
Events for that child. Other professionals may also make them aware of significant
events which should be recorded.
• HV must consider whether sharing information with any other professionals will
help to promote, support and safeguard a child’s wellbeing.
• HV must consider how, what and when to communicate with other professionals in
order to promote, support and safeguard a child’s wellbeing.
• HV may have to coordinate multi-disciplinary/multi-agency communication to bring
all relevant professionals together to agree a Child’s Plan.
• Where the HV is considered to have the greatest expertise to manage the Child’s
Plan they will take on the role of the Lead Professional.
Sharing information under GIRFEC
When to share
• Will sharing prevent physical/emotional harm or physical neglect
to the child or to a third party or prevent or detect crime?
• Will not sharing cause harm to any other aspect of the child’s
wellbeing?
What to share
• Is everything you are sharing directly relevant?
• Are you sharing as little as possible?
Who to share with
• Does the person you are sharing with need to know?
• Can the person you are sharing with help the child?
How to share
• Choose a secure method for sharing, share data and keep a
record