1. Think Family approaches to strategic safeguarding partnerships
Think Family approaches to strategic safeguarding partnerships Suzanne Elwick – Head of Strategic Partnerships, London Borough Waltham Forest.
16 July 2018, Annual Principle Social Workers Conference

2. Think Family approaches to strategic safeguarding partnerships
What I will talk about today
The way we do it in Waltham Forest - Think Family and the why and how of setting up the strategic partnerships
The structure and priorities of the four boards
The One Panel – which considers referrals for all statutory and local reviews
Learning and improving practice
Challenges and outcomes/early impact

3. Think Family – the why and how of setting up the strategic partnerships
Four strategic partnerships:
WF Safeguarding Adults Board
WF Safeguarding Children Board
SafetyNet – community safety partnership
Health and Wellbeing Board
Why ? - Think Family approach
Families are systems within other systems, so we need to work with the service user’s whole family, recognising the impact of different members, needs, influence and role, in order to support lasting change. Family means different things to different people. Building resilience and capacity through family and community.
Why ? - Improving performance and impact of the boards
Reduce duplication, more effective use of resources, streamline decision making, improving partners’ engagement and outcomes of the boards

4. Think Family – the why and how of setting up the strategic partnerships
How? - Strategic Partnership Unit
Change led by the LA, Deputy Chief Executive – board chairs and partners open to concept and to working together to achieve
Equal policy support for the four boards and from one team instead of across the local authority in different directorates and different levels
Strategic overview of all the work of the four boards which provides opportunities to reduce duplication and target resources
Joined up strategic needs assessment to identify priorities for residents and then allocated to appropriate board, with cross cutting priority groups
Joined up structure and uniformed approach - report templates, admin, challenge questions etc. Strategic Partnership Executive, board, business management group, subgroups alongside residents forums/inputs and lay members.

5. Priorities for the four Strategic Partnership Boards 2017/19
Supporting agencies to work together to improve outcomes in safety, safeguarding and wellbeing for residents in Waltham Forest
We ensure residents influence the work of the boards in different ways.  We share learning with practitioners to improve practice.

6. Strategic Partnership Executive Business Management Groups
Model of boards
Strategic Partnership Executive
Four Boards
Residents voice via Safer Neighbourhood Board and Residents Forums for HWBB and SAB
Business Management Groups
Cross cutting themes
Subgroups
Task & finish groups

7. One Panel One Panel membership
“The panel is a positive space to reflect on policies and procedures to ensure they are the most effective in safeguarding all children and adults and it has helped to reinforce the work needed across the partnership to do this” (one panel member)
One Panel
One Panel membership
CSC, ASC, disability enablement service (0-25), secondary and acute health trust, Education, WFCCG, GP, Police, Community Safety, Early Help, YOS, Policy and Legal advisors, Chairs as observers
Commissioned Think Family local learning review of mother with learning disabilities whose child was removed at birth.
Commissions SCR and SAR – no recent referrals for Domestic Homicide Review
Shared learning from experience from children's, joining with new ideas and approach in adults
Proportionality and create new local methodologies informed by systems approach
Inclusive of front line practitioners/managers and senior managers
Refresh TOR in light of new Working Together 2018
Chief Social Worker for Adults Blog

8. Learning and improving practice
Annual multi-agency audit programme 2017/18 Think family - alcohol and drugs, mental wellbeing. Single board; child neglect and making safeguarding personal, with local audit tool and report template.
Range of bitesize guides – short practice videos on Think Family and single board themes

9. Learning and improving practice
Think Family, Think Safeguarding (TFTS) event for voluntary, community, private and faith sector. Think Family speakers on domestic abuse in faith settings and Modern Slavery, plus safeguarding awareness, market place and bitesize guides. Bespoke poster designed to signpost to safeguarding advice and guidance.

10. Learning and improving practice
“I am now going to look into more adult safeguarding to support the children in my care” (attendee at improving safeguarding)
Safe and Well month in June 2018 – rise the profile of all the boards, connecting front line work to board priorities. Training events, seminars, spotlights on all 17 priorities. Including think family improving safeguarding practice – learning from statutory and local reviews and multi-agency audits. For example “Pressure Care and Self neglect can affect children too.”

11. Challenges and outcomes/early impact
Joined up strategic needs assessment
Cross cutting priorities, reducing duplication, more efficient use of resources and partners time
Easier and quicker to identify new areas requiring focus, agree way forward e.g. cuckooing
Ability to deliver joined up events e.g. TFTS and Safe and Well
Modelling Think Family, e.g. improving safeguarding practice
Emerging improvements in boards’ performance
Challenges
Embedding Think Family approach across the partnership
Lessons learnt changing practice and then evidencing that change
Residents voice –diverse voices from children and adults influencing all the boards work
Budget – LA is the major contributor and not all partners pay what is requested

12. Thank you
Visit our website to check out the resources and the bitesize guides, annual reports and one page summaries, statutory reviews etc.