1. Early Help and Family Support
Karen Davison
Director of Early Help

2. What is Early Help?
In a “threshold” or “continuum” model, it is the Tier 2 area of targeted work with children, young people and their families which sits between the
Tier 1 universal services (midwifery, health visiting, nurseries, schools, GPs, dentists etc) and the
Tier 3 acute and specialist services (Children’s Social Care, Youth Justice, CYPS, emergency response)

3. Early Help – a new targeted Service
Three, multi-layered Early Help delivery teams, based in localities (covering the same geographical areas as the social work teams)
Washington / North Rainbow Centre Jane Eland / Paul Wilson
East / West Thorney Close Susan Toulson / Abdul Amin
Coalfield Hetton Centre Dave Barber / Ashley Smith
Closer working with Children’s Social Care and Targeted Youth Services and clear protocols for ‘step up’ and ‘step down’ between services
‘Step down’ from CIN to include a period of additional support by the Early Help Service before plans are stepped down to the universal services

4. Parenting Interventions as part of Early Help
The targeted Early Help Service is able to offer the following parenting interventions:
Incredible Years: 0-2 yrs, 3-12 years (groups or 1:1)
Triple P Teen: 13+ years (groups)
Triple P Pathway: all ages (high risk families)
These can be used as the evidence to support referrals onwards to additional services

5. Parenting Interventions as part of Early Help
These interventions must be delivered as part of a co-ordinated Early Help offer where the plan identifies this as a need, so that proper evaluation of their impact can be measured
The Early Help processes and the parenting referral form can be found at

6. Questions?