Family Intervention Project Showcase Friday 15 September Leeds.

Family Intervention Project Showcase

Friday 15 September

Leeds

Welcome

Ian Brady

Director

Respect Task Force

Context • Drive on ASB

• Small number of families causing disproportionate problems

• Spending large amounts of money - often not very effectively

• Small number of pioneering projects providing a more effective response

• Developed these approaches in Trailblazer and Action Areas

• Respect Action Plan

– Outlines proposals to widen the clampdown on ASB and tackle its causes

– Sets out commitment to develop Family Intervention Projects in 50 areas by end 2006 - to change the behaviour of those causing disproportionate problems in their community

This is something that the PM and others have repeatedly highlighted

“(We need to) end the farce of half a dozen agencies all spending hundreds of thousands of pounds on problem families. Identify these families early, have them handled by one lead agency and give it whatever powers it needs to affect change or impose sanctions.”

PM speech to Labour Party Conference

Who do the projects work with?

•Households who have been or about to be evicted because of ASB

•Households with severe and multiple needs

Depression Other MH problems

Alcohol /drugs

Violence Risk of child being taken into care

School attendance problems

School exclusion

60%

22%

30% 28%

40%41%

36%

Source: Interim evaluation of projects for families at risk of losing their homes (2006) Sheffield Hallam, ODPM

Adult and child needs identified at point of referral

No complaints

29%

Reduced56%

Increased15%

Project interventions lead to a reduction in ASB complaints and incidents

Project workers’ assessment of the impact of IFIP on the level of ASB complaints*

Source: Sheffield Hallam Final evaluation 2006 (forthcoming)

Positive outcomes on levels of ASB complaints in 85% of all closed cases (35 out of 41 families)

* based on 6 evaluated projects in North West England

The changes in behaviour were attributed to a number of different factors including:

•Increased Parental control

•Development of communication & conflict management skills

Family Intervention can improve school attendance

6%

8%

15%

27%

13%

19%

29%

42%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Permanentexclusion

Truancy

Temporaryexclusions

Frequent non-attendees

Post intervention Pre intervention

Comparison of schooling concerns pre and post FIP intervention* (among 44 Families)

* based on 6 evaluated projects in North West England Source: Sheffield Hallam final evaluation 2006 (forthcoming)

Young people involved in IFIPswere often very positive about assistance in getting to school and being supported or represented at meetings associated with school attendance

Reduced80%

Stayed the same20%

Stable77%

Partially Stable

8%

Unstable15%

FIPs can reduce the risk of homelessness and improve the stability of tenancy Project workers’ assessment of the risk of homelessness when families exited the IFIP*

* based on 6 evaluated projects in North West England

The risk of eviction was reduced for 32 out of 40 families

Project workers’ assessment of tenancy stability when families exited the IFIP*

Stabilising tenancies and preventing evictions can prevent further negative consequences such as family breakdown and children being taken into care

Source: Sheffield Hallam evaluation 2006

There are also a number of other important outcomes from FIPs

The IFIP in Rochdale was found to have made progress in 46% of cases with debt and money management

Trailblazer project monitoring 2005-6 suggested a 23% behaviour improvement in young people involved in IFIPs

Trailblazer project monitoring (2005-06) suggests a 21% improvement in family functioning

Recipients recognise the difference that has been made

“It’s just, they’ve kept me together. They’ve just kept me completely together, you know.

Any worries I’ve had just a phone call away if I’d needed.

And the positivity that you pick up, you know, just listening to common sense and just things that you don’t think or wouldn’t think of, they seem to be able to

help.”

“I think the council would have evicted me, I’d have been on a

dead end estate bringing up four kids round a load of junkies and

my kids would probably be junkies”

“I had problems controlling the children…I couldn’t, and they controlled

me. But … things have improved. The swearing has stopped…now instead of

shouting at them I do things like making them sit on the naughty step or stopping

them from watching telly”

Key messages• Real opportunity here to make a significant difference to these

families and the communities in which they live

• Need you to take these messages back to the areas in which you work and convince others

• Not about doing more of what you are already doing… going beyond traditional key working, housing related support and youth interventions

• A new approach, a fantastic opportunity

Setting up Family Intervention Projects

Gill Strachan

Assistant Director

Respect Task Force

Context

• Drive on Anti-Social Behaviour • Small number of families – large amounts of

money • Pioneering Projects • Respect Action Plan

Objectives

• Stop ASB• Prevent Homelessness• Achieve Every Child Matters Outcomes

Why are the current interventions ineffective?

• Services not Co-ordinated• No Common Endeavour• Unwilling to use Enforcement

What Works?

• Targeting the Worst families• Highly Intensive Support• Structured Supervision• Clear Sanctions• Root Causes• Whole Family

Key Worker

• Consistent• Determined• Relentless

Models of Intervention

• Outreach Support• Dispersed Accommodation• Core Block

Conclusion

• Grip the family• Grip the problem • Grip other agencies

WORKSHOPS

Room Workshop

Matcham Suite Setting up a dispersedor residential service

Thomas Ambler Room Key working

Parenting models & resources

Steve Harwood

DfES

Evaluation & monitoring

Ben Monks

Respect Task Force

Monitoring…

“Prefer to spend my time delivering services, not filling in forms…”

“I am just too

busy!”

“Endless data that no-

one uses”

“Difficult to

collect”

Monitoring

• Condition of Grant

• Provides data about all families accessing project

• We want to limit the burden and develop systems that will assist the development of your project and enable you to manage and assess your performance.

• Respect Task Force will help with completion and feedback.

Opportunities & Outcomes• To understand how many families have received intensive

intervention and what the outcomes of support have been;

• To intervene early to bring about change in projects;

• To help convince areas that are reluctant to offer intensive family intervention;

• To understand who is being referred and whether these are the right families

• To understand the full costs of delivery and identify savings to public purse

• To develop evidence for Comprehensive Spending Review 2007

Project Administrative data collected quarterly

Family data: Collected quarterly by the project worker for each family with which the project intervenes and in collaboration with other agencies e.g. School, Police, Landlord

80

84

95

82

70 75 80 85 90 95 100

%

%

%

Reduction in the level of complaints

Maintained tenancy / planned move

Improved school attendance

Threat to the home stabilised

%

The Evaluation…• In-depth understanding of the process and outcomes of projects on:

• families• service providers • communities

• Build on previous work such as Sheffield Hallam (Nixon et al 2006)

Interim findings from Sheffield Hallam project (2006)

Research Questions

?

A. What are the characteristics of households that are referred to intensive family support projects?

B. What are the characteristics of intensive family support projects?

C. What are the referral arrangements and project acceptance thresholds and how effective are they?

D. What are the outcomes for communities?

E. What are outcomes for families?

F. What are the social and financial costs and benefits associated with different models of intensive family support?

-30%

-25%

-20%

-15%

-10%

-5%

0%

Rubbish / Litter Burglary / Theft Danger to property Fear of mugging /robbery

£0

£50,000

£100,000

£150,000

£200,000

£250,000

£300,000

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Case

Costs include: Loss of revenue to other properties (£100k), Theft & vandalism to surrounding properties (£100k), & Fire service call outs (£36k)

Case study analysis of ‘problem families’: identified costs to local agencies

Higher end problem families

The cost of these problem families to local agencies is substantial – anywhere between £60k pa and over £250k

Source: Southampton study 2005, Costings of FSPs 2005, Cost effectiveness of FSPs 2005, Leicester New Start Family Support Project 2006, MORI

% point change in key indicators of community safety in Leicester, 2001 v. 2005 (MORI)

• Before the project, there were on average 7 evictions a year from social housing due to ASB. Since the project started there have been no evictions caused by ASB

• Key indicators of community safety have shown a downward trend since the IFSP started

Key outcomes of Leicester New Start Family Support Project

Next steps

Donna Molloy

Respect Task Force

What do the Respect Task Force Expect from areas?

• Speed!• Commitment to getting key local partners on

board• Recognition this is unlikely to be more of what

you are doing already• Commitment to funding projects from

mainstream resources after 2008

What can we offer in return?

• Guidance/help with setting up the project• Contact in Respect Task force

–ongoing support–trouble-shooting

• Links to others involved in the same task e.g. regional practitioner networks

• Reassurance of strong cross departmental commitment to these projects

And more practically…

• Some pump priming funding• Help for the projects to access crucial services

–Parenting classes–Employment services –Health services

• Help with evaluation/monitoring/quality assurance

• Being part of a high profile area of work

Next steps

• Most have either sent us a proposal or are developing proposals.

• Now we need: –Work on the detail and getting sign off for

proposals–Details of what you need to get parenting

provision in place –Intensive work to get projects established –Getting the first referrals in!

Question & Answers