What is Early Help?
Early help and early intervention are forms of support aimed at improving outcomes for children or preventing escalating need or risk. Because of this they are also sometimes referred to as prevention or preventative services.
Early help and early intervention services can be provided at any stage in a child or young person's life, from the early years right through to adolescence.
Services can be delivered to parents, children, or whole families.
The importance of helping families at the earliest opportunity is highlighted in national safeguarding guidance across the UK. However, the form services take varies between local areas, depending on local provision. NSPCC
Early Help support within Havering is delivered through a number of different routes, from universal services, accessed within the community our local children’s and youth centres, through to one-to-one family interventions via experienced Family Practitioners.
Early Years and the Universal Offer
The Early Years offer is a universal service for families of Havering where the focus is around early childhood development, school readiness and ensuring families are able to access the right support, at the right time, within their local community.
There are five Children Centres across the borough, from which a range of services are delivered, such as midwifery, sexual health, child health clinics, parenting programmes as well as a variety of child / parent groups to assist with child development.
Please see the Family Service Directory for an overview of the local children’s centres, and their current offers.
Universal Parenting Offer
Parents and carers sometimes need extra support or information to help with parenting and building a strong and positive family life.
The Early Help Service offer a variety of free parenting courses that are designed to offer support for parents of children from pre-birth to the age of 18.
Our Parenting offer ranges from workshop style sessions to full, 12 week, evidence based, accredited programmes.
Parenting programmes can help families:
- develop their confidence, skills, knowledge and understanding of parenting
- learn effective parenting strategies and promote their child's development
- develop skills in understanding and responding to their child's behaviour
Please visit our dedicated Parenting page for further information of support available or contact 01708 432636 or parenting@havering.gov.uk.
Volunteering with our services
Our vision centres on supporting all of Havering's children and families to lead happy, healthy lives. Our volunteers play a huge part in helping us to achieve just that.
We have range a of volunteer roles that involve supporting children, young people and families across our Early Help, Youth Justice and Youth Services.
You may be looking to support one of our Children’s Centre activity groups or maybe a youth group? Maybe you would like to befriend a young person in care or support interventions for young people referred into our Youth Offending Service?
If you have a passion for enhancing the lives of children and young people, we have the role for you.
Please visit our dedicated volunteering page or contact earlyhelpvolunteer@havering.gov.uk.
Family Help
Family Help, often known as early intervention or Early Help, is an approach to providing children, young people and families with support to thrive and reach their full potential.
Family Help supports families at the earliest point when they first have challenges, stopping problems from escalating.
Parents are encouraged to build on their capacity and resources and are empowered to deal with the challenges they face.
Our ambition is for every family to receive the support they need, when they need it.
Our Family Help services work alongside families to identify and assess presenting needs, develop robust action plans and bring together multi-agency services to support better outcomes for families.
Universal Plus Service
Our Universal Plus Service is accessible to all families within Havering, who wish to access light touch, community based intervention, to reduce the risk of emerging concerns escalating.
A light touch assessment is completed alongside families with a multi-agency plan developed to ensure ongoing support is in place to reduce the need for Tier 2 or 3 services.
Universal Plus support will average around 4-6 weeks of light touch intervention.
Referrals can be completed by any of our partner agencies, if they have family consent, or directly from families, through self-referral through the Online Referral Portal.
Families and professionals can also contact our Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) on 01708 433222 to discuss a referral.
Early Help Family Practitioner Service
The Early Help Family Practitioner service always work in collaboration with partner agencies to deliver a wraparound child-focussed, holistic support to enable families to develop their skills and confidence and promote effective parenting and positive family dynamics.
A strengths based Early Help assessment is completed alongside the family, children and partner agencies to develop robust action plans to support improved outcomes.
A dedicated and experienced Family Practitioner will take on the lead role of progressing support for the family.
Early Help Family Practitioner intervention will average 12-16 weeks of intensive intervention.
Referrals can be completed by any of our partner agencies, with family consent, or directly from families, through self-referral via the Online Referral Portal.
Families and professionals can also contact our Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) on 01708 433222 to discuss a referral.
Youth Services
Havering Youth Service provides a wide range of opportunities for young people to grow and develop new and existing skills, make a positive contribution to their community and, where relevant, reduce their involvement in risky, antisocial or criminal activities.
Havering Youth Service delivers an inclusive service that is available to all young people in Havering, as well as providing targeted and preventative work in partnership Children’s Services.
Youth Voice and Participation
Youth Voice and Participation is about ensuring that children and young people are afforded opportunities to be involved in processes for decision making on issues that affect them.
This means:
- taking on board their views and then acting upon them
- recognising that children and young people are the experts of their own lived experience
- children and young people set their own agendas that aren’t necessarily the same as adults
- processes should be put in place in order for them to express their ideas and opinions
- acknowledging that children and young people participate in different ways
- creating a learning environment that meets the needs of all
- not doing 'to' but working 'with'
- recognising that children and young people can be our greatest teacher
- being creative with activities that enables all young people to participate
The service is also inclusive of the Children in Care Youth Club, peer mentoring and the Havering Youth Council who work in partnership with the UK Youth Parliament.
For more details please contact participation@havering.gov.uk or visit Youth Participation Service.
MyPlace
MyPlace serves the community by providing a welcoming space for residents to visit for educational, health, cultural and social activities.
Go to the MyPlace Youth and Community Centre webpage to find out more.