West Sussex County Council has set up a young parents pathway to complement the work of the Family Nurse Partnership. The service is able to support young parents who would not normally qualify for FNP help. This case study is an example of the work that councils are doing to support young parents.
The challenge
West Sussex County Council funds a successful Family Nurse Partnership service, but it can only deal with the most in-need. Over time it became clear there were young parents who needed help, but were not getting it.
Early Help Hub Manager Emma Bruton said: “For many there was a crisis point just before birth – that is when things were starting to unravel. We noticed social care was getting involved or they found themselves sofa-surfing as their housing situation broke down.
“The intensive help provided by the Family Nurse Partnership cannot be provided to everyone so we started to look at what else could be done on top of the standard midwifery and health visitor service.”
The solution
In 2016 the council started funding a scheme for young parents in Adur and Worthing. The young parents’ pathway – as it is known – has been run in partnership with the healthy child programme and midwives.
Family support workers were appointed to work with young pregnant women and their partners. Referrals are made by midwives after booking and support provided either in groups or one-to-one.
There is a universal offer for all with more specialist support available for those who need it. Every client gets advice on issues such as healthy relationships, how to bond with their babies and nutrition. For those who need it, the service can put clients in touch with other services, such as drug and alcohol or housing.
Emma said: “The support lasts throughout pregnancy and, for those that need it, during the first months of their baby’s life. It has been really tailored to the individual – some will only need a little bit of support, but for others it can be every week.
“There is a young parents group and they are also invited to join in the other wider groups that are available to all women. Although we have found the one-to-one support is the best with these clients.”
The impact
The service has now been rolled out to the rest of the county. There are six young parent family support leads who are in charge of each locality. They are supported by other staff, drawn from outreach workers and early years’ practitioners.
Between them they currently provide support to more than 340 families. More than half require extra support beyond the universal offer.
One of those is Monica and Harry. Monica became pregnant at 17. Harry was 18. Monica had little support from her parents, was sleeping on friends’ sofas and not attending health appointments. She had low self-esteem and confidence
Initially she was assessed by social care, but it was decided intervention was not needed. Instead, the couple was referred on to the young parents’ pathway. The family support worker liaised closely with the family, midwife and Family Nurse Partnership throughout the pregnancy and after the birth of the child.
Housing was arranged and Monica and her partner started going to a young parents group at their local children’s centre. The relationship did not last, but both have continued getting support and with the help of Harry’s family the child has been cared for.
Lessons learned
Multi-agency working has been key to the success of the work. Every month meetings are held in each locality where midwives, healthy visitors, family support workers and Family Nurse Partnership team sit down to discuss cases and the support that is needed.
Emma said: “We have four acute trusts across the region so it took a lot of work to get everyone working together in this way, but that has been so important. By bringing everyone round the table to discuss cases we have been able to make sure the right support is being provided.”
How is the approach being sustained?
The service is evolving as it goes, responding to needs that arise. For example, it is currently extending the age range of parents it works with when the individual is a care leaver. In the future it will be accepting referrals for women up to the age of 25 in recognition of the extra challenges this group faces. In the long-term, it plans to evaluate how the service is performing. West Sussex has recently introduced a consistent way of collecting data about the young parents helped by the pathway. In time this will allow clear and accurate reporting of outcomes.
“The goal is obviously to ensure we are not seeing so many young parents reach crisis point and require social care intervention,” said Emma. “The data has just started coming through. When we get more we will be able to look at what is happening and respond accordingly.”
Contact
Emma Bruton
Early Help Hub Manager, West Sussex County Council
[email protected]