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STAGED ASSESSMENT & INTERVENTION
Guidance Notes on the Chid/Young Person’s Action Plan

Introduction

This planning template replaces previous Staged Assessment & Intervention (SAI) planning templatesand EYCAT paperwork. It uses language and terminology which is consistent with other existing processes (most notably the Assessment & Planning formats used in Children’s Services and school reports template for Children’s Hearing’s, Case Conferences and LAC reviews) and incorporates the 8 wellbeing indicators central to looking at the whole child.

This format should be seen as part of a continuum in addressing need and may well be the basis further intervention. For example, if a child/young person becomes involved in a statutory process.

It is recommended that the template is completed electronically.

Children, young people and parents/carers have been consulted on the layout, language and purpose of this plan and their views and feedback have informed the final template

Explaining/Discussing the template with children, young people, parents and carers

In consulting with service users on this template it became clear that, while professionals may give some explanation of action plans, we do not always explain how we developed the template and why we use it. In discussing this with a group of parents during the consultation process they expressed appreciation of the context in which the plan was developed -when the link between the SHANARRI wellbeing indicators and the UN Convention on the Rights of The Child was made clear. It is important that our service users know, not only why we use certain approaches, but that these approaches are thought-through and based in research. It has also been suggested that a sample script may a useful tool for professionals. (See below)

“We use this action plan to try and look at both the needs and the strengths you bring to the discussion and at what role workers can play. The first section records the basic, factual details. Everyone who has been invited will say who they are and what they do. Then when we are reviewing things we look at what the concerns are, what we’ve done so far and what’s happened as a result. The next section gives us a chance to talk about any new or important information that we need to include. The key part of the plan is what we do next and we do this by working through what we call wellbeing indicators. These are based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which are world-wide and apply to all children. They give us a chance to look at the whole child to make sure we’re meeting all the needs. It doesn’t mean that there will be needs or concerns in every area and sometimes we might find strengths or positives in one area that we can use to meet a need in another. We identify actions that will help, say who will do them (and this may well include you)and whenthey should be started or completed.

At the end of the meeting we will say who will be the named person and who will be the lead professional – this is the person who has the overall responsibility for making sure the plan works (although everyone has apart to play)and will be the one person who everyone (including you) can to talk to. We then make sure we have agreed another time and place to review how things are going.

Child’s/Young Person’s Details

Include name (and other names the child may be known under), date of birth and age the school the child/young person is enrolled at and year group.

Select the appropriate stage number

This template can be used to record Stage 1, 2 or 3 meetings. If a child/young person is deemed to be at Stage 3 it is likely that established planning processes (and templates) will already exist (e.g. LAAC processes, Coordinated Support Plans etc), however, on the rare occasions when a child reaches Stage 3 and is not already involved elsewhere, this template can be used.

First Meeting/Review

Indicate if this is the first SAI meeting or a review of a previous meeting/plan. If it is a review the previous content should be included/amended appropriateand any additional information or events should be included.

Attending /Unable to attend and Job Title/role

Record the name and job title of those present and those who were invited but submitted apologies. Include any family members

Review

Unless this is the initial Stage 1 discussion, there should be previous actions/interventions to review and build on. The review should include an assessment of what the concerns are, what was done, what has worked (even if only partially) and what hasn’t.It is important to recognise strengths/positives as well as areas of concern, as these can be used to meet need and also give a more balanced view of the child.

This section provides the baseline of the child/young person’s issues, from which we can measure the impact of intervention and progress made – and it is important to record in subsequent reviews any change.

If this is an initial Stage 2 meeting it is important to evidence what has already been tried at Stage 1 and to what extent the child/young person’s needs were met.

Ensure that the views of the child/young person and parent/guardian/carer are included or represented.

Updates

Record any new or additional information relevant to the discussion and that may be included in the next section (SHANARRI)

Ensure that the views of the child/young person and parent/guardian/carer are included or represented.

SHANARRI Wellbeing Indicators

The analysis of information is based on the eight indicators of wellbeing, which have been identified by the Scottish Government GIRFEC Team. The Wellbeing Indicators are based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and are a tool to help us to look consistentlyat all aspects of children and young peoples’ needs and to consider relevant information in a systematic way. Professionals may havedifferent information and/or a different perspective and emphasis, helping to create a fuller picture of what is going on for the child/young person. Issues will overlap and where an issue is relevant to more than one indicator, the participants at the meeting should assess which is the most suitable indicator to record it under to avoid needlessduplication. For example issues of concern regarding a young person’s alcohol use could be recorded under both ‘Safe’ and ‘Healthy’ – the important thing is that it is recorded.

Through sharing information and discussion, the key areas requiring attention should be identified andinform the rest of the Child/Young Person’s plan.

To complement the SHANARRI indicators, the ‘My World Triangle’, which considers the child’s/young person’s needs and risks, as well as identifying strengths and positivescan support assessment.

The Analysis Guidance Statements below should be used to assess the impact on the child in each required area, bearing in mind the views of the child/young person (if they are able to share them) and their parents/carers, and their capacity for change. Give reasons for your answers e.g. why/why not safe, and what would help achieve any change needed. All eight indicators should be explored to ensure that a full assessment has been carried out. Areas where there are no concerns may actually be identified as having strengths or positives that could help meet need in other Indicator areas, for example, under ‘Active’ the young person may attend a sports club after school where they experience particular success. The assessment should consider how this learning can be used in other areas.

It is important that the analysis concentrates on where the need is rather than trying to identify issues under every Indicator template – i.e. the plan should be proportionate.

Indicator / Analysis Guidance
Safe /
  • Protected from abuse, neglect or harm at home, at school and in the community

Healthy /
  • Having the highest attainable standards of physical and mental health
  • Access to suitable healthcare
  • Support in learning to make healthy and safe choices

Achieving /
  • Being supported & guided in their learning & in the development of their skills; confidence & self esteem at home, at school & in the community.

Nurtured /
  • Having a nurturing place to live in a family setting with additional help if needed
  • Where this is not possible, in a suitable care setting

Active /
  • Having opportunities to take part in activities such as play, recreation & sport, which contribute to healthy growth & development

Respected /
  • To be heard and involved in decisions that affect them
  • Have confidence and self-esteem
  • Have appropriate guidance and supervision

Responsible /
  • Play active and responsible roles in their schools and communities

Included /
  • Having help to overcome social, educational, physical & economic inequalities
  • Be accepted as part of the community in which they live & learn.
  • Have help to overcome inequalities

Referring to the 8 Wellbeing Indicators, those involved need to ask these 5 questions:

  • What is getting in the way of this child or young person’s wellbeing?
  • Do I have all the information I need to help this child or young person?
  • What can I do now to help this child or young person?
  • What can my agency do to help this child or young person?
  • What additional help-if any- may be needed from others?

Outcomes

This section is about what change we are looking for and what will result from this change. The desired outcomesneed to be explicitly identified,and these will subsequently inform what action is required to achieve the outcome, rather than identifying actions and then trying to establish what they might achieve – action follows outcome!

Actions –the ‘So What’ Principle

When identifying actions it is often helpful to ask ourselves what difference they will make it helping us achieve the outcomes. Using the ‘so what’ question can help us avoid ambiguity when stating what we will do. For example:

‘Worker X agrees to meet child Y once a week to explore anger issues’.

In applying the ‘so what’ question to this action we would hopefully be able to identify what this work will achieve through this exploration.

Actions need to be clear, detailed and specific and understood by all. The child/young person and parent should be asked:

‘is this clear, do you understand what we’re asking or saying we’re going to do and why’ at each stage, to ensure ownership, for example, when we say the young person will be offered ‘counselling’ are we convinced they are clear about what it means and what it involves?

Who and When

Identifying who will undertake each of the identified Actions will help clarify the roles of each of the partners and demonstrate the complementary nature of working in partnership. Children/young people and their parents/carers should be included in undertaking actionsif appropriate if they are to be genuine partners in the process rather than just recipients of support.

Clear timescales should be set. In doing so it should be acknowledged that some actions may be long term and therefore not achieved by the time of the next agreed review. There should, however, be some agreement over what progress is anticipated, and this can be evaluated at the next review.

Has it Worked?

This section would be used in reviews rather than at an initial meeting. It provides an opportunity to identify progress(even if only partial) and also an opportunity to explore why something may not have worked and therefore what we might need to change when identifying further action. For example, a young person may have only attended 4 out of 6 agreed sessions with a worker but had made good progress during those 4 sessions. Looking at why he/she had missed 2 of the sessions may act as a useful prompt for what other action needs to take place

Named Person/ Lead Professional

If this template is being used for a Stage 1 meeting the Named Person (from either health or education) should be identified. For Stage 2 or 3 meetings, the Lead Professional should be identified (see relevant guidance on the Role of the Lead Professional), as well as the Named Person.

This person’s contact details should be included so everyone knows how to get in touch with them. Individuals should consider what this should include (e.g. some agencies may not give work mobile numbers directly to clients).

Date, Time & Place of Reviews

Record when and where the next review will take place. Ensure that parents/carers and child/young/person’s needs are considered when agreeing this.

Who else receives a copy - Distribution of the Plan

In addition to those present and those who gave apologies, other individuals/ services identified through the process may also receive a copy of the plan (for example, if a decision is made to make a referral to a particular service, it would receive a copy of the minutes

The Chair will indicate a timescale for distribution of the plan.

Additional Information

Where there has been discussion that isn’t appropriate to include within the plan but is still felt to be important enough to be recorded, the Chair should ensure that this is done separately and attached to the action plan for those requiring it. For example there may be discussions about a service not attending the meeting and the Chair may agree to write to this service. Consideration should be given to how (and if) these discussions are conducted in front of children/young people and parents.

Getting It Right For Every Child in East Lothian– Staged Assessment & Intervention Process: June 2013

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