Families First for Children Programme
We are currently in the process of agreeing the Partnership Pathway of Support. Please follow the link below to view the document and, if you wish to comment, email [email protected]
Families First Partnership summit sets out plans to strengthen support
Statutory Partners from Telford and Wrekin Safeguarding Partnership, which includes Council, schools, police and the health sector have hit a major milestone with the delivery the Families First Partnership Programme (FFPP).
The programme is a national Department for Education reform initiative aimed at shifting children’s services from reactive intervention toward proactive, relational and family‑led support.
On 15th April 2026, the Partners held a summit focused on how services across the Borough will deliver the programme, building on the strength of existing services and working together to provide earlier, more joined‑up help for families, reduce duplication, and ensure children are supported to remain within their families wherever it is safe to do so.
For families, the changes mean they will be able to access the right help earlier, there will be better information-sharing between services and stronger relationships between practitioners and families.
Partners received government funding of £1.4million, which will be used collectively across the partnership to deliver the programme in Telford and Wrekin.
The funding is being used to implement new measures around family help to provide practical, relational support around parenting, school attendance, emotional wellbeing and family pressures.
It’s also being used to expand Family Group Decision Making, enabling families to lead their own plans with the right support around them and to prepare for new multi-agency protection arrangements, bringing key partners together for improved decision-making.
Councillor Shirley Reynolds, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People, Education, Employment and Skills, said:
“We have a strong track record of delivering outstanding services for children, young people and families across our borough, and we’re incredibly proud of this.
“Through the Families First Partnership Programme, we will implement the government’s social care reforms while building on our firm foundations in early help, safeguarding and partnership working.
“Our early years outcomes clearly demonstrate the value of supporting families as early as possible, and our family help teams and family hubs are already providing preventative, relationship‑based support.
“With £1.4 million from the programme, we are strengthening what works: expanding family group decision‑making, enhancing family help pathways and preparing for new multi‑agency child protection models.
“We’re not starting again - we’re boosting success. Our aim is one seamless, family‑led system of support for children and families across Telford and Wrekin.”
Vanessa Whately, Chief Nursing Officer at NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, said:
“The Families First Partnership Programme represents an important step forward in how we support children and families across Telford and Wrekin. By strengthening early, relationship‑based help and improving the way we work together across agencies, we can make sure families receive the right support at the right time.
“Our focus is on building a seamless, compassionate system that empowers families, reduces duplication for practitioners, and enables children to thrive safely within their homes and communities. We are proud to work alongside our partners to deliver these reforms and ensure families experience care that is joined‑up, respectful and truly centred around what matters most to them.”
Sally Sixsmith, Headteacher at St George’s Primary School, said:
“As educators, our relationships with children and families place us in a strong position to act early. Families First builds on those foundations so support can be coordinated before challenges escalate. When we work together, support becomes clearer for families, with consistent messages. No single agency can meet the full range of a child’s needs, but as a partnership, we can.”
Families First Introduction
The Families First Partnership (FFP) Programme is a UK government guidance aimed at reforming children’s social care by creating a more joined-up, family-focused system of support.
The FFP Programme helps local safeguarding partners (like social care, health, and police) work together to deliver early, targeted support to families through:
Family Help services
Multi-agency child protection
Family Group Decision Making
Its goal is to ensure families get the right help at the right time, keeping children safe and improving long-term outcomes.
National reviews have driven a commitment to reform, with Families First acting as the delivery programme to embed these changes locally. It aims to create a more responsive, relational, and preventative system—one that reflects the values of Telford & Wrekin’s Family First Approach.
The Government has published guidance about how the Families First Programme should be taken forward by Local Authorities including some minimum expectations.
Key Expectations
Required:
Establish multi-disciplinary Family Help teams, merging family support workers and social workers.
Introduce the new multi-agency Family Help Lead Practitioner (FHLP) role and publish a shared practice framework.
Publish a refreshed threshold document.
Recommended:
Introduce a single assessment and workflow.
Co-locate professionals from different services (e.g., health, education, youth services) to provide holistic support.
Extend proportionate access to case management systems for all partners working with families, particularly those who will take the lead practitioner role
Required:
Create the new Lead Child Protection Practitioner (LCPP) role.
MACPT’s include Police, Health, Education professionals.
Provide information, advice and support to parents and carers in child protection.
Recommended:
Use shared decision-making tools and joint supervision to improve consistency.
Co-locate MACPTs where possible to enhance collaboration.
Develop local protocols for escalation and de-escalation between Family Help and MACPT.
Recommended:
Train practitioners in restorative and relational approaches to facilitate FLDM.
Develop local FLDM coordinators or facilitators to ensure consistency and quality.
Use FLDM to support kinship care planning and reduce the need for care proceedings.
Required:
Safeguarding partners to ensure that education and child care settings are relevant agencies by default, ensuring their views are represented at strategic and operational levels in safeguarding arrangements.
N.B Additional expectation from Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill may include: to make provision to use the Single Unique Identifier.
To support the successful delivery of the Families First Partnership (FFP) Programme, we have established a delivery structure:
A dedicated Project Team comprising leads for data, programme management, practice lead, and finance. This team is responsible for overseeing the coordination, monitoring, and operational delivery of the programme.
A Multi-Agency Strategic Board, bringing together leads and key partners from each of the four workstreams.
Workstream groups will focus on the specific strands.
A project plan is monitored by the project group with oversight from the Strategic Board, and governance groups.
A tiered approach to codesign with families including a co-production group, utilising existing groups and voice forums and seeking wider and under represented voice through a range of engagement methods such as surveys and 1-1 conversations.
This structure supports clear accountability, cross-agency collaboration, and a focused approach to delivering meaningful and sustainable change for children and families.
The guidance is clear that 2025-2026 should be focused on transformation and developing local plans. The Department for Education (DfE) have emphasised that there is flexibility in terms of how and when local authorities implement the guidance, and that they are not expecting a one size fits all model to be implemented on a certain date.
Over the next six months the project team will be working closely with professionals, partner agencies and families to codesign our future offer through a range of engagement events with a regular updates to keep everyone informed of progress.
As part of our ongoing work within the Families First Partnership Programme, we are focusing on several key priorities to ensure successful implementation and long-term impact within Telford & Wrekin. We are identifying recruitment needs early, recognising that getting the right staff in place can be a lengthy process. We’re also working to secure strong multi-agency and elected member support by actively engaging with our partners. Dedicated project management is in place to drive progress, and we’re involving the third sector as a vital resource in delivering support. Staff engagement is a priority; we’re committed to open dialogue, reassurance, and clear communication throughout the change process. Through events, workshops, briefings, and co-production, we’re ensuring that staff and partners are informed and involved. Above all, we’re developing a clear, structured plan; while making sure we retain and build on what already works well.
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