Policy Hub
On 20 March 2007, the Cabinet Office Social Exclusion Task Force (SETF) announced a review (Families At-Risk Review) into how to reach families at risk. SETF released data which show that over 140,000 families are at risk, suffering 5 or more indicators of social exclusion and need more family-tailored support packages at ‘critical moments’.
Those indicators include;
Research shows that one family could be dealing with many problems at the same time. The parents do not walk into Sure Start or into a JobCentre. Often no-one in a family has worked for a generation; one of the parents may be in the criminal justice system; skills are poor, aspiration low and there could be additional problems of mental health, violent or broken relationships.
The Review will examine how well services aimed at families with complex and entrenched problems are working together on the ground and will challenge adults' services to take a ‘whole families’ approach to delivering support to parents, linking better with child services. It will also explore the role that parents themselves can play in improving prospects for their families, particularly fathers as role models.