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New data shows excluded families must get personalised support programmes – Families At Risk Review begins

New government data released today reveals the true picture about socially excluded families. It shows 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;

• Living in a workless household
• Living in bad housing
• Parents have no qualifications
• Mother has mental health problems
• Family income is 60% below median

Hilary Armstrong, Cabinet Minister for Social Exclusion, told health and social services workers at a conference in Brighton today, how services need to intervene at a vulnerable family's ‘critical moments’.

A father entering or leaving prison, a parent suffering mental health problems, a teenager suspended from school or a daughter getting pregnant in their teens would all be examples of when a family at risk may need a more holistic family support programme.

‘We are proud of this government's record in helping so many families lift themselves out of poverty, but some families have just not been able to take advantage of recent opportunities to do so.‘

Hilary said.

‘We need to look again at the way services work with them – that looks at the family as a whole; that challenges their behaviour; and intervenes before problems become so entrenched that there is no turning back. We want families in need to get help at those critical moments – it makes sense for them and their communities, it can cost less, reduce crime and improve a child's opportunities.

The review builds on the conclusions from the policy review paper yesterday ‘Building on Progress: Public Services’, Hilary Armstrong added:

‘The Government rejects the idea that personalisation contradicts opportunity for all. The opposite is the case. Excluded families have more need for personalised services as their problems are complex, difficult and entrenched.’

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.

Today sees the launch of a series of regional consultations starting in Brighton, Birmingham and Leeds.

Notes to editors

The review will address a series of key questions:

• How effective are adult services in recognising the parent role of their clients?
• How well do services recognise and respond to the specific needs of fathers?
• How efficiently does information flow from adult services to other professionals working with the family, including teachers and health visitors?

Hilary Armstrong will spend the next couple of months engaging with frontline staff and key stakeholders including local Government, the voluntary sector and charities who work with families facing exclusion.

The Families At Risk Review will be published in the Summer.

1. A publication of this data will be available at Social Exclusion Task Force website
2. The Social Exclusion Action Plan is available for download
3. You can contribute evidence and views to the Families At Risk Review by responding to the call for evidence [External website]
4. Hilary Armstrong will be attending regional conferences/consultation events on Monday 26th March in Leeds and Wednesday 28th March in Birmingham.