Children & Families Newcastle
What is Children and Families Newcastle?
Children and Families Newcastle brings services together so they can support children and families to get the help that they want and need. Children and families can access different services and activities in buildings they know in their local area. We want to make sure children, young people and families only have to tell their story once, and get the support they need, when they need it.
SEND support within the Community Family Offer:
The Community Family Offer (CFO) provides support to families with children who have SEND.
Whether you’re looking to tackle an ongoing problem or prevent one from happening, Early Help can support your family to stay on track. You don’t need to face challenges on your own. Often an informal chat with a teacher, health professional or support worker can be a useful way to explore what support is available. However, if that’s not right for you, then the Early Help team can help. You can talk through your issue with us to find solutions. We have a range of resources, contacts, and support plans for your family to use.
As part of the Early Help offer, Family Partners and Intensive Family Support teams work with families to identify and support needs through Early Intervention Conversations, and Early Help Assessments and Plans. They act in a bridging role between home and school, sharing information on appropriate supportive services available within the community, or offering support to implement strategies at home, enabling families to manage challenges more confidently. Family Partners and Intensive Family Support workers can chair (or support in) Team Around the Family (TAF) meetings, where the aim is to streamline support – for example, a TAF meeting will include colleagues from various services who work together and with the family to consider the best way to offer support (see link below for further information).
Each school within Newcastle Local Authority has an allocated Family Partner, whose role includes supporting young people and families to navigate and connect with services available to them.
Groups and Activities
The Children and Families Newcastle website provides information on all aspects of the Community Family Offer (CFO). Schools, childcare providers and wider agencies have QR codes which provide instant access to information on the diverse range of services available across the city.
The North East Autism Society runs weekly sessions/workshops in the community family hubs, hosted by the CFO. These are delivered in rotation across family hub sites in our four localities (Nunsmoor, Galafield, Byker Sands and Fawdon). In the sessions, families can discuss concerns, share challenges, and explore common misconceptions and differences in autistic children. There are opportunities to explore practical strategies to use in everyday life and to develop action plans. In addition to the group sessions, individual appointments can be made between 9am and 4pm.
Other elements of the CFO specific to SEND include:
- Rainbow Borrowers (a Toy Library for children with additional needs which runs in East locality)
- Masquer-Aid and Fab Group (peer support groups for neurodivergent young people which run in Inner West and East localities)
- SEND support groups for parents and carers (Outer West and North localities)
Family Hub buildings aim to be fully inclusive spaces through making simple adaptations. Providers who use spaces within our buildings complete an inclusivity questionnaire which allows us to benchmark how accessible each session is, and to identify and overcome potential barriers to accessibility.
For more information about Children & Families Newcastle, please visit: Children and Families Newcastle