Helping Hartlepool's most vulnerable children - project running in area with most youngsters in need

A pilot ‘community support team’ went live in December last year based at Community Hub Central, aiming to have a positive impact on child and family poverty in the town.

The pilot was chosen to focus on the Victoria ward, as it had been identified as having the greatest level of need and demand by the Children’s Services Committee.

Analysis highlighted 34% of the children in the care of the council came from Victoria ward, more than double any other ward.

To date the new ‘community support team’ has been involved in numerous projects in the area.

This includes working on the ‘Filling the Holiday Gap’ initiative providing food and toiletries to families in need over the Christmas holidays and seeking donations from companies.

Through working with Hartlepool Food Bank they were able to help create food parcels and provide 34 families and 88 children in the town with food.

The team also received donations from Joseph Rowntree Foundation, who provided toiletries, books, baby items and new baby starter kits.

Following the Christmas break the community support team received an increase in referrals and requests, with social worker caseloads ‘steadily increasing’ with a combination of child in need, child protection and court work.

Council officers added many of these cases were linked to adult issues such as ‘substance misuse, domestic abuse and neglect related issues’ and the team has helped provide support to those suffering with such issues.

The team has also arranged to hold two drop in sessions a week at Lynnfield Primary School, in the centre of the Victoria Ward area, to give parents a chance to speak to someone about any issues or concerns.

Training sessions are also being organised with safeguarding leads within the school in relation to domestic abuse and how to engage parents and children, and talk to them about what may be happening at home.

The work was covered in a report from Sally Robinson, council director of children and joint commissioning services on the council, which said although new teams need time, results are positive so far.

She said: “What we have seen so far is a quicker response for those families who need an assessment and intervention from a partner agency.

“The team are seeing better ‘buy in’ from parents who have engaged well with other members of the team.

“The team will be considering how best to engage the most hard to reach families in the community.

“Materials will be developed to give to families and partner agencies highlighting the support the team can offer.”

She added another aspect of the service that works well is it is based in a community location, rather than a ‘social care’ building, making it more comfortable for parents.