Local charities, Daybreak and Home-Start Portsmouth, have recently partnered to enhance their skills in supporting families facing challenges as part of the Portsmouth Family Hub project.

Home-Start Portsmouth, dedicated to supporting families with children under 5, has recently been awarded funding from Portsmouth City Council to lead on delivering Family Hubs in the local area. This will see more services become available to local parents, children and young people.

Collaborating with the charity Daybreak, their teams have recently undergone training in coordinating a solution-based model, Family Group Conferences. Daybreak is a leading charity delivering Family Group Conferences in the South, and already provides this service in partnership with Portsmouth’s Children’s Social Services.

Daybreak facilitates Family Group Conferences for those facing challenging situations. Independent Coordinators help bring together a person's support network, enabling them to work together to come up with safe and practical solutions to help a person or family move forward.

The model of Family Group Conferences originated from the Maori communities in New Zealand. This restorative model is primarily used in the UK for children on the edge of care. Families work together, with information provided by professional services, to devise clear actions for everyone to help improve the safety of children and young people.

Daybreak regularly trains Coordinators working with social services across the country. This partnership with Home-Start Portsmouth was their first time working in this way with a community based organisation. It is a partnership that they hope to replicate as part of their aims to ensure more families can access this method of support.

Head of Family Hub Services, Lorraine Parry of Home-Start Portsmouth, said: “The team really enjoyed the training - the course was very transferable into other areas of our work too. Alison was a really engaging trainer who had an in-depth knowledge of the subject matter. We are delighted to have had the opportunity to develop our skills in working with families in the local area.”

Daybreak training services are available for those aspiring to become self-employed Family Group Conference coordinators, as well as organisations looking to enhance their team’s skill set.

Home-Start Portsmouth offers a range of services for local families across the city, including school readiness support, free Stay & Play groups, nurturing parenting courses and home visiting support.