Ensure a shared, holistic approach to protecting children & young people through a Care Team approach to planning and decision making

Support continuity & stability for children/young people throughout their involvement with Child Protection

Provide an opportunity for children, young people & their parents/families to actively participate in working to address their best interests

The aim of the Care Teams Innovation in NWMR is to:

What do we mean by a Care Team?

Care teams are the group of people who jointly provide care & support for a child while they are involved with the Child Protection system

Care team members are jointly responsible for determining & ensuring the child’s best interests

Membership may vary depending on the nature of involvement with the family i.e. membership for children & young people in out of home care will be different to membership for children & young people residing at home & involved with family strengthening processes

What will this mean for carers?

We hope it will mean…….

Care Teams become a shared responsibility between all stakeholders & roles can be allocated all team members Not all the responsibility rests with the CP worker Less phone calls & chasing around – everyone is one place at one time making decisions & contributing views Professionals meetings remain professionals meetings – care team meetings are able to be about the child/young person You know that someone has taken responsibility for ensuring that the voice of the child or young person is always in the room Increased collaboration & engagement

The role of care teams in decision making

Care Teams can run more effectively when membership is focused on those with the highest level of responsibility for making decisions about the care of the child or young person.

Sometimes keeping membership small & utilising a consultation system for other relevant participants creates more of a ‘team’ approach to decision making.

Care Team Membership:

The child / young person The child’s case manager - if different to the DHS Child Protection worker. Responsible for establishing the care team

Those undertaking direct care of the child (parents, unless clearly inappropriate, kith or kin, home based carers or key residential workers)

The DHS Child Protection worker & any relevant contracted case manager or team leader. Any other significant adults (e.g. regular respite carer, grandparent, Aboriginal elder) involved in caring for & supporting the child. Any other key professionals directly involved in caring for the child who make a very significant contribution to shaping the whole way that the child is cared for (e.g. family services, childcare/schools, community services, therapeutic care specialist) An advocate nominated by parents or children (if this relationship is constructive & focuses upon the best interests of the child). The role of the advocate is to enable the parent &/or child to participate & have their views represented, particularly if their capacity to do so is impaired.

Care teams are expected to include extended family & community members who have a significant role in the child’s life

When completing the Cultural Support Plan, Child Protection can contact the Aboriginal Child Specialist Advice & Support Service (ACSASS) to identify a child’s relevant community members, which may assist participation in the care team

For Aboriginal children:

The relationship between Care Team & Best Interests Planning

Care team & best interests planning meetings are integrated processes & provide a holistic view of the child

The care team is responsible for developing, implementing & reviewing the child’s safety & well being

Care teams become an integral component of the overall statutory best interests plan

The relationship between Care Team & Looking After Children

Looking After Children (L.A.C.) is a tool for ensuring that the well being & developmental needs of children & young people placed in out of home care are being met

Care teams are required to complete the L.A.C. tool

Looking After Children (LAC) Dimensions

•  Health

•  Emotional & behavioural development education

•  Identity

•  Family & social relationships

•  Social presentation

•  Self care skills

Care Team Roles & Responsibilities

The care teams role is to collaboratively ensure that the child’s safety, stability & developmental needs are met

Team members will jointly determine all things children need to assist them to reach their full potential

Ensure parents & children are provided with resources & supports to act in their best interests

To share information with other team members so as to determine who will do what, how & when….so that the best possible care is provided to the child

Care team members respect the child’s privacy by keeping personal information confidential, only disclosing the child’s personal information if it is in the best interests of the child

Care Team Roles & Responsibilities

The care team is expected to consider the child’s views & involve them in an age appropriate way in the process

All members of the care team must actively participate in a manner that ensures the best interest of the child

Each care team requires a leader. The leader needs to be able to effectively chair meetings, facilitate advice & decision making, & manage up issues (e.g. case planning decisions, resource allocation & service access)

Involving the child or young person

There will be times when the care team will have to make decisions in the child’s best interests that they may not like or the care team may need to discuss how to act in the child’s best interests without the child being present for that particular discussion.

Some matters may be too painful for them to have to have to hear or go through again. Matters may relate to systems problems or resourcing difficulties which the child should not have to worry about.

It is therefore acceptable for the care team to discuss some specific matters without directly involving the child in the process.

However, any direct impacts or consequences that the child may experience as a result of such discussions must be subsequently explained & discussed age appropriately with the child in accordance with their best interests.

Care Teams Respect Culture

Care team members are culturally sensitive: they ensure that the child is positively connected to their culture & community

Where a child is not placed with a carer from their own community or cultural group, the care team will seek advice from members of that child’s community or cultural groups about how to best provide cultural engagement

Cultural Support Plans developed for Aboriginal children as part of their overall Best Interests Plan will become part of the care team agenda

We respect diversity of opinions & resolve disagreements respectfully

We know that all care team members act in the best interests of the child to resolve any disputes in accordance with their respective roles & responsibilities. The care team leader is expected to help the whole care team manage any conflict & collaboratively resolve any disputes as & when they may arise

Where there is a dispute that cannot be resolved despite the best efforts of the care team leader, this dispute will need to be resolved as part of the best interests planning process & the associated statutory decision-making review processes (Best Interests Planning)

Tools To Support Care Teams

Standard agenda for care team meetings DVD illustrating the importance of the care teams approach.

Guidelines booklet for professionals to be use at the first care team meeting & referred to as needed. Summary document for all care team members including children, young people, parents & cares to be used at the first care team meeting to establish a shared understanding of & commitment to the approach & referred to as needed.

How does this fit with our understanding of care teams?

What’s happening in your agency?

What are your experiences?

Do you see any challenges with this model?

What would you do differently?

Challenges identified:

Continuity of case management Changing the approach to decision making

Managing cases that are in the court phase or contested

Moving beyond our past experiences

Identifying what we can change and what we cannot Legislative versus therapeutic frameworks

Constructive consideration of alternative opinions

Keeping track of how things are going

We have asked all of our case planners to report in to us about how many clients have care teams

We will seek feedback from everyone as to whether this approach works better than traditionally used methods

We have a project team committed to integrating this into our practice culture