Early Help

What is Early Help?

Early Help means providing help for children, young people and families as soon as problems start to emerge or where it is likely that issues will impact negatively on children’s outcomes.

Early Help…

  • is for children of all ages and not just the very young,
  • can be very effective in supporting a child, young person and/or their family to step down from statutory services as well as preventing the escalation of issues.
  • is important because there is clear evidence that it results in better outcomes for children.

Leicester City Council recognises that Early Help is a term that describes much of the everyday work of schools.

Early Help in Leicester

The vision of all partner organisations working with children and families in Leicester is to improve children’s lives by working in partnership to raise aspirations, build achievement and protect the most vulnerable.

This is based on the belief that:

  • Children, young people and families develop resilience if there are protective factors in place such as: a positive relationship with an adult; good literacy and communication skills; good school attendance; and, parents in or actively seeking/ready for work
  • Children’s needs are best met when help is offered in a universal setting within a socially mixed group and early on when problems start to emerge
  • Children and young people’s needs are best met when addressed in the context of the whole family, meaning that parents/carers/siblings’ needs are addressed with consent as part of a holistic and integrated Early Help response

Early Help services should support and strengthen families so that they can thrive.

The Role of Schools

The Role of Schools

Day to Day Support

Most families, most of the time, can get on with their lives quite happily with little or no outside help. If they need help it is usually provided by universal services, such as schools.

Focused Pastoral Support

All families can have times, however, when difficulties arise and they either may not recognise it or may not know how to start putting things right. Schools play a role in supporting families to address these difficulties through more focused pastoral support, which might include bringing in support via an external agency.

Early Help Assessment

For those children and families whose needs and circumstances make them more vulnerable, or where schools need the support of other agencies to meet the needs of the family, a coordinated multi-agency approach is usually best. In Leicester this is achieved through undertaking an Early Help Assessment and assigning a Lead Practitioner to work closely with the family to ensure they receive the support they require. Schools should be a key partner in any multi-agency work to support families

The following four commitments are the core elements to Uplands Infant School’s Early Help Offer.

By implementing these commitments Uplands Infant School aims to ensure:

  • Pupils, parent/carers and staff are clear on the Early Help support available through the school
  • Clarity for partners, supporting improved multi-agency working
  • Delivery approaches of Early Help support for more vulnerable families are up to date with local offers
  • Commitment to the personal development and well-being strand of the Ofsted Framework

Our Early Help Offer

The following lists show what Early Help Support is available at Uplands Infant School:

Attendance
Primary Offer
  • 100% attendance rewards
  • Attendance data is monitored by assigned staff (Headteacher, Assistant Head for Inclusion, Educational Welfare Officer, School Attendance Officer)
  • Attendance Network Meetings with other schools attended by Assistant Head for Inclusion
  • ‘Lates’ letters home treated as a measure of disadvantage
  • Letters home at 95% attendance, followed up by warning letters
  • EWO (Educational Welfare Officer) attends threshold meetings every two weeks
  • Family Support officer who works with families around attendance concerns
  • First day calling
  • Home visits for attendance concerns requiring investigation
  • Monitoring groups in high mobility or absence requests
  • Personal attendance plans e.g. for pupils who are recovering from operations
  • Weekly Class trophy for good attendance
  • School Nurse referrals for medical conditions that affect attendance.
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Overall and individual pupil attendance improves
  • Improvement in PA (Persistent Absence) data
  • Reduction in number of leave of absence requests
  • Reduction in number of penalty notices issues
  • Lateness data shows reduction in number of interventions
  • Whole school targets are met
Transition
Primary Offer
  • Extra visits / induction for vulnerable students to their new school
  • Family Support meetings with Health visitors / school nurse, EYST (Early Years Support Team) for vulnerable pupils in the Early Years Foundation Stage before entry to school
  • Induction Days
  • Pupil Passports passed from school to school
  • SALT (Speech and Language Therapists) reports and targets transferred between schools
  • Assistant Head for Inclusion liaises with SENCOs from other schools to pass on records and information about pupils on the SEN Register
  • Support for online application for parents
  • Transition programme with designated link teachers e.g. for pupils with special educational needs or disability
  • Visits for prospective families
  • Work with key partners
  • Induction with Family Support Worker
Measurable outcomes across key stages
  • Pupils obtain a place at their chosen school
  • Support for families with appeals
  • Family needs are met whilst awaiting placements
Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs
Primary Offer
  • Referrals to Primary Social, Emotional and Mental Health Team (at New Parks House)
  • Referrals to CAMHS (Children, Adolescent Mental Health Service)
  • Referrals to Educational Psychology Service
  • Family Support worker support
  • Laura Centre support
  • Lego therapy
  • Drawing and Talking Therapy
  • Staff trained in Dyslexia and Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Pastoral Support Programme
  • Play Therapy
  • Lunch clubs available
  • Sports coach (inclusive sports)
  • Access to Virtual School Team for Looked after Children
  • Counselling service for school staff
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Pupil learning data shows improvement
  • Reduction in number of safeguarding disclosures
  • Reduction in number of both high and low level behaviour incidents
  • Increase in pupils self-help skills
  • Few if any fixed term exclusions
  • Assessments show that social, emotional, mental health needs are met e.g. through Boxall Profile
Staying Safe
Primary Offer
  • Relevant policies and procedures e.g. Safeguarding, Child Protection, Special Educational Needs, Anti-Bullying,  GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) in place
  • Advice point and Early Help response through Family Support Worker
  • Anti-bullying champion
  • Assemblies on themes around staying safe e.g. ‘Stranger Danger’ ‘Anti-bullying’
  • Care plans for vulnerable pupils and individual healthcare plans for pupils with medical needs regularly monitored and reviewed with Assistant Head for Inclusion
  • ‘EVOLVE system to ensure safety on school trips
  • PEEPs (Personal Evacuation Plans) and Risk assessments for vulnerable pupils
  • DAS (Duty and Advice Service) for safeguarding concerns
  • E-safety policy and procedures and filtering system
  • Home visits for families of children starting nursery
  • Link PCSO (Police Community Support Officer) at Spinney Hill Police Station
  • Parent workshops
  • PEP (Personal Education Plan) and LAC (Looked After Children) review meetings led by designated safeguarding teacher
  • PSHE curriculum (through Jigsaw PSHE scheme)
  • Prevent issues awareness and training for concerns around radicalisation
  • FGM (Female Genital Mutilation), CSE (Child Sexual exploitation), Forced marriages awareness and training
  • School nurse drop-ins and referrals
  • Tracking, recording and analysis of incidents e.g. through CPOMS
  • Whole school safeguarding training
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Greater awareness of bullying within the community and a zero tolerance approach to bullying incidents
  • Increase in turn-over of families accessing Social Services / Family Support Worker
  • Welfare and neglect issues on Social Services caseload is reduced
  • All staff have signed and are adhering to the AUP (Acceptable User Policy)
  • An increasing percentage of parental engagement
  • An up-to-date rolling programme of CPD (Continued Professional Development) in relation to Safeguarding / Training for all staff (2 years – DSP and 3 years – all staff)
Supporting Families
Primary Offer
  • Induction meeting with Family Support Worker
  • Translation for main community languages
  • Curriculum days / evenings
  • School-based full time Family Support Worker
  • Support for form completion including financial support and housing
  • Referral for Food Bank through Family Support Worker
  • Home visits for families with children starting nursery
  • Parents evenings
  • Coffee Mornings (Every Friday mornings)
  • Links with Leicester College – ESOL Classes
  • Family Learning courses for parents
  • Pastoral support from Family Support Worker
  • Breakfast Club and After School Clubs
  • SENCO support for families of children with special educational needs or disability
  • Access to SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice Support Service)
  • Signposting to external agencies and training
  • Family Support Workshops led by Family Support Worker
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Pupil learning data shows improvement
  • Uptake of support services increases
  • Reduction in number of DNAs (Did Not Attend) to appointments
  • An increasing percentage of parental engagement
The Local Community
Primary Offer
  • Community events e.g. school fair
  • Community Links such as Fire, PCSO (Police Community Support Officer), Sports and local schools
  • Highfields Children’s Centre
  • Attenborough Learning Trust Schools
  • Supporting charities
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Families have a better understanding of the wider community
  • Reduction in the percentage of Anti-Social Behaviour incidents
  • Reduction in PCSO call outs
The Curriculum
Primary Offer
  • Access to one-to-one support, paired and group work where needed
  • Themed Assemblies
  • Interventions for vulnerable pupils
  • Citizenship and PSHE delivery
  • Inter-school events
  • Topics and themes driven by pupils’ aspirations, relevance to both own culture and the local area, key questioning and development of language skills
  • Access to local library before and after school
  • After school clubs
Measurable outcomes across key stages:
  • Increase in percentage of children attending a school club
  • Pupil learning data shows improvement

Useful Links

  • Leicester Safeguarding Children Board Website for information on safeguarding children in Leicester
  • SENDIASS Website for advice and support to parents and carers of young people aged 0-25 with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND)
  • Health for Kids Website for school age children and parents, designed by Leicestershire Partnership Trust school nurses
  • Young Minds The voice for young people’s mental health and well-being