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Social Services and Housing
Draft Protocol between Adults' and Children's Services for supporting
disabled adults in their parenting role. To be reviewed Jan 05
Disability
Background;
Recent DoH guidance1 suggests that where a Disabled Parent requires support to meet their
parenting needs, both Adults' and Children's Services may need to be involved in a joint
assessment of the family to determine the level of support that it may be appropriate to provide to
that family. This is consistent with an earlier DoH report2 which also suggested that Disabled
Parents were left bemused and frustrated by the lack of coordination or even mutual
understanding of roles between Adults' and Children's services. The report also condemned
service responses as slow and the quality of information available to parents as poor.
Aims of the Protocol
Recent research would suggest that nationally social workers are often 'confused about how to
respond to disabled parents'3. The aim of this protocol is to remove that confusion and replace it
with clarity so that all parties (parents as well as Adults' and Children's Social Workers) can be
clear about what to expect from whom when a Disabled Parent presents to Social Services to
request support in caring for their children. The protocol also aims to ensure that the needs of
both the parent and the children are assessed and met. This protocol will be re-drafted in early
2005 to ensure it complies with the principles and protocols of the Common Assessment
Framework for Children.
Definitions
A Disabled Parent is an adult who is or appears to be eligible for a Community Care service
under the departments eligibility criteria for adults with social care needs in their own right, who is
also a parent with a child under 18.
Children of Disabled Parents should be regarded as Children in Need where their parents have
requested (or a referral has been received for) an assessment for support in meeting their
parenting needs.
Assessments
Where a request for such an assessment is received the family should be assessed both by
Adults' Services under the NHS and Community Care Act 1990 and Children's Services under
the Children Act 1989 and all associated guidance. This is to ensure the needs of both children
and adults are adequately and appropriately addressed. Both teams should consider whether a
referral to the Young Carers Project is appropriate.
The remainder of this protocol will set out a standard procedure whose aim is to ensure that
these assessments are coordinated, completed in a timely manner, produce coordinated
packages of support, have mutually consistent aims and objectives and thus lead to an improved
experience for parents.
1
DoH (2003) Fair Access to Care Services, London, DoH
Goodinge, S (2000) A Jigsaw of Services: Inspection of services to support disabled adults in their parenting role,
London, DoH
3
Morris, J (2004) They said what? Common myths about disabled parents and community care legislation, York,
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
2
Initial Contact with Family made by an Adults Team
1. The Adult ACM team should complete at least an Initial Assessment (on occasions a
Comprehensive Assessment may be needed) with the family. The Adult assessment will
need to clearly identify the Disabled Parent's personal needs and suggest likely needs in
terms of support in parenting tasks.
2. The Adult ACM worker should then refer the family to the appropriate Children's Locality
Intake Team4 using the Multi-Agency Referral and Initial Information Form.
3. The Intake team will acknowledge receipt of the referral within 48 hours and undertake a
joint assessment visit with the Adult worker within 7 days of the referral. Where possible it
is recommended that the locality Community Resource Officer (CRO) also attends this
assessment. The Intake Worker and the Adult worker (and the CRO) will then agree an
appropriate package to recommend to their respective budget holders.
4. When funding has been agreed and the package set up it should be reviewed jointly after
6 weeks. This review will usually be carried out by a worker from the Family Support
Team and the Adults team worker. Following this review, any changes agreed should be
implemented and a date for a further joint review should be agreed (see below for
guidance on timing).
Initial Contact with Family made by a Children's Team
1. The Children's team should complete an initial assessment of the family. This assessment
should identify the needs that are likely to be met by a joint support package and should
be recorded in the form of a draft Child in Need Plan.
2. The Children's worker will then need to refer the disabled parent to the appropriate Adult
ACM Team using the Interagency Referral/Contact Assessment Form. (Note; the
Children's worker will not need to complete the Eligibility Measure on page 3).
3. The Duty Worker from the Adults Team will acknowledge the referral within 48 hours and
undertake a joint assessment visit with the Children's worker within 2 weeks of the
referral. The Adult Duty worker and the Children's worker will then agree an appropriate
package to recommend to their respective budget holders. The Adult Team's should be
able to put a care package in place within 4 weeks of the referral date.
4. As above
Long term packages
Clearly many of the packages agreed through the above process will be long term. However
changes in parental circumstances and the ongoing development of the children will mean that
packages need regular review. Joint reviews will normally take place every 6 months. Where
specific risk factors have been identified these reviews may occur every 3 months by joint
agreement.
Either team or the parent can also request an unscheduled joint review where needs have
changed or the support package is inappropriate for any other reason.
There maybe occasions when it is appropriate for either team to individually agree an increase to
the support package. This should only occur for small increases in need, or emergency increases
pending a joint review.
4
This may need adjusting in light of the Common Assessment Framework due for implementation in Jan 2005
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Neither team cam withdraw services without a joint review. Reviews should therefore be
scheduled to happen before funding expires. Where this does not happen both teams must agree
to extend funding until a joint review can be scheduled.
Funding
Delays in obtaining funding decisions must not be allowed to delay the implementation or
continuation of any agreed support package. Where appropriate for new referrals, either team
can put in place provisional services to either child or parent in order to effectively manage risk.
However the following guidelines should help ensure there is clarity for budget holders from both
services;
1) Services to meet the personal care needs of the parent should be funded by the Adults Team
and appear on the parent's Care Plan. The existence if not the detail of these services should
be noted on the Child in Need Plan
a) For example help to dress, help to get out of bed, help to eat (but not help to cook)
2) Services to meet the individual needs of the children should be funded by the Family Support
Team and appear on the Child in Need Plan. The existence if not the detail of these services
should be noted on the parent's Care Plan
a) For example help to change a nappy, help to feed/eat, help to get to school
3) Services that meet the needs of both parents and children should be funded on a 50:50 basis
by both teams. Such services should be recorded on both the parent's Care Plan and
Children in Need Plan with the joint funding identified.
a) For example help to do shopping, help to do house work, help to cook meals.
Both services will have to ensure the appropriate long term budget commitment is agreed. This
may need Fieldwork Manager approval for Family Support Teams.
Direct Payments
Any service provided under this protocol can be provided to the parent in the form of a Direct
Payment where the parent is 'willing and able' to manage a Direct Payment with an appropriate
level of support. The parent MUST be offered a Direct Payment by the Adult ACM team and good
practice would suggest that Children's teams should also always be offering Direct Payments.
Penderells, the contracted Direct Payments Support Agency are able to offer support to Service
Users, whatever the source of the Direct Payment. Advice is also available to workers from Jill
Ayres, Independent Living Advisor in Social Services.
Workers should refer to the Direct Payments Policy for further details.
Information to Parents and Children
A copy of this protocol should be given to any parent or older child taking part in such a joint
process. This will allow them to clearly understand agreed roles for workers for both teams. A
version appropriate to younger children will be developed by Feb 05.
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