What Helps? Mothers' and Children's Experiences of Community‐Based Early Intervention Programmes for Domestic Violence

Abstract

Early help or early intervention is increasingly recommended for safeguarding children living with domestic violence, but little is known about what is effective. This article discusses findings from an evaluation of a pioneering early help service in North West England. This new service aimed to improve the safety and wellbeing of families (mothers and children) who were assessed as below the level of ‘high risk’ domestic violence and below the threshold for a child protection order. Between January 2014 and March 2015, families (473 mothers and 541 children) were identified within multiagency safeguarding hubs and referred to the early help service. The service that emerged was somewhat different to the service expected. This article discusses findings from qualitative data gathered from 39 participants (mothers, children and service providers) involved in the programme. Three main issues emerged as themes from the interviews: the benefits of having any service at all for children living with domestic violence who slip off the agendas of professionals working with child protection and high‐risk domestic violence; the importance of flexibility of key worker‐led service delivery; and the suitability of current group work and therapeutic models for meeting the varied needs of families affected by domestic violence. Key Practitioner Messages Children, mothers and service providers reported both a perceived need for early help and a positive impact from domestic violence early help services on child health and emotional wellbeing. The ability of services to flex their delivery model in response to the needs of families is important for supporting engagement of, and fostering a sense of control for, families receiving support. Confidentiality, reliability, respect and trust are key factors in developing an effective key worker‐family relationship.

Child abuse knowledge and attitudes among dental and oral health therapists in Aotearoa New Zealand: a cross-sectional study

“…This emphasises the need to improve oral health practitioners’ understanding in detecting CAN cases in early stages, provide the necessary support to children and their families, and report to the child protection agencies to provide safer environments to children and adolescents in need. Despite challenges to measuring the impact of early intervention approaches on child protection, McCarry et al [ 38 ] identified a perceived need and positive impact of the early interventions approach by children, mothers, and service providers to effectively safeguard children from family violence. Emphasising the need for evidence-based early intervention approach to prevent further harm to the child is equally crucial to detecting and reporting potentially imminent harm.…”

“…The guideline should provide information on how DTs and OHTs can support the family and the community, not just detecting and reporting the potential CAN cases. Providing necessary support helps as a part of holistic care to the family and the community across the continuum of needs that can protect children and adolescents from further harm from CAN [ 38 ]. The government recently introduced Te Aorerekura (the national strategy to eliminate family violence and sexual violence), which includes a reformation of NZ healthcare to make it more equitable and better suited to meet the needs of all people [ 40 ].…”

What children exposed to domestic violence value when meeting social workers: A practice‐oriented systematic research review

“…Pernebo and Almqvist (2016) noted that young children in group counselling considered social workers trustworthy if they appeared well-intentioned and responsible. Similarly, other studies found that children perceived social workers as trustworthy when they were supportive and helpful (Callaghan et al, 2019;Coburn & Gormally, 2014;McCarry et al, 2021). The level of trust may impact their willingness to disclose sensitive information: "being in a trusting environment enabled participants to express themselves, and to disclose things that they had not previously felt able to discuss" (Callaghan et al, 2019 p. 530).…”

“…Pernebo and Almqvist (2016) emphasized that a sense of security could be further enhanced by a predictable environment, such as meeting in the same room with the same furniture. Furthermore, McCarry et al (2021) found that meeting in a school environment, which was not the children's own school in all cases, was appreciated by some of the children. Therefore, the physical environment where children meet social workers can enhance their sense of security in various ways.…”

Vulnerable Children and Early Intervention – What about Health Visiting?

“…Early help or early intervention can promote resilience and reduce risks and is increasingly being recommended to safeguard children. The next paper in this issue by Melanie McCarry from the University of Strathclyde and colleagues from the University of Central Lancashire (McCarry et al, 2021) reports on an evaluation of early intervention services running in the North West of England for women and children suffering DV. The new early help services were part of the Safer Together consortium that involved eight organisations providing a range of specialist DV services including a refuge, helpline, outreach and a DV advocacy service.…”