The Early Learning Partnerships Project, funded by Government from 2006-2008, has targeted particularly vulnerable groups, including parents who might have found engagement with their child difficult and where the child (aged one to three) was at risk of learning delay. It has aimed to build on the knowledge emerging from earlier evaluations of interventions with families at risk.

It describes how the aims of the funded organisations were achieved and describes the benefits the projects brought to families and professionals. The report includes a full listing of all projects, their methods and resources produced.

Voluntary and community service providers face particular challenges working with 'hard to reach' families. What strategies work for these families and why? What training and support do practitioners need to deliver more effective services? How can parents be more involved, and how can organisations delivering services work more effectively with each other?
This thoughtful report is based on interviews with frontline and strategic managers in ten highly reputed voluntary and community sector organisations. It is essential reading for managers, practitioners and all those who work with families who can be defined as hard to reach.

Public service reform has been a significant issue for successive governments that have explored engagement with markets and differing degrees of centralisation and new localism. Yet for all the changing directions, a common theme throughout public service enhancement is a tightening of the contract with those who deliver public services on our behalf.

How is this affecting children's and family services? Is what has come to be known as the 'contractual culture' in public services meeting children's and families' needs satisfactorily?

This discussion report is intended to stimulate debate on the relationship between government, professionals and consumers of family services. It is critical reading for all those engaged in shaping the direction of this important and often contentious area of social policy.

Laws touching on families are numerous and can be confusing. This ever-popular guide, now published in its third edition, continues to offer welcome clarification for all those with or working with children and families. It updates the law on key questions, including employment of children and local authority duties, and looks at the new childcare Acts too as well as emerging areas like chat rooms and computer games.

The text of Is it Legal? can be downloaded in : Arabic ; Bengali ; French ; Polish ; Urdu 

This useful guide covers:

• Planning your visit, including the first meeting, scope, recap agreements, using contracts, rewards and sanctions
• when things go wrong and issues beyond control
• what to do when you get stuck and sources of further help.

To complement How to Help Families in Trouble there is a set of free downloadable factsheets covering :
Assessment and tools to use: family trees and ecomaps 
Playpacks and activities to use with families 
Using contracts in family work 
Helping parents help their children to behave well: behaviours, star charts, rewards and discipline 
The art of making good referrals .

Working well with families can be immensely rewarding and this book is designed to make that possible for all practitioners.

Other findings from the study include:

Families in rural areas have very different needs from those in more urban areas. For instance a quarter of parents who live in the countryside say that better public transport is the one thing that would improve their neighbourhood the most for families, and a further 17 per cent chose reducing traffic as their number one priority. In urban areas parents are much less concerned about traffic and more worried about reducing crime and anti-social behaviour (50 per cent in the inner cities).

More organised activities for children and young people was consistently seen as a priority by parents from all walks of life (23 per cent overall). Some respondents commented on how teenagers effectively took over the streets at night

Parents who live in London are more likely to be active in their community than parents in other parts of the country –€“ 44 per cent in London compared to 34 per cent overall. Those least likely to be involved in their community live in the north east (26 per cent) and the west midlands (28 per cent)

But parents who live in London are also the least likely to be confident in the quality of their local state school (52 per cent). Those in Yorkshire and The Humber and the North East jointly had the most confidence in their local state school (73 per cent). Overall, 66 per cent of parents are confident in the quality of their local state school and 71 per cent would be happy to send their children there.

The average time for a family to have lived in their neighbourhood is just over seven and a half years. Only five per cent of parents in England had lived in the same neighbourhood all their lives

However, more than half of all families (56%) had at least one set of grandparents living within a 15 to 20 minute journey from them . This was highest in the north east (69 per cent) and lowest in London (40 per cent). This might explain the fact that parents in the north east rely less on their neighbours to water their plants when they are away (47 per cent) than families in London (59 per cent).

It is designed to offer clear guidance based on research into what works when listening to parents, with some practical ideas about how to listen to parents effectively.

By 2010, all schools are expected to become community hubs for a range of health, education, employment and leisure services aimed at children, families and communities. Extended schools will need to provide a variety of services: wraparound childcare from 8am to 6pm, access, or 'fast track' referral pathways to specialised health and social services, after-school clubs and study support, adult education and family learning sessions, parenting programmes and other family support, and access for the community to information and communication technology (ICT), sports and art facilities.
This paper highlights key findings from a new Family and Parenting Institute study into how extended schools provide family support. The family support services examined included parenting courses; support groups and drop-ins; home visits; adult education and employment training; family learning and any other services that 'provide a resource to families and seek to promote their wellbeing through improved intra-familial relationships and improved standards of living'. A free summary of this report is available to download

Sure Start Children's Centres are intended to transform children's services throughout the UK, with one in reach of every family by 2010 offering early education, childcare, health and family support services. This groundbreaking study explores the planning and delivery of family support in Children's Centres, including parenting courses, outreach and home visits, support groups, family learning, adult education and employment support.

The study offers in-depth analysis of family support services delivered through Children's Centres and includes 18 case studies. Key points for future development are set out, with a focus on drawing out useful lessons and promising practice. Family Support in Sure Start Children's Centres is essential reading to anyone planning or delivering family support services and working with Children's Centres.

Recent evaluations of two UK early intervention programmes, Sure Start and Home-Start, have been the subject of considerable attention. The programmes have aimed to boost children's life chances by tackling social exclusion and child poverty. This review aims to examine the recent reports, and that of a third programme, the Primary Age Learning Study, and to make an objective as possible an assessment of the significance of their findings.
Evaluating Evaluations is the review written for the seminar: Commission in Haste, Repent at Leisure? Evaluations of Family Preventative Services and the Implications for the Development of Policy. It includes discussion of the methodology of evaluations and the nature of the findings, their validity and implications for the purposes of policy influence. It offers a highly informative analysis of family service assessment, and will be of great interest to policy makers, academics and professionals for whom evaluation is a critical factor in developing a new and often contentious service field.

The Family and Parenting Institute has published a new book which takes a unique look at sibling relationships. Children talking about brothers and sisters presents the views of children aged 7 to thirteen about the relationships they have with their brothers and sisters and offers a variety of humorous, thought provoking and occasionally moving views.

Relationships between young brothers and sisters are at the heart of families with children. Sibling dynamics are the subject of a number of studies by experts and professionals. To date however little has been available presenting childrens' perspectives directly.

Children Talking about Brothers and Sisters is a short book which presents the views of children themselves. In it children discuss their feelings about a range of subjects, including what it's like being the eldest, youngest or in the middle; having a sibling at home or at school; living in a different home to brothers and sisters; the arrival of a new baby; conflict; and more.

Professionals working with families who are experiencing difficulties will find this book gives them an insight into sibling relationships from the children's point of view. It can also be used with parents and children directly, to assist them in thinking through family issues. The book is in a bright, accessible format including illuminating quotes from children aged 7-12 and colourful pictures drawn by children expressing their feelings about their siblings.

Does Attachment Theory really say that babies will be psychologically damaged if they do not have 24/7 attention from their mothers? Or that the first few years of life are critical for later wellbeing? Bowlby's theories about the importance of early attachments and their influence on development remain highly controversial. But what real contribution has Attachment Theory made to our understanding of parent-child relationships and to practical parenting applications? Are its critics justified in regarding it as sexist and reactionary?

This major new study examines in detail the origins and development of Attachment theory and its meaning for current parenting practice. It asks, what messages have really emerged for parenting? How are they supported by research? And how can they inform policy and practice?

The author, Dr Helen Barrett, is Chair of the International Attachment Network (www.attachmentnetwork.org) and Senior Research Fellow at the National Family and Parenting Institute.

Contents Summary
Part 1 –€“ Looks comprehensively at the development of the Bowlby-Ainsworth theory and methods and their development;

Part 2 –€“ Reviews in detail findings from Attachment research, including the quality of parental care, and controversial issues such as the importance of physical contact, long-term effects of abuse and stress, and effects of early experiences on brain development;

Part 3 –€“ Evaluates the practical and conceptual status of Attachment Theory, including its implications for therapy and work with parents in the UK.

Parenting theory and practice has never been more under the media spotlight than now. It is also at the forefront of key government policies. Attachment and the Perils of Parenting addresses one of the cornerstones of parenting understanding at a pivotal moment. It is essential reading for anyone involved in child and family support and policy.

Parents' involvement in their children's learning and schools is a timely survey of the current evidence around issues of parental involvement, offering a comprehensive overview of models and initiatives designed to engage parents in their children's education.
A large body of evidence demonstrates a strong and positive link between parents' involvement and interest in a child's learning and a child's subsequent adjustment and achievement. Faced with the evidence of such a link policy makers and practitioners have seized on the potential of parental involvement to improve achievement and raise standards in schools. This paper provides an overview of major policy and practice developments in parental involvement over recent decades, assesses the impact of such initiatives and discusses the contribution of the evidence to the debate on the boundaries between the respective rights and responsibilities of the state and parents towards children's learning.

Contents

1.Policy and Practice in the area of parental involvement
2.The impact of parental involvement
3.Issues around initiatives to facilitate involvement
4.Concluding remarks
5.Recommendations
6.References

This briefing is a review of events following the publication of Every Child Matters. It provides a comprehensive overview of the major changes that have occurred within the different strands that are integral to children's services and family support. It is intended as a summary of the Government's policy on children and families and covers the period from the publication of Every Child Matters in September 2003.

Contents

1. Every Child Matters: the Green Paper
2. Children Act 2004
3. Child Protection
4. Family and Parenting Support
5. Extended Schools and Sure Start Children's Centres
6. Funding
7. Conclusion

This discussion paper considers how children's upbringing is financed
in Britain today, and suggests a framework of principles for sharing responsibilities between parents and the state. It discusses how the state transfers money to parents in all income groups, but is particularly concerned with the right of children to at least a basic standard of material wellbeing. A concern to avert child poverty is rooted both in the right of children to enjoy living standards considered adequate in the societies in which they live and in evidence of the damage that growing up poor does to their present and future wellbeing. Thus, adequate financial resources contribute substantially to the overall wellbeing of children, even though they do not determine it. Financial resources are therefore central to the concerns of the Commission on Families and the Wellbeing of Children, which commissioned this report.

Although outcomes for most children are good, the psychosocial problems for children in the UK remain worryingly high, with particular concerns existing over child poverty, disparities in health and education outcomes and young people's mental health. This report from The Commission on Families and the Wellbeing of Children addresses these critical issues in the context of the relationship between the state and the family. It considers ways in which the state should support families in their caring responsibilities and the difficult balance to be struck between the caring and control functions of the state in family governance.

The Commission has taken a step back from the emotionally charged debate around families to assess the evidence. Building on the strong commitments to relationships that exist in today's families, it makes recommendations in relation to the delivery of a measured, proportionate and caring response from government that is mindful of the needs and interests of children, parents and the wider community.

The report is critical reading for all those engaged in the development of public policies that affect children and their families.

Chaired by Professor Sir Michael Rutter, the eminent child psychiatrist, the Commission members are leading figures in social care, family and child policy, law, criminology, cultural studies and spiritual welfare. Its secretary is Clem Henricson, Director of Research and Policy at the National Family and Parenting Institute. The Commission was established by the Institute and NCH, with funding from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Contents
Part One: Expectations and responsibility for children's upbringing: Evidence of the impact of upbringing on children's outcomes; Standards of care; The government's expectations; Physical safety; Management of children's behaviour; Clarifying policy; Part Two: Family support:Family services; The material environment and growing up; Reviewing family support in the context of international governance.

This report brings together parents' thoughts and feelings about being a parent today, and the expectations they have of themselves as parents and individuals. It gives an insight into how parents cope with the variety of demands made on them, and how they deal with the many time pressures on a day-to-day level. Finally, it makes some suggestions on how things could be improved to lift the weight off parents' shoulders.

A clearly presented set of practical materials to help practitioners working with Britain's marginalised and/or racialised families in need. Its principle aim is to provide a range of practical tools for practitioners to enhance their work in supporting black, minority ethnic and faith families. Underpinned by a theoretical framework based on the cultural competence model for care, the Toolkit outlines a holistic approach which addresses key considerations for improving service planning as well as the intervention process.
It covers developments in social work theories, in particular the culturally competent family support model; and explores the meanings of culture, family, discrimination and working in partnership.

It includes in-depth factsheets on the major religions and guidelines on communication, working with clients, and discrimination. As such it will be an invaluable practical guide for all those working with relevant families.

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Culture
3. Discrimination
4. Family
5. Communication
6. References

Religion Factsheets

• Buddhism
• Christianity
• Hinduism
• Islam
• Judaism
• Rastafarianism
• Sikhism

Despite progress in improving children's life chances, large numbers of children and young people are still missing out on opportunities. The dilemma is that as chances are improving for the majority, the gap may be increasing between them and those who are left behind.
This briefing paper brings together what we know about young people's aspirations: how they are formed and the important links with parental involvement. It also considers the barriers to realising aspirations, as well as the facilitating factors. It summarises the literature on the translation of aspirations into realistic goals and the extent to which aspirations transcend parental expectations.
Contents

Introduction

• What are aspirations?
• Why are aspirations important?
• The role of parental involvement
• What do we know about the barriers to realising aspirations?
• What factors facilitate the holding of aspirations?
• What factors are likely to affect the translation of aspirations into realistic goals?