During my time as a Registered Childminder, I informally supported 2 families who were experiencing domestic abuse and my degree in Early Years which was funded by Central Bedfordshire Council, taught me the impact that domestic abuse has on children and young people. This inspired me to step into a family support worker role in a Children’s Centre.
The Children’s Centre role gave me the opportunity to access Central Bedfordshire Council’s training in safeguarding, and to develop my knowledge and skills around working with families affected by domestic abuse as well as many other adverse experiences that can impact on a child’s ability to achieve their full potential. My progression from that point led me to a wider safeguarding role within the Local Authority.
I truly feel as if I have been home grown by Central Bedfordshire Council. I simply wouldn’t be where I am without their support and encouragement. It started 29 years ago as I benefitted from training from CBC as a childminder, through an Early Years Degree and Early Years Professional Status, and a whole range of other professional development, all whilst I was initially self-employed, and subsequently working in a CBC funded Children’s Centre.
I originally qualified at college as a secretary, and worked in Local Government, estate agency and then in pharmaceuticals. I started childminding when my first child was born and was registered for 17 years. It was whilst I was childminder that CBC funded me to complete an Open University Early Years Degree, Early Years Professional Status and a Level 5 Management Qualification. I then went to work in a Children’s Centre as an Outreach Worker funded by CBC as part of a school, and subsequently became the Children’s Centre Manager. The Children’s Centre was brought in-house by CBC, and then the opportunity arose for a secondment to manage the Early Help Team in the Dunstable Locality. This role then became permanent 3 years ago.
I initially started my journey by completing a CACHE Level 3 in Childminding Practice. I then completed a Foundation Degree, followed by a BA Degree in Early Years, Early Years Professional Status, and my Management Qualification, all funded by CBC. Professional training along the way has been extensive and varied, with the majority also funded by CBC. This training has included Early Help Endorsed Pathway, motivational interviewing, systemic practice, reflection skills, safeguarding, County Lines, Gangs & Young People, working with perpetrators of domestic abuse, protective behaviours, a variety of parenting programmes, Family Partnership Model, Engaging with Fathers, Parents As First Teachers. Domestic abuse training has included The Freedom Programme, The Freedom Programme for Primary Children, You & Me, Mum, Recovery Toolkit for Children & Young People, Surviving Economic Abuse, Working with male victims of domestic abuse, The Toxic Trio, Working with Perpetrators, Adult Sexual Abuse, Modern Day Slavery, Honor Based Violence, Female Genital Mutilation, Post Separation and Stalking, Awareness of Forced Marriages, Child Sexual Exploitation, MARAC. This list is not exhaustive.
I spend a lot of time providing supervision for my staff, both case and personal. This is to ensure the quality of outcomes being delivered for families, as well as to support growth and development of my staff which is really important to me. I am fortunate to have the encouragement and support of my Practice Manager and Head of Service when it comes to my own development.
An important part of my week is attending my Building Resilience in Families (BRIF) panel. Providing support to children, young people and families at the earliest point of need is a real passion for me, and I am always looking for ways to drive our Building Resilience in Families panel forwards. The multi-agency panel’s aims are to utilize resources and support the community to build resilience to manage community issues and emerging family needs. I have recently worked alongside my Head of Service on a project to develop and ensure consistency of offer for our Building Resilience in Families panels across the Local Authority.
I enjoy projects, and am the Early Help Lead for the Pre-School Emotional Wellbeing Project, and I have been responsible for working with an Intake & Assessment Team Manager to develop clear pathways for transfers between Early Help and Assessment Teams. I am currently working alongside a Practice Manager to improve the Local Authorities procedures for working with families who have No Recourse to Public Funds.
I lead and manage the Emotional Health and Wellbeing Practitioners within the Early Help Service, which involves having oversight of their workplan, including short, medium and long-term plans for their offer.
Over the last year I have been part of a working group that wrote CBC’s own Domestic Abuse Programme called Rebuild, which is currently being piloted. My focus now is to write CBC’s own Domestic Abuse programme for children and young people. CBC’s organisational strategy is based on demand management through early intervention. There’s a national spotlight on Early Help at the moment following the Josh MacAlister Independent Review of Children’s Social Care. I’m looking forward to the challenges and opportunities that this may present.
More immediately, my aspiration is to lead the development and implementation of CBC’s own domestic abuse programme for children and young people. The most challenging part of my role is stimulating and developing my team to get the very best performance from them, whilst valuing their individual strengths, and ensuring that they maintain their personal wellbeing.
The most rewarding part about my role is hearing about the outcomes my team are delivering to families in our locality. This feedback, when heard directly from children, young people and families is a huge motivation for me.
Never be afraid to ask for help.
Be kind to yourself.
Learn to be comfortable in safe uncertainty.
I am very proud to be part of an Early Help Service that has been nationally recognised at the Children & Young People 2022 Awards being highly commended in the Safeguarding Award, and our Young Carers Early Help Workers won the Children’s Champion award.
