Family group meeting service

What is a family group meeting?

A Family Group Meeting (FGM) is where a family come together to make decisions about their child who needs a plan for the future. In order to make the best plan possible the family will discuss what the problem is, what decisions need to be made and what help is available.

When to have a family group meeting

There will be concerns around:

• the child/young person’s behaviour at home or at school or in the community.
• keeping the child/young person safe
• where the child/young person should live
• the child/young person’s welfare.

What happens before the meeting

If you agree that an FGM would be useful the social worker or any other agency you are working with will make a referral to the Barnardo’s’ Family Group Meeting service.

A coordinator from the service will meet members of your family and explain what the Family Group Meeting is all about, why a FGM has been suggested, what is expected from you and what will happen at the meeting.

What happens at the meeting

The FGM takes place in 3 stages:

1. Information giving/sharing - the referrer will give clear information about what their concerns are and what help is available to you. The family can ask questions and discuss the concerns.

2. Private family time - the family will then be left alone in private to agree a plan of action that addresses the concerns raised. The coordinator will be available if needed.

3. Presenting the plan - once the family have agreed their plan, the coordinator will present it to the referrer. The plan should be agreed by the referrer if it keeps the child safe and addresses the concerns raised in the information giving stage.

What happens after the meeting

The coordinator will provide all family members with a copy of the plan within five working days.

The family are responsible for making the plan work and any help that has been agreed by the workers should be provided in the agreed time scales.

You will be offered a review so you can come back and make any changes to the plan if you need to.