In this blog, our Chief Executive, Dr Jo Casebourne, unpacks our new research into families’ experiences of being offered a Family Group Conference, and reflects on the significance of the findings for local authorities implementing children’s social care reform.

Strong family networks play a key role in positive outcomes for children and young people. Family Group Conferences (FGCs) harness the strength of family networks, bringing together those closest to a child when there are concerns, or risks of abuse or harm, to make decisions about that child’s future.

Today, we’ve published new research that sheds light on the experiences of families who are offered an FGC, and the factors that affect their decision to accept or reject this offer. It also uncovers whether and how local authorities currently deliver FGC services to families. Read the report here. In addition to our research report, we commissioned Family Rights Group to produce a practice briefing for local authorities and practitioners. You can read this here.

The story so far

In 2023, we published findings from the largest ever randomised controlled trial of Family Group Conferences (FGCs), conducted by Coram. This trial demonstrated that FGCs carried out at pre-proceedings are an effective way to keep children safely with their families and divert them from care. However, despite FGCs being widely used across England, there was no national data or standardised system to track FGC offers, take up, or the long-term outcomes of those who participate in an FGC. There was also limited information about exactly when and how families are offered an FGC, and why some families choose to take up or refuse offers.

To understand the current picture and the views of families, we commissioned Coram, in partnership with Family Rights Group and Dr Lorna Stabler, to conduct new research. This included a national data collection and deep dives in six local authorities, with focus groups and interviews with FGC managers, social workers, other referring professionals, and parents and kinship carers.

Today’s report is timely, coming as local authorities prepare for the new statutory duty in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill for local authorities to offer Family Group Decision Making (FGDM) to all families before care proceedings for a child are initiated. FGDM is an umbrella term for different family-led approaches to decisions about their children; FGCs are the most well-established and best evidenced form of FGDM.

What does our research tell us?

FGCs should be available and easy to access for all families who would benefit. However, despite an estimated 80% of local authorities in England having an FGC service, our research highlights that numbers of referrals across the country were relatively low, and that there are inequalities in the offer and acceptance of FGCs by families. There was also noticeable variation in the numbers of referrals across local areas – ranging from 7 to 1,114.

Our research also shows that children in pre-proceedings accounted for only 10% of referrals, and that these children were less likely to consent to an FGC and less likely to have one take place. This suggests that FGC services may need extra guidance to provide better support for referring professionals to ensure that all children in pre-proceedings can benefit.

To better understand this data, our research took a closer look at the experiences of parents, carers, and practitioners, with a focus on factors that enable families, particularly those from minoritised groups, to participate in an FGC. The importance of local authority culture, relationships, and clear, accessible information were strong themes from this work. At a local level, this means embedding a culture of promoting the value FGCs, with buy in from senior leadership – you can read our ‘FGCs in Practice’ briefing for more on this. The research also demonstrates that families feel more comfortable accepting an offer of an FGC when practitioners take time to build trust and understanding.

Ensuring that participation is voluntary is integral to the FGC process. However, our research found that in practice, referring professionals lack widely shared understanding about how best to obtain informed consent from families.

Our findings also indicate that children from a Black ethnic background could be under-represented in referral numbers. They make up 5% of children referred for an FGC, compared to 10% of all children with a Child in Need status. Discussions during the research suggest that this could be a result of assumptions made about a family before or at the point of referral – whether about the availability of a family’s network, the family’s willingness to participate, or even the feasibility of continuing the process due to communication barriers across cultures. Findings like these are critical, because they provide opportunities for local authorities to review their services and find ways to better promote equitable access.

Our findings also suggest that children with known disabilities could be underrepresented in referrals. While professionals suggested explanations for this, such as challenges securing accessible venues and limited use and awareness of FGCs by disability teams, further exploration is needed to fully understand this issue, and the experiences of disabled children and/or parents/carers.

You can read more about the implications of these findings in our Practice Briefing, which explores these issues and provides guidance for professionals and senior leaders – you can read it here.

Why does this research matter?

The report’s findings are clear: if we want FGCs to reach every family who could benefit, we need to strengthen referrers’ understanding of the model, improve access for minoritised families, and ensure that every parent and carer is supported to give genuinely informed consent.

As the new statutory duty for local authorities to offer family-led decision making comes into force, national guidance has a crucial role to play in addressing gaps and equipping local areas to deliver FGCs confidently and consistently, so more families can access them and make meaningful, informed decisions about their child’s future.

We have a real opportunity now to make a difference to families, and our research offers clear, practical steps to support local authorities as they prepare for implementation. By listening to families, and to the evidence, we can ensure the new duty achieves its full potential for children and families.

To find out more about the research, you can read the full report here. For more information on how these findings can support local practice, visit our practice briefing here.