Family Group Conferencing in Child Protection Pilot Report: Evaluation Report

Family Group Conferencing originated first in New Zealand, as part of the Children and Young Person Act, 1989. The model legislated for in New Zealand has been adopted in a number of countries including Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, France and here in Ireland. The principles and the processes involved were clearly demarcated in the New Zealand legislation. Few countries have included in their own legislation the detail surrounding conferencing laid down in the New Zealand legislation. The underlying philosophy of partnership, interest in developing "strengths focused" models of work, an increased use of relative placements for children who cannot be looked after by their own birth parents are important context markers in the development of current practice. The benefits of Family Group Conferences have been evaluated internationally and the results have been both positive and encouraging. Family Group Conferencing has a potentially critical contribution to make to the development and delivery of childcare, child protection and child welfare systems. It represents a major new approach for dealing with family crises, as it recognises the crucial significance of the family in relation to securing positive outcomes for children. Family strengths, knowledge and resources are utilised to make decisions, both to protect the child and maximise opportunities for ongoing family commitment and involvement in the life of the child. The benefits of Family Group Conferences have been evaluated in small-scale Irish studies in the ERHA (2000); NWHB (2002) and many of the benefits seen internationally were also found here.