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Welcome to September's issue of the Family and Parenting Institute's newsletter – Family Focus. To subscribe to this newsletter click here

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1. News
2. Family Policy Digest
3. Horizon scan
4. Forward look
5. Notice board
6. Consultations

News

Gangs

The Home Office has brought out a new advice leaflet for parents who are concerned their child may be involved in a gang or are worried that they might be drawn into a gang in the future. The booklet was developed with the help of the Association of Chief Police Officers, local authorities, the Family and Parenting Institute and community groups including Mothers Against Violence.
More

Disabled families feel the crunch

Families with disabled children are feeling the pinch of the current economic climate more so than most. That's according to Contact a Family's new 'Counting the Costs' survey which revealed that some families' financial situation is so dire that they have to go without food or heating.
More

Carers need better benefits

The Work and Pensions Select Committee has called for a replacement of the current 'outdated' system of benefits for carers in its new report 'Valuing and Supporting Carers'. Those who provide unpaid care for relatives and friends save the public purse an estimated £87 billion each year.
More

Parents back to work

Low income families will receive a helping hand with childcare costs. The Government has pledged £75 million as part of its Free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work programme.

Families, where one parent works and the other wants to learn new skills to help them get a job will have childcare costs of up to £175 per week per child (or up to £205 per week per child in London) paid.
DCSF

A new survey from the Centre of Social Justice reveals that the majority of voters think the Government should do more to help parents stay at home with their children. The findings were used to launch the think tank's new report 'The Next Generation' which includes proposals for changes to the child benefit system.
Centre of Social Justice

Divorce

The number of couples who file for divorce is likely to rise this month because of increased economic and work pressures. That's according to an article in Family Law which said that 'Separation September' would be partly down to some couples returning from holidays where they spent more time together than normal which resulted in an adverse effect on the relationship.
Family Law

A report in the Guardian newspaper echoes the warning of a rise in relationship breakdown but also highlights that the housing crisis is making it difficult for couples to separate because they are unable to sell their home or afford to buy each other out.
Guardian

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Family Policy Digest

This month's policy digest looks at relationship separation, the extension of the right to request flexible working and what children say about play.
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Horizon Scan

ContactPoint delayed until January

The Government has announced that the children's database ContactPoint is to be delayed until January 2009. The database will store the basic details of all children (up to the age of 18) in England. This is the second time the launch of the database has been postponed.
More

Children's Workforce Action Plan

The following are just some of the measures that will be implemented in September as part of the Children's Workforce Action Plan:

• the piloting of a newly qualified social worker status offering a year of supported induction of about 1,000 new social workers
• the trialling and testing of different routes to Early Years Professional status
• National Strategies to roll out specific programmes to develop practitioner knowledge and expertise in developing children's speaking and listening skills and supporting their social and emotional development.

DCSF

Party politics

September is conference season with the three main parties taking to the platform to air their policies on a range of issues including the family.

The Liberal Democrats' conference will be held in Bournemouth between Saturday 12 and Wednesday 17 September

The Labour Party conference will be in Manchester from Saturday 20 to Wednesday 24 September.

The Conservative Party conference will take place in Birmingham on Saturday 28 September until Wednesday 1 October.

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Forward Look

Check here for upcoming events in the family and parenting world. Please let us know of your forthcoming events so we can include them.
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Notice board

PC2008

Tickets are now selling fast for the Family and Parenting Institute's international conference Parent Child 2008 - Getting it right for families? The event will cover what every family and parenting practitioner, researcher and policy maker needs to know about family wellbeing and the dynamics of family relationships.

 

Thursday 13 and Friday 14 November 2008
Church House, Dean's Yard, Westminster, London SW1P 3NZ
ONLINE CREDIT CARD BOOKING is now available
More

Parents' Week 2008 - run your own listening event

The Family and Parenting Institute has produced some guidance to help you run your own 'listening event' as well as also tips and ideas available on other activities you could do during Parents' Week 2008.
More

Coinciding with Parents' Week this year is CSV Make a Difference Day, the largest single day of volunteering in the UK. Families across the country will be taking part in volunteering activities on and around October 25th.

End Child Poverty

RSA charter

The Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) has launched a survey to find out what teachers, parents and children think of its new Education Charter.
RSA

Parenting Across Scotland Conference

Parenting Across Scotland, Parents as Partners Conference, Tuesday 28th October 2008, Edinburgh Corn Exchange.
More

Children in Wales

National conference on 23 October 2008
More

 

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Consultations

Delivering the Children's Plan - Strengthening Children's Trusts: legislative options

Following on from the recent consultation on the Statutory Guidance for Children's Trusts on the Duty to Cooperate, which closed on 26 June, this is a further call for views and advice from partners. This discussion document now proposes a number of changes to the current framework for Children's Trusts.

Deadline: 25 Sep 2008
DCSF

Proposals for Revisions To Legislation For Schools Causing Concern

This consultation seeks views on proposed changes to the legislation on schools causing concern.

Deadline: 25 Sep 2008
DCSF

Schools' role in promoting pupil well-being - draft guidance for consultation

Draft guidance on schools' role in promoting well-being and on the support they can expect from their local authority and other partners in the Children's Trust.
Deadline: 25 September 2008
DCSF

School Admissions Consultation 2008

The consultation outlines proposed changes to make the schools admissions process as fair, transparent and straightforward as possible for parents.

Deadline: 02 Oct 2008
DCSF

Local Authority Performance Targets for Under Achieving Pupil Groups

This consultation is on a new model for LA statutory targets for under-achieving pupil groups. It would replace the current model based on all 17 Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups, some of which outperform the overall cohort; but includes for the first time Free School Meals (FSM) pupils.

Deadline: 06 Oct 2008
DCSF

Draft Apprenticeships Bill

The draft Bill will establish a statutory basis for the Apprenticeships programme. The Bill will, for the first time, place duties on the Learning and Skills Council to secure sufficient and appropriate Apprenticeship places to fulfil the entitlement for each suitably qualified young person who wants one. The Bill describes the functions of the new National Apprenticeship Service and also includes a provision to ensure that young people in schools are fully informed about high quality vocational training opportunities.

Deadline: 08 Oct 2008
DCSF

Safeguarding Children from Sexual Exploitation

This draft guidance aims to provide practitioners across all relevant agencies and the voluntary and community sector with information about different forms of sexual exploitation to help them identify and safeguard children and young people who are at risk of sexual exploitation, or who are being sexually exploited. It will replace the current guidance, Children involved in Prostitution, issued in 2000 and will be supplementary guidance to Working Together to Safeguard Children (HMG 2006).

Deadline: 10 Oct 2008
DCSF

Forced marriage statutory guidance: Consultation paper

The Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007 provides for the government to issue statutory guidance setting out the responsibilities of all agencies dealing with forced marriage issues.
Deadline: 15 October 2008
Foreign Office

No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility

This latest Green Paper on welfare reform proposes abolishing Income Support and creating a system based around Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) and the new Employment and Support Allowance (the replacement for Incapacity Benefit).

Deadline: 22 October 2008
DWP

Revised Statutory Guidance for local authorities in England to identify children not receiving a suitable education

This draft revised guidance aims to provide practitioners across all relevant agencies and the voluntary and community sector with information about how to implement the duty placed on local authorities by the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to identify those children not receiving a suitable education. It will replace the current version of statutory guidance which was issued in 2007.

Deadline: 24 Oct 2008
DCSF

 

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Emma Brennan Press & PR Officer
www.familyandparenting.org
September 2008
Current subscribers – 12768
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