Popular child protection practices 'may not work'

A study by the Early Intervention Foundation (EIF) concluded that the lack of evidence underpinning some practices and approaches that are widely used in the child protection system means it is "difficult to be sure protection services are producing good results or providing value for money".

A particular concern is a dearth of evidence relating to approaches where professionals from a range of organisations work together to protect children. This includes "a lack of robust evaluation" of the impact of multi-agency safeguarding hubs (Mash), where professionals link up to deal with concerns of children at risk of harm.

Researchers also found there was a lack of evidence that Signs of Safety, which aims to improve the relationships between child protection workers and vulnerable families, is effectively reducing the maltreatment of children.

Signs of Safety was developed in Australia in the 1990s and is being implemented in the UK by Professor Eileen Munro.

In March 2016 Signs of Safety was handed £4.8m from the Department for Education's social care innovation fund to work with 10 councils.

Family group conferencing is another approach where researchers found a lack of evidence of successfully protecting young people, although they note that this approach, as well as Signs of Safety, are both currently being evaluated.

"There is a striking gap between what we know works to protect children and support vulnerable families, and what is happening in our child protection system right now," EIF chief executive Carey Oppenheim said. 

"At a time of shrinking budgets and increasing demand, it is particularly important to use the evidence to ensure scarce resources are directed towards interventions with the greatest chance of success." 

"Evidence is not the only consideration in how local authorities decide what services to deliver. Nevertheless, on balance, families and children who receive interventions shown through robust methods to improve outcomes are more likely to benefit and to a greater degree than those who receive other services."

Approaches that were backed by strong evidence of successfully improving the lives of children include the Incredible Years parenting programme and Parent Child Interaction Therapy, which deals with concerns about physical abuse in the family.

Richard Watts, children and young people board chairman at the Local Government Association, which collaborated on the research, said councils need more support in selecting the best approaches to protect children and support families.

"Councils need to understand what will work in their area, for the specific children and families they are working with and within the resources available to them.

"It is not always possible or practical to simply transfer a seemingly effective service from an inner city area to a rural county region, and we should not attempt to provide a centrally-focused, one size fits all solution to the notion of what works," he said.