Families First Families First: An Overview FAC T S H E E T Media Enquiries 02 9716 2804 The Families First initiative is designed to help parents and carers give their children a good start in life, to help them connect with each other for support and to prevent problems before families find themselves in crisis. Families First services have been designed for parents who are expecting new babies and caring for young children. In addition, specific strategies have been developed to address the needs of families with children with disabilities, families from ethnic communities and Aboriginal families. The NSW Government has allocated $117.5 million over four years (2002-2006) to the whole-of-Government Families First initiative. The Department of Community Services (DoCS) is taking a lead role with $87.5 million to fund new services. Other participating organisations include the Departments of Ageing, Disability and Home Care, Education and Training, Health and Housing as well as Area Health Services. Families First is based on research that shows children’s early experiences, particularly in the first three years of life, can have a major effect on the quality of their later life. www.community.nsw.gov.au 1 As at March 2004 more than 200 Families First services had been funded by DoCS across New South Wales. Many more will be established over the next two years. DoCS-funded Families First services are provided in partnership with locally-based community organisations, parents and other government departments. This partnership spans program design, planning and delivery. • Qualified community childhood experts set up playgroups in local communities. These playgroups offer opportunities for parents to meet, share their experiences, build their parenting skills and access information and community resources. • School-based community centres are set up to help families prepare their children for school and to encourage parents to access other local community networks and resources. BENEFITS OF FAMILIES FIRST The NSW Government introduced Families First in 1999 in response to mounting international research and evidence demonstrating that universal prevention and targeted early intervention programs have a range of positive benefits for families. These include: • healthier children and parents • better functioning families who are able to enjoy and learn from one another • children who are better prepared to learn and develop when they start shcool • improved recognition and early intervention for post-natal depression and other mental health problems in parents and new babies • reduced child abuse and neglect FAMILIES FIRST SERVICES • reduced juveniles and adult crime. Families First services include family worker services, supported playgroups, volunteer home visiting services, schools as community centres and other locally developed community programs. This has the added benefit of saving taxpayers in the longer term. One 27-year US study showed that for every $1 invested in services to help families with young children, $4 was saved within three years on child protection, health, education and justice systems. By the time the children were adults, $7 had been saved. • Family workers visit parents at home to help them improve their life and parenting skills. This service targets vulnerable families with particular priority given to young parents, parents with a developmental disability and families with a child with a disability. • Trained volunteers visit families with young children to provide practical advice, support and an occasional helping hand. They help families to access resources and information and to link-up with community support networks. SUPPORTING CHILDREN Families First aims to help children grow to their full potential. The first three years are particularly critical in a child’s neurological, emotional and physical development. To be healthy and well adjusted, children need love, kindness and good relationships. This builds their confidence, self esteem, feelings of security, capacity to learn and problem solve. March 2004 Families First FAC T S H E E T Families First: An Overview Media Enquiries 02 9716 2804 Neurological development plays an important role in a child’s capacity to learn to cope with stressful situations and to interact socially in later life. WHERE IS FAMILIES FIRST BEING INTRODUCED? SUPPORTING PARENTS After local planning has been completed for each area, expressions of interest are invited from community organisations interested in providing the new services. Families First is designed to help parents develop their parenting skills and give them a greater sense of control over their lives. Through a service network of professionals and trained volunteers, parents will receive support and information to help create the conditions under which they find it easiest to raise, love and care for their children. These conditions include: knowledge of child development, self esteem, improved ability to cope with stress, support of extended family and social networks outside the family, good health and adequate income and housing. CONNECTING COMMUNITIES Families First will help communities to build and sustain networks which support and connect families. Social structures surrounding families can make it harder or easier for them to manage their problems. Effective parenting relies not just on individuals but also on the health of the community. www.community.nsw.gov.au 2 Communities are more likely to support and connect families when: children and family life is valued, people trust each other and join together to take action, families participate in activities and people value the community as a place to live. NETWORKING SERVICES Families First recognises that the best approach integrates a range of different services such as education, mental health and child protection. For this reason it is based on a coordinated approach between Government departments and community organisations, with common service delivery principles. Families First has been rolled out progressively, with the whole of NSW now covered. DOCS PARENTING CAMPAIGN DoCS Parenting campaign, which is linked with the Families First strategy, supports parents in raising their children by providing parents with easy-to-read, practical information on raising children. DoCS has produced a series of four magazines containing comprehensive parenting information endorsed by a range of experts. Copies of the parenting magazines are available in DoCS offices, on the DoCS website (www.community.nsw.gov.au) or at www.parenting.nsw.gov.au and from some non-government community organisations. NSW FAMILY FACTS • 1,654,500 families live in NSW • 48% are couple-families with children • 15% are one-parent families • 467,000 families have 778,040 children who are under eight years of age • Approximately half of these children (335, 578) are three years old or younger • 86,700 children are born annually (on average one baby every six minutes) • 11% of children live in towns with populations of less than 1000 • One in six children speaks a language other than English at home. WEBSITE For more information on Families First, see www.familiesfirst.nsw.gov.au March 2004