Early Help Assessment and Team Around the Family

Early Help Assessment

The Early Help Assessment (EHA) is the tool we use in Salford to capture an assessment of the current needs of a child or young person and their family.

We know that if a family gets help sooner, they stand a better chance of improving their situation and preventing the need for longer term support or statutory intervention.  The Early Help Assessment supports practitioners working with families at the ‘Getting Help’ and ‘Getting More’ help stages of support (Salford Support and Safeguarding guidance).  It is everybody’s responsibility to identify and assess need, through having conversations with children, young people and their families and planning with them to address these needs.

An Early Help Assessment should be completed in partnership with the whole family to explore and develop a shared understanding of their strengths and needs capturing the family’s views and voice in one place, preventing families from repeating their story.  It should recognise and reinforce the strengths of families and their communities, empowering them to create their own solutions and build resilience and independence.

Early Help Assessments help to empower families to achieve change as they are in the ‘driving seat’ as an active participant in the process of identifying their strengths, needs and desired changes and agreeing their family plan.

Practitioners involved with the family should work together to contribute to the assessment to form one family plan that makes clear who is doing what and when. The Family Plan should be shared with the family and others involved and be reviewed regularly through Team Around the Family Meetings (TAF). 

Team Around the Family

Team Around the Family meetings are where the family and practitioners meet together to review The Family Plan. TAF meetings provide the opportunity for the family and practitioners to share and celebrate success, review the desired changes, and agree the next steps.

TAF meetings can continue (every 4-8 weeks) until the family feel able to continue to sustain desired changes without the support of the lead professional and Team Around the Family meetings.  The minutes of TAF meetings are recorded on an Team Around the Family Review and Closure form, providing the family and anyone involved with a copy of the minutes and the updated Family Plan.

It is the responsibility of professionals to chair and minute TAF meetings. Who will chair and who will minute a TAF meeting should be agree between professionals prior to the meeting. Any professional can chair or minute a TAF meeting.

Lead worker

Families will have a ‘lead worker’ who is the named practitioner who will be their main point of contact. The lead worker will lead on the completion of an assessment, coordinate the help families need and regularly review progress. The ‘lead worker’ will often be someone a family already knows, trust and have a good relationship with. Any practitioner working with a family can be the ‘lead worker’.

Submitting EHA and TAF documents

Both the Early Help Assessment and Team Around the Family forms should be uploaded via the Salford City Council website

Advice and support

Early Help Assessment Coordinators can offer advice and support to families and practitioners regarding the Early Help Assessment and TAF process. Email EHAT@salford.gov.uk or call 0161 603 4239.

More information

• Early Help Assessment Training 
• Early Help Assessment information for families
• Early Help Assessment form (Word)
• Team Around the Family Review and Closure form (Word)
• Early Help Assessment 7 minute briefing (PDF)
• Team Around the Family 7 minute briefing (PDF)
• Early Help Privacy Notice (PDF)
• Voice of the child information and tools
• Thriving Families Assessment Tool- identifying neglect 
• Team Around the Family (TAF) Process Guide