This toolkit sets out some of the ways in which best practices can be developed ‘on the ground’ and represents an important step towards setting out how Think Family can be made a reality in day-to-day practice.

Since April 2009 all local authorities are able to access extra funding to support the Think Family reforms and introduce targeted services for parents and families experiencing particular problems. The reforms are aimed at securing better outcomes for children, young people and families with additional needs by co-ordinating the support they receive from children’s, young people’s, adults’ and family services.

Local authorities now receive extra funding to implement Think Family reforms to local authority and health service systems and to set up Youth Crime Family Intervention Projects to provide intensive support to families in the greatest difficulty. They are also able to offer Parenting Early Intervention Programmes to help improve parenting skills of mothers and fathers of children who are at risk of poor outcomes.

The toolkit is available from Teachernet. http://publications.teachernet.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/Think-Family.pdf