Abstract

Family support is an increasingly important strategic approach to welfare services for children and families. This invaluable resource for all professionals engaged in the development and delivery of these services is underpinned by reflective practice values and structured around four themes:

* conceptual frameworks and vocabulary (defining)

* policy and organisational structures and processing (planning)

* tools for creative practice (doing)

* approaches to evaluation (measuring).

Contributors from around the world provide international perspectives on core issues in family support. These include the importance of community, the role of statutory and voluntary agencies, youth advocacy, culturally appropriate family support, child protection, disability services and effective means of evaluation. Providing a combination of clear theoretical frameworks and practical guidance, with clear 'how to' messages and a strong emphasis on evaluation, this book will be of interest to social workers, care staff, teachers, community development and police officers, students, policy-makers, evaluators and all those working in all areas of family support.

This is a well organized and comprehensive work. A highly recommended read.
The Relational Child and Youth Practice Journal
This is an ambitious book in the breadth of its coverage within such a limited sized volume and the authors are to be commended for its coherence and the balance it strikes between challenging the reader conceptually while not losing a clear focus on practice.
Journal of Interprofessional Care
This is a well organized and comprehensive work, and I continue to be impressed by the literature on CYC practice coming from Ireland, Scotland and England... This book can become part of an academic course, a resource for CYC family support teams, and a planning tool for administrators. A highly recommended read.
The Relational Child and Youth Practice Journal
This book is particularly, timely given that it combines core themes at the heart of contemporary childcare practice.
Children and Society
This collection is a highly engaging and creative ensemble of insights and approaches to the broad practice of family support. The result is the creation of a rich bed of information that practitioners can link to their own practice... The book is a worthwhile project and an accessible read. From a practice perspective, Family Support is a valuable resource. Pinkerton, in the chapter entitled `Reframing Practice as Family Support' identifies the "key problem at present in the Irish system is the lack of integration of family support into the 'high priority' child protection system". This book will help the reframing of this by creating a positive and constructive discourse on family support work.
British Journal of Social Work
I think that everyone who works with or develops policy about children and families should read it. Family support ought to be very high on the agenda, and this book helps to inform that debate.
Children Now
If you are looking for clarification of the idea of family support in a way that provides readable and understandable links between the concept, policy and organisation, models for practice - then look no further... The book emphasises the importance of reflection and evaluation in the practice of family support by practitioners and has a wealth of interesting reading within it. It is an excellent resource for those of us in the family support field of practice'.
Community Care
Family support seen as an important strategic approach to welfare services for children and families. Of interest to anyone working in areas where support to families is part of practice.
British Institute of Learning Disabilities