Tararua Strengthening Families

Strengthening Families is a cross-sectoral, whole of government, initiative which uses a structured process of government agencies and community organisations working together to improve outcomes for families. Both government and non-government/community organisations participate in Strengthening Families.

How does Strengthening Families work in Tararua?

Tararua Strengthening Families holds an agency Network Meeting on the first Thursday of each month from February to December. This interagency meeting has a database of over one hundred agencies and generally has an attendance of twenty to thirty agencies per month. This meeting is held at Tararua REAP, Gordon Street, Dannevirke, from 9.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. and always includes a guest speaker. All agency staff are welcome to attend.

The Tararua Strengthening Families Coordinator undertakes the day to day coordination of Case Management work and the promotion of Strengthening Families through inter-agency initiatives. Each Strengthening Families area is overseen by a Local Management Group.

How do families access Strengthening Families?

A family participates in a Strengthening Families Initiative on a voluntary basis. The family may ask an agency that they are working with to initiate Strengthening Families, or the agency may discuss the Strengthening Families process with the family.

How does it work?

You will be approached by a staff member from an agency you are currently involved with who will explain the process, or you can ask a worker from any of the agencies you are involved with to start the process.

That worker will then work with you to prepare for the meeting. You get to decide:

• when the meeting will be held - usually about three weeks away to give people plenty of notice
• where the meeting will be held - most schools or agencies can provide a venue or you can hold the meeting in your own home
• who should be invited - you choose which agencies attend, and decide whether your children attend the meeting
• what the key issues are for your family/whānau.

The worker can also arrange for an independent facilitator to lead the meeting.

What will happen at the meeting?

The needs and concerns of your family/whānau are identified.

A plan is developed that:

• recognises the family/whānau strengths and builds on these
• addresses the family/whānau concerns and priorities
• co-ordinates the work of all agencies involved
• identifies unmet needs or gaps in services and develops strategies to solve them.

A lead agency is selected to coordinate what is happening. You need to consent to who this agency and person are.

A review date is set so that everyone comes together again to check that the plan is working. These are held as often as necessary until your concerns have been addressed and/or your family/whanau no longer requires ongoing support.

A Strengthening Families meeting will only go ahead with your consent and only those agencies you have nominated will be invited. 

What are my rights?

Strengthening Families is a voluntary process. You do not have to have a meeting if you do not want one and, if you do, only those agencies you nominate can participate. It is not a legal process such as the Family Group Conference, and it does not make care and protection decisions.

The consent form sets out your rights about the sharing of information about you and your family. You can withdraw consent at any time. You may also agree to an agency being at a meeting but ask them not to disclose certain information. However, Strengthening Families works best when everyone understands the important issues for them.

You are entitled to have support and advocacy in the meeting and it is strongly recommended that you do. You could discuss this with the agency/case worker who is setting up the meeting. Your supporter could be a family member or friend, or someone from a community organisation or church.

You are entitled to choose who comes to the meeting from the agencies involved, e.g. someone from the same cultural background, provided the agency can arrange that. Discuss this with the caseworker or your supporter who could follow this up for you.

You are entitled to have an interpreter if language is a problem. The case worker will arrange this, if possible through a professional service. You can ask to look at records and change anything that isn't right. You can make a formal complaint through the Facilitator, Lead Agency or Coordinator if you are unhappy at any stage.