Keeping kids safe

Children's early years are vital to their long-term development; they are also the time children are most at risk.

All families want to do their best by raising their children in a healthy, safe and nurturing environment, but some families are more vulnerable and need additional support. From experience we know that the earlier families get support, the better off their children are in the long term. Our focus will be on getting this help to all families who need support but with a particular emphasis on families with children aged under two years.

Never Ever Shake a Baby
The Government recently announced a set of initiatives to further protect vulnerable infants, including a new campaign reminding people to Never Ever Shake a Baby. The initiatives are designed to help protect our children aged under two years and feature advertising, new-parent education, community-worker support for abused children and for families, and protection of abuse victims. It focuses on new parents (especially young men) and it is expected to reach up to 5,000 new parents a year.

In 2009/2010, we will:

• put Child, Youth and Family social workers in six hospitals around the country
• develop multiagency plans to protect hospitalised children on their release
• run a multimedia awareness campaign.

Responding when we’re needed
Differential Response means we can respond more creatively to families’ needs when they come to the attention of Child, Youth and Family and we can work more closely with social service providers in the community. We’ll be working with organisations to support families who don’t need our help but who would benefit from community-based social services.

This year we’ll be using Differential Response from Whangarei to Kaitaia, Kaikohe and Dargaville, working face-to-face with families and community service providers to develop solutions that work for families’ unique situations.

We are also making sure children and young people spend as little time as possible in care. Living with whānau or their broader hapū or iwi also helps them to feel secure.

Early Years Service Hubs
Early Years Service Hubs improve the accessibility of services for families who are at risk of missing out on the services available to them. The hubs are a central point where families can access a range of services including ante-natal care, Well Child health checks and immunisation programmes, and quality childcare and education for under five-year-olds. There are 13 hubs nationally, with two hubs in Northland, based in Whangarei and Dargaville.

Teen Parent Service Co-ordinators
Teen parents can face more obstacles than other parents. In particular they can be reluctant to approach services they need. We have a Teen Parent Service Co-ordinator based with Te Ora Hou in Whangarei. The co-ordinator helps teenage parents access health services and education providers for themselves and their children, government agencies and other social services. These parents are also put in touch with parent support groups who can help them to develop parenting knowledge and skills. Te Ora Hou offers education programmes for teenage mothers and early childhood education for tamariki of teen parents.

Violence-free relationships
There is an increased awareness of family violence and of how to access services and support to help build violence-free family relationships. We are committed to making sure families in our region are safe. The Ngati Hine Health Trust delivers a programme for us, through Family Start, to help young fathers develop  strong relationships with their children.