This chapter will build upon information presented in Chapter One and aims to provide guidance for convening a Family Group Conference. It should however be noted that it does not replace FGC training and it is recommended that anyone wishing to convene an FGC completes, as a minimum, three days of training such as that offered by Family Rights Group, and spends time shadowing experienced practitioners. The information presented in this chapter is based on my own experience of coordinating FGCs and managing FGC practitioners and an FGC service.

The FGC process

Figure 3.1 outlines the basic FGC process. Each stage will be covered in detail. This chapter will focus upon child welfare FGCs but the process of convening an adult FGC will be broadly similar. Differences will be highlighted in Chapter Twelve.

The referral process

Referral criteria will be dependent upon the FGC agency with agencies often having significantly different referral pathways. Some FGC services accept multi-agency referrals but Family Rights Group (see Further Reading) state that in most areas the referrer is likely to be a social worker. In theory, however, FGCs can be and indeed have been used for a wide variety of child welfare concerns. Referrals should be specific in that FGCs are designed to allow the family to plan in response to a question or set of questions asked of them by the referrer. Therefore the referral should make reference to this question. It should also set the parameters for the answering of this question by defining the boundaries of decision making. Therefore the referral should make clear anything that the family would not be permitted to include in their plan. This is often known as the bottom line and needs to be made clear to the family from the outset. Once the question and bottom line are established the referrer needs to be clear about both the strengths of the family and what concerns they have regarding the family alongside any health and safety information that the coordinator needs to know. Referrers usually complete a referral form which will be seen and signed by someone in the family who has parental responsibility for the child. Asking family members to sign a referral form ensures that they are aware of what information is being passed on to the FGC service.