Family Group Decision Making can support a young person and their wider family to come together to agree a family plan to support their young person before a life-changing decision is made about their future. This is done through what we call a Family Group Meeting.
What is a Family Group Meeting?
A Family Group Meeting is a way for families to come together to discuss a concern or problem which involves children or young people in the family. Family could include grandparents, aunties and uncles, and even close family friends.
The aim of the meeting is to make a plan to support that child or young person. The family choose whether, or not, they want to have a meeting. An independent family group co-ordinator is allocated to support the young person to organise a Family Group Meeting that is safe and future focused.
The coordinator will work with you to plan the Family Group Meeting. This will include talking about:
- who you want to invite
- what they want to say at the meeting
- where and when the meeting should be
- what food and drinks there will be
- what needs to happen to make the meeting safe and comfortable for everyone.
The coordinator will visit everyone who has been invited to help them understand how the meeting will work, how to have their say and ensure everyone feels respected and included.
Please see our attached animation on FGDM that will help you see what it is all about.
If you think FGDM is something that would help you and your family contact the team on the following email link: FGDM@northlan.gov.uk