Core Groups
CORE GROUP MEETING PROTOCOL
Introduction
Core Group meetings occur regularly, typically every four to six weeks. They are chaired by a Registered Manager and involve key people in the child or young person's life i.e. local authority social worker, foster or family placement carers, foster or family placement support worker, child or young person, those with parental responsibility, teacher/activities instructor, therapist and keyworker. The child or young person may attend if they wish to. These meetings are minuted with action plans and are circulated to all concerned parties.
Purpose
The system of Core Group meetings devise, implement, monitor and review each child or young person's Placement Plan in support of the objectives or defined outcomes specified in the child or young person's care and education plans. They offer a continuity of care, therapy and education and hold the respective parties accountable for the work they do.
How do Core Groups fit into the overall Care, Education and Treatment Process?
Core Groups establish, monitor and assess Placement Plans and inform LAC Action Plans.
In straightforward terms Core Groups are concerned to ensure that everything that can be done is being done, and is evidenced, to engage individual children and young people so that they work towards achieving the long-term goals set in their Care, Education and Treatment Plans and receive the resources and expertise required to support them.
Where the Care Plan, Statement of Special Educational Need (SEN) and Personal Education Plans (PEP) tend to define primary objectives, such are to be prepared so as to be able to facilitate a return to mainstream school, or be prepared for a foster placement. Core Groups meet to define a Placement Plan that stipulates how these desired outcomes are to be achieved, what role individuals (including the child or young person) will take, the timescales of planned work, how the Core Group will monitor and assess the Placement Plan, where the work will take place and where appropriate, how new approaches or initiatives might be tried in order to avoid stagnation and drift, a common aspect of many children's lives.
Core group schema
