The Strength to Strength programmes provide support to children and their families who are assessed as being in need and where children are vulnerable to offending. It is a community based intervention which works with young people and their families.

Work is focused on building on protective factors amd minimising the risk factors which can encourage offending or anti social behaviours by children. We provide a safe and secure environment for children, young people and their families; focus on the developmental needs of our service users; focus on the strengths of individuals and their family circumstances; address risks which might impair development or promote offending or anti social behaviours and develop positive relationships and structures which will promote wellbeing and positive outcomes.

The sustained development of our family facility at Roscor Youth Village in Co Fermanagh in NI helps us to facilitate a unique service model whereby children and families can access a residential component within each programme either in a planned way and in line with individual service plans, or in a responsive manner to help deal with presenting crises. Family recreational experiences can also take place during planned day trips on site.

Referral Criteria:

• Children aged 8 - 13 and their families in a particular geographic area.
• Children displaying early signs of offending behaviour i.e. known to the police up to and including informed warning stage.
• Children who are identified as being at high risk of offending because of multiple risk factors:
  • Individual presenting behaviour- emotional ,social and peer;
  • Home- parenting and family factors;
  • School- attendance, behaviour and performance;
  • Community and environment.
• Young people who fall within Hardiker levels 2 and 3

Objectives:

• To reduce the numbers of children interfacing with the criminal justice systems.
• To reduce the risk of offending and anti-social behaviour by children.
• To build on the strengths of children by focusing on preventative strategies.
• To link children into pro-social community activities / project / initiatives.
• To increase inter agency communication and co-operation.
• To prevent duplication of resources and services to individual children.
• To enhance and enable more positive parenting and facilitate better family communication.
• To provide a 'whole family recreational experience' at an appropriate point throughout the period of contact through a Family 'Time Out' service.
• To provide additional specialist services to both children and their families as appropriate. (e.g. family mediation, counselling, mental health support services etc).
• To provide educational support to children and young people who are disadvantaged within the mainstream educational system.

Programme Content:

• Each referral received by the interagency partnership panels is offered an Individual Service Plan (ISP) which is determined by the assessment of need.
• Service plans focus on promoting agreed individual and family outcomes.
• A multi-agency interagency partnership panels is established which ensures that any other services being accessed are convergent with the anticipated outcomes for each individual and family and that a common schedule of intervention is reached.
• The programme is flexible and responsive to need and utilises the wider infrastructure within Extern's continuum including Roscor Youth Village and Kinnahalla Youth Facility in NI.
• Support to parents is central to the programme and is facilitated through home visits, developing strategies to aid resilience, family residentials, promoting access to other relevant services. This incorporates parenting support programmes where appropriate.
• Individual programme plans requires close communication with schools and takes into account the importance of transition periods in children's lives. Where appropriate and where no other services are available educational support is provided directly to the child.
• Each young person and family has access to planned residentials at our Youth Village at Roscor and Kinnahalla Youth Facility relative to the level of assessed need.
• The programme actively utilises resources within local communities and supports and orientates individuals towards indigenous support systems.

Working Hours:
The hours are flexible and include weekend work where appropriate.

Staffing ratio: maximum 1:8