Making Sense of Every Child Matters: Multi-professional Practice Guidance

This book is a collection of contributions from a range of experts who work or have worked in the key professions that are crucial in delivering the Every Child Matters framework. Each chapter covers one of these key professions: those working in schools, early years and children's centres, health, playwork, and social work. The chapters set out the background for each workforce sector, its current challenges, implications for integrated working, plus issues, dilemmas and future trends. Most importantly, the sector's contributions to the five Every Child Matters outcomes are also given.

This is one of the most useful and clearly written publications I have seen on where we are in relation to the children's workforce and the journey towards integration of services to meet the needs of children and their families. The importance of improving outcomes for children in the early years sector comes through strongly and the tension between children's centres providing all services and more targeted services was very familiar.