Workforce planning key to improving early help access for ethnic minorities, study finds
Joe Lepper
Thursday, June 30, 2022
Improvements to workforce planning and in the design of support can help tackle discrimination and racism faced by ethnic minority families looking to access early help services, researchers have found.
Analysis shows that ethnic minority young people described their experience of accessing early help and family support as “negative and off-putting”.
Families from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities said they encountered “multiple barriers” when seeking support, it adds.
Parents and young people “found experiences of racism and discrimination”, in attempting to access support, say researchers.
A lack of understanding of cultural differences is a key complaint cited by families surveyed.
“There were clear differences in the way that my family were treated, my son in particular, and there were racial overtones that were clearly defined,” said one parent.
One young person surveyed said that during a mental health support session they were told that their feelings “were my own fault and I should basically fix my own problems and I’d feel better”.
“I wasn’t taken seriously at all, so I suffered for three years before I managed to take the plunge and actually ask for mental health help again, but I was still very wary of this process,” added the young person.
The findings have emerged in research by the Early Intervention Foundation, Race Equality Foundation and Action for Children.
It looks at a wide range of family support and early help services, including those offered by social workers, GPs, health visitors, schools and children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS).
OUT NOW 📢 Report on improving the way #FamilySupport services work for minority ethnic families, guided by qual research with parents & young ppl with experience of seeking or accessing family support: https://t.co/6nKcsD5LXd
— Early Intervention Foundation (@TheEIFoundation) June 30, 2022
with @raceequality @actnforchildren #SpeakOutFamily pic.twitter.com/3K0Q5B7A7P
Recommendations include better workforce planning to focus on improving skills among support workers “needed to build trusting relationships with minority ethnic families”.
Also, systems need to be designed so that support is provided to all families that need it. Help needs to be “accessible and effective for everyone”, adds the research.
“Racism and discrimination have no place in services for families,” said Early Intervention Foundation chief executive Jo Casebourne.
“The success of family support relies on strong, trusting relationships between families and professionals.
“High-quality family support, delivered in the right way at the right time, can make a real difference for children and their families.
“There are stark and persistent ethnic inequalities across a whole set of critical child outcomes – such as school readiness and academic attainment – where we know that effective early support could have an impact. It is vital that public services, designed to provide support to all families, are accessible and effective for everyone who needs their help.”
The research also calls for anti-racism practices to be embedded across all children and family services.
First impressions of family support services also need to be “positive, integrated and joined up” so that “every route to support is welcoming and so minority ethnic people get the right help at the right time”.
Race Equality Foundation chief executive Jabeer Butt added: “The long-term effects that racism and discrimination can have on people's wellbeing and willingness to seek help in future cannot be underestimated.
“Effective early support is a key piece of the puzzle when it comes to improving life outcomes for young people, so it's essential that the recommendations of this work are acted upon urgently."
