Centring the child and working with their family network as part of return interviews

When we are working with children at risk of going missing we know it’s vital to centre them in every action and decision made around them – tailoring our support to meet their individual needs and to build on their strengths and aspirations.

By working with the child’s family we can further strengthen the support around them. Whenever it is possible we engage with them too: reassuring them of our support; helping them to identify when their child is at risk; and trying to help rebuild relationships if they have broken down.

Sadly, sometimes parents, siblings and other families member are not safe or supportive factors in a child’s life, and we should always be led by the child on how much they want us to engage with their family, but whenever possible professionals should aim to work alongside the whole family.

In collaboration with NWG we are pleased to be launching a short resource, “Centring the child and working with their family network as part of return interviews” which sets out a bit more information on how we can develop a person centred approach with parents and care givers whose missing child returns.

Download the resource

You can access the resource below.