Practice guides

This practice guide highlights Cheshire West and Chester’s Thriving Families programme, an innovative early intervention model designed to provide support to families before needs escalate to traditional early help or statutory thresholds. Delivered through Family Hubs and the voluntary and community sector, the programme focuses on relationship-based, whole-family support, enabling families to access help through trusted community networks. The guide explores how a collaborative commissioning approach, flexible support and strong community partnerships have helped prevent escalation, improve family wellbeing and strengthen local support systems

This practice guide showcases Lancashire’s ELLIE (East Lancashire Learning Information Exchange) and CELLIE (Central Lancashire Learning Information Exchange) services, which support children, young people and families to access education and wider services. Through community-based support, translation services, admissions advice and partnership working, the model helps families navigate the education system, promotes inclusion and reduces the risk of children becoming missing from education. The guide highlights how a whole-family approach has improved access to school places, strengthened engagement with education and supported communities experiencing high levels of inward migration.

This practice guide outlines how Wirral has strengthened its approach to EOTISC by introducing a commissioned model that combines personalised education packages with robust oversight, safeguarding and accountability. Working in partnership with Orrets Meadow School, the approach ensures children and young people receive high-quality provision tailored to their needs while maintaining a clear focus on educational progress, wellbeing and reintegration where appropriate. The guide explores the rationale for the model, how it operates in practice, and the positive impact it has had on outcomes for children and families.

This practice guide outlines Manchester’s Local Inclusion Support Offer (LISO), a city-wide approach designed to strengthen inclusive education in mainstream settings. It explains how coordinated training, specialist advice, and targeted in-school support help build staff confidence and capacity to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. The guide highlights how LISO improves access to services, streamlines support processes, and promotes collaboration across education, health, and social care to deliver better outcomes for children and young people.

Lancashire’s focused approach to placement sufficiency has delivered measurable improvements in a short period. By March 2025, the number of children living in unregistered homes had halved, and the number living in high‑cost agency placements (£7,500+ per week) had reduced by 45%, including a 47% drop in very high‑cost homes (£9k+ per week). At the same time, average weekly costs were stabilised, rising just 1.8%, compared with a 13.9% regional increase, and more children were able to stay closer to home, with 73% of agency home placements located within Lancashire, up from 63% the previous year. This guide outlines how these improvements were achieved and what other authorities can learn from Lancashire’s approach.

Wirral Youth Justice Service is leading innovative approaches to reduce criminal convictions for young people through projects like Operation Inclusion and the No Comment Pathway. These initiatives offer tailored, multi-agency support as alternatives to court, helping children avoid a criminal record while addressing underlying vulnerabilities. So far, Operation Inclusion has supported 69 young people with only 12% reoffending, and none entering the court system, saving costs and improving life chances. Explore how these pathways are transforming youth justice and promoting better outcomes for children and families.

Hub2U is Cumberland Council’s innovative mobile Family Hub, created to bring vital support directly to communities that face barriers to accessing traditional services. Designed with input from local children and young people, this initiative removes obstacles like transport and stigma, making help more accessible and approachable. Already, Hub2U has engaged hundreds of children, young people, and families—helping to reduce isolation and improve access to essential services.

The Liverpool HEARTS Project is a city-wide initiative designed to help schools respond effectively to attachment and trauma, creating inclusive environments where every child can thrive. Built on national research and co-produced with education and clinical partners, HEARTS focuses on holistic thinking, empowerment, and relational practice. This guide shares practical steps and insights from schools already making a difference

This practice guide outlines Liverpool’s innovative approach to integrating the Designated Social Care Officer (DSCO) role within children’s services, following a 2019 SEND inspection. Developed to strengthen the connection between SEND and social care, the DSCO role has helped improve legal literacy, collaborative planning, and the quality of social care input into Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans. It highlights the strategic and operational steps taken to embed the role, enhance service delivery, and support cultural change across teams. The guide also shares practical tools and insights that have supported workforce development and improved outcomes for children and families.

This guide sets out Sefton’s refreshed multi-agency approach to improving the quality of Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). It outlines a four-level quality assurance framework—spanning compliance, agency-level checks, senior moderation, and collaborative audits—and highlights how this process is helping to produce clearer, more consistent, and co-produced plans. Whether you're involved in writing, reviewing or supporting EHCPs, this guide offers practical insights and examples of what good looks like.

This guide sets out a collaborative framework between Salford’s Virtual School and SEND Team to improve outcomes for cared for children with special educational needs. It outlines how joint protocols, clear communication channels, and shared systems have reduced delays and strengthened decision-making across services. The guidance provides a practical model for effective multi-agency working and ensuring timely, coordinated support for children with EHCPs.

This guide presents the work of the Shield Team in Knowsley, a multi-agency service established to protect children at risk of sexual and criminal exploitation and those who go missing. Formed in response to a Child Sexual Exploitation operation, the team has evolved into a specialist unit comprising social care professionals, police, and voluntary sector partners, including Catch 22. Using a trusted relationship model, the Shield Team provides long-term, child-centred support that prioritises safety, stability, and early intervention. This resource offers valuable insight into effective, relationship-based safeguarding practice and demonstrates the impact of coordinated, preventative approaches in supporting vulnerable children and young people.