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Gloucestershire's five key principles of the Graduated Pathway

This is a TEST PAGE and currently under development. All information is in DRAFT form and not finalised. This will be launched on 1st November 2026

Within Earliest Support any professional can be a lead practitioner and should co-ordinate the delivery of support services.  A GP, Family Support Worker, School Nurse, Teacher, Health Visitor and/or Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) could undertake the lead practitioner role. Decisions about who should be the lead practitioner should be taken on a case-by-case basis and should be informed by the child and their family. This may change over the lifetime of the plan.

The lead practitioner should seek consent from the young person and family to develop a graduated, multi-agency response. An Earliest Support Plan (ESP) will be required to provide a holistic, family centred understanding of need. This can also help educational settings to build up a picture of need and support that can be used in the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) Needs Assessment process. If the needs require a multi-agency response, a Team Around the Family (TAF) meeting should be convened.

Identifying that a child or young person has additional needs does not necessarily mean that you will become the lead practitioner. There may already be a holistic plan of support in place, or the Team Around the Family meeting (including parent/carer) will agree on the person best placed to support the family. As a lead practitioner, you will be responsible for the co-ordination of a multi-agency response. This does not mean that you need to do everything, but you will be the main point of contact. Other members of the team around the child/family can take notes, organise the meeting and take away actions as part of the multi-agency plan of support.

 

Should support be needed at Family Help level then a Family Help Lead or Family Help Lead (Social Worker) will be allocated depending on the needs of the family. 

The Family Help Lead is the main point of contact for a family receiving coordinated, multi-agency support under the Family Help system. Their role includes:

  • Undertaking the assessment of need Building a trusting relationship with the family
  • Coordinating services and interventions across agencies
  • Developing and reviewing the child’s plan

Under Child in Need the role can be fulfilled by a suitably qualified practitioner within Family Help as set out in the Gloucestershire Family Help Guidance (when published – in development under Families First Programme).

Under Child Protection the role must be fulfilled by a qualified social worker. The Lead Child Protection Practitioner is a highly experienced social worker who is responsible for managing a child protection plan when a child is deemed at risk of significant harm.