|
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What is the role of the referring worker?
 |
The
referring worker must have hope for the family. |
|
Briefly describe the process of FGDM to the family. |
|
The
referring worker connects the family with the FGDM Coordinator. |
|
The
referring worker attends the conference as one of the key information
providers. |
|
Partner with the family after private family time to assure that the plan
addresses safety, permanency and well-being concerns and suggest any
external supports required. |
|
Accept the plan if bottom-line concerns are addressed or reject the plan if
they are not. |
What
is the role of the coordinator/conference planner?
|
To engage and prepare all
participants including the extended family, professionals, etc. |
|
To help the family widen
their circle of support by including everyone who cares. |
|
Help the group focus on
addressing safety/well-being issues threatening the child/family. |
|
To facilitate the
conference in a neutral and unbiased manner. |
|
Assure that the
conference environment is safe. |
|
To distribute the family
plan to all participants. |
What
situations hinder the FGDM process from moving forward?
|
Coordinator cannot invest
enough time to prepare participants |
|
Family not willing to
include their family/extended family, etc. “Widen the circle of
support” |
|
A physically and
emotionally safe environment cannot be assured at the conference. |
|
Well
functioning/supportive family/extended family cannot be gathered after
exhaustive search. |
|
Family members cannot
refrain from making active threats. |
|
Current investigations
involving neglect/abuse. |
Do
children or young people participate in a family group conference?
|
Children or young
people’s participation in some form is encouraged, but children under 12 may
lack the emotional maturity to deal with some issues. |
|
The coordinator can help
the family incorporate the child/youth’s feelings and thoughts. |
|
Often teens are more
supportive if they feel they have been listened to during the decision
making process. |
Is a Family Group Conference
a one-time process?
|
The
family creates a plan and a back-up plan (if needed) at the FGC. If the
initial plan is not followed, the family can move to their back-up plan. |
|
If
necessary, the family has the option of scheduling a second conference. |
|
Some
families schedule a second conference as a part of their initial plan in
order to monitor or review progress. |
Where
do Family Group Conferences occur and how long do they take?
|
The
Coordinator Partners with the family to choose a place that is
non-threatening/neutral to participants. |
|
Most
frequently families utilize our conference room in Bellefonte, PA. Many
churches or other community venues have been utilized for conferences as
well. |
|
The
average length of a FGC is 3-4 hours. |
What
types of families should be referred?
|
Families that have a decision to make. |
|
Families that can safely gather to make decisions to keep their child(ren)
safe. |
|
Families with enough resources to constitute a group. |
|
The
conference must be organized with a well-defined, open ended purpose and no
pre-determined outcome. |
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