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Date published: January 4, 2021

Free webinar: Families helping families to create better lives

Free webinar: 9-10am, Thursday 7 January

Find out more about two exciting opportunities to develop Family by Family, a strengths-based, peer to peer model that helps families to change and grow, by learning from the lived experience of another family who has been through similar challenges as theirs.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council is seeking a family coach and a senior coach to work with Stoke-on-Trent  City Council, Shared Lives Plus and The Australian Centre for Social Innovation to develop Family by Family.

These two 10 month roles, jointly funded by Stoke-on-Trent City Council and the Department for Education Stoke Opportunity Area, would be suitable for secondments from the community and voluntary sector and for community and voluntary sector partners interested in helping to shape the programme, which will have an advisory group drawn from local stakeholders.

This webinar is an opportunity for you to hear more about how the programme operates and our ambitions for the programme in Stoke-on-Trent. It will be vital for both potential applicants and voluntary sector organisations interested in helping to shape and influence this new support approach.

Sarah Parker, Director of Children and Families Services, says:

“We know that Stoke-on-Trent faces many challenges and through our vision captured in the Early Help and Prevention Strategy we are very clear that we want all of our children, young people and families to fulfil their potential and thrive. We recognise that many families throughout the city experience short and sometimes longer-term difficulties, and at times, may need advice, help and support to overcome them.

“Many of the solutions to these difficulties lie not within professional services, but in communities and families themselves. Stoke-on-Trent is a city with strong communities, a sense of pride and huge potential. This exciting Family by Family project will provide an important catalyst to help our partnership with local communities learn from evidence-based practice and provide a stimulus for important change.  We sincerely hope you will be part of this change and join with us in supporting this programme.”

The roles

Family by Family is all about family-led change. We link up families with things in common to change the things they want to change. The Family Coach is designed to keep the focus on change. The Family Coach will be responsible for building teams of Sharing Families and increasing their capability to enable effective change for Seeking Families in Family by Family.

The coaching aspect helps set Family by Family apart from more traditional mentoring, befriending, or home visiting programmes. Coaches motivate, inspire, and problem-solve with families – they facilitate, rather than drive change. As an effective leader, the Family Coach will work collaboratively with families, local service providers, businesses, stakeholders and community members to create effective link ups and promote families as local resources.

To find out more join the free webinar at 9am on Thursday 7 January:
https://sharedlivesplus-org-uk.zoom.us/j/83214377317

You do not need to have a Zoom licence, and you can join from any device which is connected to the internet. Or to phone in dial 01314601196 and use Meeting ID: 832 1437 7317