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The focus of the Strong Bonds project is to encourage workers with young people to place a high priority on building suitable and safe connections with family. It may feel as though this will take additional time and effort on your part.
Identifying and facilitating strong family connections for a young person, however, ensures that appropriate support will exist for the young person now and into the future. A focus on family connections recognises the fact that relationship difficulties in families often contribute to a young person's problems and that families need to be part of the solution to those problems.
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Workers with young people who have complex needs often come from remarkably diverse backgrounds and the roles they play may also vary significantly. |
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Workers may need to initiate discussion and educate their organisation about the benefits and possibilities of family work. |
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Workers should be aware of family counselling, intervention and support services in your region. |
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Workers with young people who have complex needs often come from remarkably diverse backgrounds, in terms of education, training, employment and personal background. The roles that workers play may also vary significantly, for example, supporting young people regarding mental health issues, homelessness, drug use, education, employment, and/or counselling, or a more generic role.
Your ability to address family relationship issues including past traumas and attachment issues, will depend on:
- the type of work you do
- limits to your role
- the level of experience and skills that you have
- your interest in family dynamics and their effects on young people.
Family-aware youth work practice requires appropriate systemic support from management. Where this is not yet present, workers may need to initiate discussion and educate their organisation about the benefits and possibilities of family work.
If it is not within the scope of your role to work directly with a young person's family or you do not feel you have the expertise to deal with the complexity of family issues that a young person is experiencing, it is important to be aware of family counselling, intervention and support services in your region.
Below is a list of resources that may assist you in making an appropriate referral. This information should be used as a guide only.
Young person discloses abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), neglect or trauma, or you form the view that this is occurring within the family, or that the family are not sufficiently protective. Risk is current.
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- Notify the Department of Human Services and consult/negotiate regarding yours and their intervention.
- Refer for counselling as appropriate, below
Young person discloses abuse, neglect or trauma within the family, in the past. No current risk issues.
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- Provide a safe and supportive environment for them to talk about their experience if they choose to.
- See Working with Young People
- Provide young person with other resources to support their recovery
- Provide or refer for specialised counselling for young people who have experienced abuse/trauma
Young person is concerned about family relationships and dynamics. No apparent abuse, past or present.
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- Facilitate development of understanding and practical solutions in a way that promotes positive view of self, realistic view of others, relationship skills, and importance of connecting with family if family contact is appropriate.
- Provide or refer for youth- or youth-family counselling
There is a conflict or disagreement between the young person and other family member/s that they cannot resolve on their own.
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- Refer to Adolescent-Family Mediation or Therapy Service
Parents/Family want support and/or to be involved in supporting their adolescent.
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- Offer information about your service and other relevant issues.
- Decide whether you are able to offer family counselling services and if this is appropriate in this case.
- Refer them to the resources for families on the Strong Bonds website.
- Refer them to alternative individual or family counselling services as appropriate.
Young person is homeless or at risk of homelessness
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- Facilitate conflict-resolution, or refer for counselling or mediation to try to salvage a safe arrangement.
- Refer for accommodation, where necessary, with the goal of facilitating return home as soon as possible, where safe.
Young person is using drugs or family members are concerned about possible drug use
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Family members are concerned about a young person's mental health issues.
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- Provide the family with factual information about the young person's diagnosis and treatment if you have the young person's consent to do so.
- Refer family members to support groups and information services in the community for families of people with a mental illness if appropriate.
- Provide parents with emergency contact numbers for the local Crisis Assessment team, local hospital, Crisis Line etc if young person is at risk of self-harm.
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