YorOK Newsletter July 2010

Email not displaying correctly? View it online.



		Welcome to the YorOK newsletter for July 2010! Another packed YorOK newsletter for you this month. There is information on the new YorOK Induction self assessment (if you haven't tried it yet you really should!), MeToo funding, top tips for working with parents of disabled children, School's Out becoming "Shine" and much more! We've had good feedback about the first edition of this newsletter and we know more people in the YorOK workforce are signing up to receive it. So if you have a message you want to get out to colleagues then go to the end of the email to find out how to contribute to the next newsletter! Sue Metcalfe Chair of the Children's Trust Board Deputy Chief Executive (Director of Localities) NHS North Yorkshire and York



NEW for the YorOK Workforce: The YorOK Induction Assess your skills and knowledge using the YorOK Induction online self assessment and view related training, information and resources. The YorOK Induction is recommended for anyone who works or volunteers with children, young people and families in York and can be used by both new and existing members of the workforce. The aim is to introduce members of the children and young people’s workforce to the YorOK Children’s Trust and to help make sense of what it means to be a part of a Children’s Trust. Also available are multi agency ‘Welcome to YorOK’ sessions on offer across the City on a bi-monthly basis providing information about the YorOK Children’s Trust, key contacts and services and an opportunity for members of the workforce to come together and learn about each others roles. Book online now!
Confused about CAF? Confused About CAF? Are you unsure on what CAF is, how to do one, when to do one? Then come and talk to the integrated working team at one of our multiagency 'Confused About CAF' sessions. Here you can discuss any issue around CAF with practitioners across the YorOK workforce and with the team behind the YorOK Child Index. Various training options are available around integrated working. For further information contact the Integrated Working team on 01904554358 or go to the YorOK website.
Step Up, Step Down A new way of working between Children Social Care and the Integrated Working Team The Integrated Working Project Lead is working closely with colleagues in the Referral and Assessment team to align tier 2 and 3 thresholds across the Pyramid of Need. This involves daily discussions to consider enquiries where a tier 2 service response is more appropriate than tier 3. In many instances, where a child's needs can be met through a tier 2 response, the Integrated Working Project Lead brokers a tier 2 agency response around a CAF to meet the needs of the child or young person. Where a initial assessment / core assessment has been completed by a social worker but there is no longer a need for statutory response the initial / core assessment is "deemed" a CAF and with consent from the family given to the Lead Practitioner. For further information please contact the Integrated Working Team on 01904551900 / 554358. Alternatively go to the YorOK website to find out more.
Children's Centres Celebration! A city-centre Children's Centre Celebration event is being planned for this September. The aim is to encourage families to come and find out more about Children's Centres and other services that take place across the city. If you would like to contribute to the day or can help publicise it to families then get in touch. You can read more about Children's Centres online.
York Youth Community Action Programme (YYCAP) The months leading up to summer have seen a flurry of activity around the York Youth Community Action Programme (YYCAP), the city-wide programme which aims to involve all 14 to 16 year olds in volunteering and community action up to March 2011. The York Youth Community Action Grant Fund has created 4,902 new volunteering opportunities for 14 to 16 year olds who live or go to school in York. Young people aged 14 to 16, who live or go to school in York, can apply for to the Young People’s Grants Fund. To find out more about the Young People’s Grant Fund check out the Young People’s Grants Fund website or contact Julia Massey on 07801 820711 or Julia.massey@vtplc.com
Me Too! All schools across the city have now received additional funding to provide economically disadvantaged pupils with access to stimulating after school and holiday activities of their choosing. Schools have received an initial allocation of funding through the Me Too subsidy enabling them to target resources to those young people who are less able to pay to take part in holiday and after school activities. A session to support providers will be held on the 22nd July where a range of staff will be on hand to advise providers on how they can effectively meet the needs of schools. For more information go to the YorOK website or contact Sarah Carrick or Jan Kilmartin on 01904 554441 or email sarah.carrick@york.gov.uk or jan.kilmartin@york.gov.uk.
Young Runaways The integrated working team have been working in partnership with colleagues in North Yorkshire and York Police to identify and then broker support for children and young people who have runaway. Find out more on the YorOK website.

No Wrong Door Conference - 11th June Many thanks to all those people who contributed to and attended the No Wrong Door Conference in June. There were many highlights including presentations by young people on: Being a young carer (contact Linda Stubbs- Linda.Stubbs@yorkcarerscentre.co.uk) Being young and having experience of homelessness (contact Sandra Hirst - sandra.hirst@york.gov.uk) The guest speakers: Maggie Atkinson - Children’s Commissioner for England, talking about “The challenges practitioners and services face while keeping the rights of children at the forefront of their practice.” Christine Davies CBE Director - The Centre for Excellence and Outcomes which supports agencies working with children and young people. Christine spoke on "Children at Risk - What it takes to narrow the gap". A DVD from C4EO will soon be forwarded to all participants from the day.
Awards for York School Councils! Congratulations to two York School Council's who recently won awards! Derwent Schools School Council were delighted to win a category in The Speakers School Council Awards with their Mother’s Day Secret Room project. Each year the School Council organise a secret room to enable children to buy and wrap gifts at affordable prices for their Mothers. Osbaldwick's council organised a York-wide meeting of school councils to discuss projects, share ideas and find inspiration for improving life in schools. Judges were impressed by the project's scope and how professionally the conference was organised. Osbaldwick were one of 4 schools awarded top prize by the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow in the 2010 Speaker's School Council Awards.
YorOK Board Update The YorOK Board (or children's trust board) meets every two months and its meetings are open to the public. The most recent meeting was held on 12th July and items on the agenda included: Children's Trust Update (Judy Kent) Taking Play Forward: Play Strategy (Mary Bailey) Catalyst / Family Intervention Project (Linda Murphy & Phil Martin) YorOK Workforce Strategy: Induction Standards (Kate Helme) Thematic item - 21st Century Schools / World Class Primary Schools / Virtual Head Teacher for Looked after Children / Community Partnerships (Jill Hodges & Joan Lupton) The Agenda and Minutes for the YorOK Board can be viewed here.

	Contribute to this newsletter! The more contributions we receive from partners, the better this newsletter will be. If you have something you'd like to contribute, or a topic you'd like to see included, please use the YorOK Workforce Article Submission Form, or for queries contact Chris Shipley
	Are you in the loop? If you received this email from a friend or colleague you can sign up to receive the YorOK workforce newsletter directly on the YorOK workforce website.
If you find this newsletter useful, perhaps your colleagues will too? Click here to forward it to them.

Are you in the loop?

If you received this email from a friend or colleague you can sign up to receive the YorOK workforce newsletter directly on the YorOK workforce website.

Sign up now!

In this newsletter...

YorOK Workforce Induction
Confused about CAF?
Step Up, Step Down
YorOK Child Index
York Youth Community Action Programme
Me Too!
Young Runaways
No Wrong Door
Childcare in York
Children's Centre Celebration
Shine is here!
Awards for York School Councils!
Aspirations For Life
Autumn Autism conference
YorOK Board Update

Training Update

FREE Working with Parents Training!

Watch out in the next issue for more details of Working with Parents training aimed at the wider workforce who come into contact with parents as part of their work with children and young people. The Parenting Early Intervention Project hopes to be able to fund accredited places on a pilot running in York in the Autumn.

Childcare in York

Childcare in York - Have your say for the chance to win £100!
Are you a mum, dad or carer of a child or young person under 16 years old? (or 18 years old if disabled or with additional needs) Do you use, or would like to use, childcare in York? Are you a mum, dad or carer to be? Do you have views on the quality and availability of childcare? If so we'd like to hear from you! Go to the Childcare Consultation now!

Top Tips for working with parents!

5 top tips for building confidence with parents of disabled children

1. Tell parent/carers what you are going to do and when
2. Ask parent/carers for feedback about how your service/ work supports them
3. Make it explicit how you have changed your support in response to their feedback. "Following your feedback I am now going to..."
4. Summarise discussions with parents outlining what is agreed and who will do what
5. Involve parent/carers in the planning and review of your service. Their knowledge will help you meet the needs of other families as well.

Have you checked the YorOK Child Index?

Are you considering completing a Common Assessment Framework (CAF)? If so, please remember to contact the YorOK Child Index on 01904 55428 prior to completing the CAF.

As an authorised user of the YorOK Child Index you can find out if there are other agencies working with the child or young person and whether a CAF has already been completed. This will ensure that you can share information with the appropriate agencies and avoid repeat assessments.

For further information please go to the YorOK website or contact the Integrated Working Team on 01904 554268 / 554358 or yor.ok@york.gov.uk

Shine is here!!!

Shine is replacing School's Out as York's best activities magazine!

It's not just about the holidays anymore, from now on Shine will be the place to go to find out about anything you want to get involved in during your free time.

Aspirations For Life

Aspirations For Life is a campaign funded by the Department for Education as part of the Valuing Employment Now strategy.

The campaign will raise aspirations and expectations for children and young people with learning disabilities; with a particular focus on employment.

Autumn Autism conference

North Yorkshire Central Branch Autumn Autism conference will be held on Friday 17th September 2010 at David Lloyd Gym off Hull Road from 8.45am (registration) till 4.30pm. Download the flyer for more information.

This email was sent by the York Children's Trust Unit on behalf of the YorOK board.
YorOK: working together with children, young people and families.

You can instantly unsubscribe from these emails at any time

Welcome to the YorOK newsletter for July 2010!

A new way of working between Children Social Care and the Integrated Working Team

Children's Centres Celebration!

Awards for York School Councils!

Contribute to this newsletter!

Are you in the loop?

Are you in the loop?

In this newsletter...

Training Update

Shine is here!!!