A gathering of minds in London
On Tuesday 8th April, people from across the UK with a passion for Family & Group Conferencing (FGC) for Adults descended on north London for this year’s Research and Practice Network gathering.
People joined us from places as far and wide as Edinburgh, Scarborough, Essex and Hampshire as well as many London Boroughs to hear from a range of voices championing the impact that the approach can make in the lives of local people.
Members came from the worlds of academia, health care, social work practice, training provision and the civil service. Some have adopted the approach for some time and shared how it has become a mainstay, supporting people to have a voice and be in control of their lives. Others have newly adopted the approach within the last year, and many were exploring the model and came keen to learn more.
What stood out was the breadth of applications of the approach across health and social care systems and beyond. We had examples of the model being used to fantastic effect in early help, mental health services, integrated approaches, support planning, perinatal support and assisting people at the end of life.
We explored together the potential for the model beyond these boundaries – with partners in community and voluntary sector, support providers and criminal justice – and we heard of some possible work in these areas.