Families First Partnership Programme Implementation Support
31ten was commissioned by the London Borough of Brent to support the implementation of the Department for Education’s (DfE) Families First Partnership Programme (FFPP), a major reform of children’s social care. This national programme aims to create a more integrated, family-centred system by bringing together targeted early help and statutory social care into an integrated offer, strengthening multi-agency child protection and embedding family networks in decision making. In Brent, this has involved undertaking robust analysis of local needs and outcomes to underpin the local Families First model and bringing together local partners to plan for system change (including redesigning pathways and establishing new multidisciplinary teams). Drawing on extensive experience in social care and whole-system transformation, 31ten is supporting the council to design a model that is evidence-informed and tailored to the needs of Brent’s communities.
The Role
To support the council in their design and implementation of the FFPP, and in meeting all DfE requirements, we have completed the following:
- Developing a tailored partnership governance structure – We designed a new governance structure for Brent’s FFPP, tailored to the local context. This new structure comprised a multiagency Programme Board, Operational Delivery and Steering Groups, and specialist Reference Groups focused on co-production and lived experience. Membership was carefully designed to reflect the programme’s multi-agency emphasis, incorporating safeguarding partners (children’s services, education, health, police), heads of services from partner agencies and key LBB staff, alongside family voices. The structure integrates with existing networks and aligns with DfE guidance while being specifically fit to local needs. It has enabled Brent to take a systemwide and co-productive approach to designing the local FFPP model.
- Conducting a systemwide Maturity Assessment – We designed a personalised Maturity Assessment for the council and partners, structured around the FFPP’s three key delivery stands. The purpose was to identify existing good practice to build on, and areas to prioritise in local FFPP plans. The approach to completing the Maturity Assessment combined interactive workshops and an online survey to gather data, which enabled us to produce a quantitative maturity score alongside qualitative insights gathered through open-ended questions for richer insight. Findings were shared and tested through follow up workshops with partners and staff and enabled Brent to prioritise implementation activities and areas to focus on in FFPP design.
- Producing a detailed Needs Assessment to underpin the local model – We produced a comprehensive Needs Assessment to map local demand and gather insights that directly informed the FFP programme design in Brent. Drawing on quantitative data from the LB Brent children’s services performance team, alongside publicly available sources, it provided an evidence base to shape the DfE delivery plan submission and prioritise targeted areas and population groups for redesign. Focusing on health, educational attainment, social care, youth justice and locality-specific needs, the assessment ensured that the local model responded to Brent’s diverse communities and aligned national reforms with specific borough challenges.
- Developing a local Delivery Plan – We synthesised the findings of the Maturity and Needs Assessments into an outline delivery plan for the implementation of Brent’s FFPP in line with DfE reporting requirements. We built on this outline through workshop sessions and engagement with children’s services staff and key partners to produce a detailed plan that was signed off by the Partnership Board and successfully submitted to the DfE.
Key Outcomes
Our work enabled Brent to meet all DfE requirements for the first year of the Families First Partnership Programme, delivering a comprehensive programme plan, maturity assessment and needs analysis. By tailoring the model to Brent’s specific context, the council now has a clear roadmap for implementation that ensures compliance while driving efficiency. Early outcomes include a strengthened multi-agency pathway, understanding of local needs and further involvement of family’s voices, positioning Brent to demonstrate measurable improvements in children’s safety and family stability.
“31ten provided proactive and valuable support to the Families First Partnership Programme, leading two key pieces of work — a comprehensive Needs Assessment and a Maturity Assessment — which were instrumental in helping the council shape and plan its overall programme journey. The team demonstrated tenacity, commitment, and a strong sense of purpose in driving forward agreed priorities, working at an appropriate and effective pace. Their expertise also proved pivotal in establishing the Families First governance structure, culminating in the successful formation of our Strategic Stakeholders Group with partners.”
Raul Burton
Transformation Lead, Children, Young People and Community Development – London Borough of Brent
