‘How parent advocacy can rebalance the power dynamics of the children’s social care system’

By the Parents, Families and Allies Network (PFAN)

There is no sugar-coating to when a family is involved with children’s social care. Whether it is through a requested need for help or through imposed intervention, it changes the landscape and future of that family and the wider community forever.

The hope is of course that the benefits of these changes then outweigh the consequences. However, in the experience of PFAN the benefits of the child protection system in particular are the rare exception and are often weighed down by far-reaching consequences that are costly, impactful and, in most cases, irreparable.

The stakes are very high and there is currently no routine or mandatory support for families going though this trauma, which is ethically questionable.

The value of parent advocacy

Parent advocacy supports families and parents to navigate understandable fears of the system, especially around families being shattered when children are removed, temporarily or permanently. Parent advocates can normalise the fear and trauma that families face. This supports both the families and services involved.

Families often report that the information presented by professionals is incomplete or inaccurate. This could be due to a number of reasons. Parent advocates help to record information, assist in processes being compliant and bridge gaps between the groups of people involved and their expected (and unexpected) emotions and pressures.

Rebalancing power dynamics

Parent advocates support families’ rights to fully engage and participate in the decision making process  The rebalancing of the power dynamics not only allows equality of voices to be heard, but  also ensures that due and lawful process is followed – for example reading (and understanding) reports prior to meeting and afterwards. Parent advocates ensure that respect and humanity have a seat at the table, not just power and confusion.

There is an all too easy trap in social work of parent blame – from the family of a child/ren seeking help to the parent who doesn’t understand what is suddenly going on in their family – no family is immune.

Bridging gaps between professionals and families

Parent advocates help to support joint understanding and avoid misunderstanding; they can ask the questions families may feel too scared to ask or may misword. They can help to decode social work and slow down overly enthusiastic professionals. They can also help families to understand what is actually going on in practice and law – as these do not always align with each other or everyday real-life experiences.

When parent advocates are not at the table it is easy to understand how a highly emotionally charged and pressured situation could be at the mercy of misinformation and prejudice – especially when against the clock, or due to targets or even the desperation of not spending another moment without your loved ones. This can hurt all involved.

Evidence base

The evidence base for the effectiveness of peer to peer parent advocacy shows that it really works. Reviews of parent advocacy, including  the extensive international review of parent advocacy in a range of high-income countries, instil hope that change is indeed possible and achievable. The evidenced benefits of parent advocacy include:

• Improving parent and family engagement and partnership
• Reducing maltreatment
• Reducing in entry to care
• Increasing reunification
• Speeding up placement with kin or permanency
• Instilling hope for parents and supporting self-advocacy

Parental advocacy, delivered by parents with lived experience, is a powerful way to change our working cultures, build bridges and improve the focus and scope of support for children and their families. We call on social work and children’s social care to fully embrace peer to peer parent advocacy for the benefit of children, families, communities and the profession itself.

PFAN is a group of parents, academics and professionals committed to supporting and promoting peer to peer parent advocacy. You can find out more on its website.