troubled families

A key government programme supposedly targeting the most troubled families in England is probably wasting millions of pounds a year and is working with the wrong families in the wrong way, according to a new report published today by the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies. The report, The Troubled Families Programme: the perfect social policy?, describes as ‘unbelievable’ government claims that the Troubled Families Programme has a 99 per cent success rate.

Patrick Butler reports in today's Guardian on claims that early childhood brain development is the main cause of later social problems. There is 'deep unease' among British researchers, he writes, over the 'use of neuroscience' and the related 'underplaying of poverty' to influence child protection policy.

He continues:

The government's troubled families programme is likely to miss its target to 'turn around' 120,000  so-called troubled families, the influential House of Commons Public Accounts Select Committee argues in a new report.

We missed this interesting and revealing interview with Troubled Families head Louise Casey when it first appeared in The Guardian last week.

Speaking on social work practice she said 'I think we need to bring back, actually, some emotional exposure, the ability to be human, the ability to empathise, not to be fearful of empathy.'