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Supporting Parents, Strengthening communities

21 November 2006

Parents across the country whose families are showing signs of anti-social behaviour will be given a helping hand after the Government today announced it will set up a network of parenting experts as part of a wider drive to promote respect in all our communities.

Dedicated parenting experts will be established in 77 areas across England, through a £4 million boost in Government funding, to ensure that those parents who are worried about their children’s behaviour can get the help they need to put an end to the bad behaviour and bring up happier, better behaved children.

Frontline staff tackling anti-social behaviour will call on these parenting experts to provide help to families in evidence based parenting classes or sometimes on a one to one basis.

This new package of support comes on the same day as research shows that the public think that parents not bringing up their children properly is one of the main causes of anti-social behaviour. The key findings of the survey are:

53 per cent say poor parenting is one of the key causes of anti-social behaviour;
55 per cent say better parenting would do most to reduce crime;
four out of five people agree that parents should be held responsible for the bad behaviour of their children;
92 per cent would like to see all ten year olds indoors and off the streets at 8:30pm on school nights;
95 per cent support police taking children under 16 home if they are being anti-social after 9pm; and
one third of parents would look for help from their friends and family when dealing with difficult or troublesome behaviour and two thirds would find help from outside these useful.

Parents who have been through parenting programmes met with the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary today to explain how parenting classes have helped them to improve their children’s behaviour.

The Home Secretary John Reid said:

“Parents are the single biggest influence on a child’s life but being a parent can be a difficult job and sometimes people need help to stop their kids getting into trouble. The support we are announcing today responds to the needs of parents and if we can help to build stronger families, then we will also create safer communities.

“This is about acting responsibly and recognising that good parenting can be learnt, bringing benefits to all. Intervention from public services helps not just the child, but the family and the local community too.”

Evidence also shows that good parenting improves a child’s life chances; reduces the risk of that child disrupting their local community by behaving anti-socially; and saves local agencies money by nipping problems in the bud.

The Department for Education and Skills also announced that it will fund training for up to 1,000 frontline workers in areas with a Family Intervention Project (FIP). FIPs seek to work with whole families to address parenting and behaviour difficulties and in doing so tackle anti-social behaviour.

Children, Young People and Families Minister Beverley Hughes said:
“The majority of parents do a good job. But ineffective and chaotic parenting has a hugely negative impact on the lives of children and young people and on our communities.
“A minority of parents fail to set any boundaries and allow their children to drift into anti-social behaviour that is a danger to themselves and a menace to those around them. We want to give these parents the help and support they need.
“I am pleased to be able to announce funding for the training of the 77 parenting experts alongside training for 1,000 others across the country. Our departments are working closely together to enable this and will continue to do so. “
Louise Casey, the Government Co-ordinator for Respect, said:

“We know that good parenting courses really work in improving children’s behaviour. If good behaviour is taught at home, then we have a much better chance of seeing it in the school and in the streets.

“Action in these 77 areas will help deliver a fundamental objective of the Respect drive - to give control of our communities back to the law-abiding majority so that they can go about their daily lives free from fear of intimidation, harassment or abuse.”

Minister for Social Exclusion, Hilary Armstrong, said:

"Poor parenting can have dramatic long-term negative consequences for a child and severely limit their life-chances. It can expose children to greater risks, can contribute to the development of potentially harmful behaviour, and can reinforce inter-generational cycles of deprivation and exclusion.

“That is why the Social Exclusion Action Plan focuses on increased early intervention and support for parenting and why I thoroughly welcome this announcement today."

Notes to Editors:

The results of the MORI survey are available at www.repsect.gov.uk (new window)
A background document setting out the case for parenting is available at www.respect.gov.uk (new window)
Case studies of parents who have benefited from parenting programmes are available from the Home Office press office on 020 7035 3812. The press office can also provide contact details for parents who are willing to do media interviews.
The Respect Action Plan was published in January 2006 and sets out a framework of powers and approaches to promote respect positively; bear down uncompromisingly on anti-social behaviour; tackle its causes; and offer leadership and support to local people and local services. The Action Plan can be accessed via the internet at www.respect.gov.uk (new window)
A family intervention project is an intensive support scheme designed to help families who are perpetrators of persistent, high level anti-social behaviour. The aim is to break the cycle of poor behaviour by tackling the many underlying causes through work with families in their own homes or in a residential unit. Support plans specific to the families’ needs are drawn up and can include financial advice, anger management, parenting support and health advice. The Government is committed to establishing 50 family intervention projects across the country by January 2007.
The funding will be provided in the following local authorities broken down by Government Office region :

EAST MIDLANDS
Ashfield District Council
Bassetlaw District Council
Bolsover District Council
Corby Borough Council
Derby City Council
Leicester City Council
Mansfield District Council
Northampton Borough Council
Nottingham City Council

WEST MIDLANDS
Birmingham City Council
Coventry City Council
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
Stoke on Trent City Council
Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council

NORTH WEST
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
Blackpool Council
Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
Burnley Borough Council
Halton Borough Council
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council
Liverpool City Council
Manchester City Council
Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
Salford City Council
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council

YORKSHIRE & HUMBER
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council
City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council
City of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council
Kingston upon Hull City Council
Kirklees Metropolitan Council
Leeds City Council
North East Lincolnshire Council
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
Sheffield City Council

NORTH EAST
Darlington Borough Council
Derwentside District Council
District of Easington
Hartlepool Borough Council
Middlesbrough Council
Newcastle City Council
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council
South Tyneside Council
Sunderland City Council

SOUTH WEST
Bournemouth Borough Council
Bristol City Council
Exeter City Council
Gloucester City Council
Plymouth City Council
Torbay Council

SOUTH EAST
Brighton and Hove City Council
Hastings Borough Council
Medway Council
Portsmouth City Council
Reading Borough Council
Slough Borough Council
Southampton City Council
Thanet District Council

EAST OF ENGLAND
Great Yarmouth Borough Council
Harlow District Council
Ipswich Borough Council
Luton Borough Council
Norwich City Council
Southend on Sea Borough Council
Peterborough City Council

LONDON
City of Westminster Council
Greenwich London Borough Council
Haringey London Borough Council
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
London Borough of Camden Council
London Borough of Hackney
London Borough of Lambeth
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Newham London Borough Council
Southwark Council

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