Early Help Pathway

Examples of people/organisations who might support

GP, dentist, health visiting, nursery, pre-school and school settings. Mainstream community services provided to all, e.g. Education, GP, Dentist and the Healthy Child Programme.

Child’s Developmental Needs (and unborn baby where appropriate)

• The child is consistently meeting or exceeding key developmental milestones across physical, emotional, social, and cognitive domains. They are growing in confidence, showing curiosity about the world, and engaging positively with peers and adults.
• Parents and carers are highly attuned to the child’s needs, responding with warmth, encouragement, and timely support. They ensure that the child’s health is well-managed, including regular medical and dental check-ups, a balanced diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, and opportunities for physical activity and rest.
• The child demonstrates a strong sense of self-worth and emotional resilience. They can express their feelings, cope with minor setbacks, and seek help when needed. They enjoy healthy friendships and are actively involved in school and community life, where they are thriving both academically and socially.

Parenting Capacity

• Parents consistently meet their child’s physical, emotional, and developmental needs with care and reliability. They provide a stable, nurturing environment where the child feels safe, loved, and supported.
• The family engages proactively with universal services such as health visitors, schools, and community programmes. They seek advice when needed and use available resources to enhance their parenting and support their child’s wellbeing.
• Parenting is characterised by positive routines, clear boundaries, and open communication. Parents model respectful relationships and encourage their child’s independence and learning

Family and Environmental Factors

• The family enjoys strong, respectful relationships and works collaboratively to nurture the child. There is a sense of emotional warmth and mutual support within the household. When there is conflict it is resolved positively, demonstrating healthy relationships to the child.
• The home is secure, clean, and comfortable, providing a safe space for the child to grow and play. The family manages their finances responsibly, ensuring that the child’s basic needs, such as food, clothing, and educational materials are consistently met.
• When challenges arise, the family can manage them effectively together. They use problem-solving skills, access support from family and friends when needed, and maintain a positive outlook. Their resilience helps to maintain a stable and loving environment for the child.

For guidance on how to support the child and family, see Getting Advice

Examples of people/organisations who might support

A Lead Practitioner should work with the family to complete an Early Help Assessment and Family Plan. Lead Practitioners can come from a range of agencies including health, schools and the voluntary sector. This may or may not require multi-disciplinary involvement.

Child’s Developmental Needs (and unborn baby where appropriate)

• The child is showing early signs of delay in reaching expected developmental milestones, and there may be emerging concerns that could include difficulties with communication, motor skills, emotional regulation, or social interaction.
• The child requires additional support to ensure that their health, education, and emotional wellbeing are fully met. This might involve input from health professionals, teachers, or emotional wellbeing services to help the child to thrive.
• There are emerging concerns about school attendance. The child may be absent, late, or showing signs of struggling to engage with learning. These patterns are beginning to affect their academic progress, social development, and sense of belonging within the school community.  NB: A child not meeting milestones needs to be considered alongside SEND needs.

Parenting Capacity

• At times, the child and or their parents may struggle to regulate their emotions and behaviours, which can lead to tension, misunderstandings, and difficulty forming or maintaining positive relationships. This sporadic emotional instability can leave the child feeling vulnerable and unsupported some of the time.
• Parents are inconsistent in meeting their child’s needs, particularly around establishing routines, setting boundaries and providing emotional security. When parental conflict occurs and is poorly resolved with it starting to have an impact on the child’s wellbeing and sense of safety.
• Parents require some help to manage their child’s behaviour effectively. This may include parenting programmes, therapeutic input, or practical guidance to help them respond to their child’s needs with greater confidence and consistency.

Family and Environmental Factors

• The child has taken on occasional caring responsibilities for family members, which can interfere with their own development, education, and social life. Being a young carer places additional emotional and practical strain on the child.
• Engagement with health services has started to be sporadic, raising concerns about the child’s health and development.
• The family is facing challenges in maintaining the home and managing finances, which may result in instability, stress, and difficulty meeting the child’s basic needs such as food, warmth, and clothing.
• Parents need support to ensure that the home environment is safe and suitable for children all of the time. This includes guidance around safe sleeping arrangements, maintaining hygienic living conditions, and creating a space that promotes the child’s health and wellbeing.

For guidance on how to support the child and family, see Getting Help

Examples of people/organisations who might support

A Lead Practitioner from targeted services should work with the family to complete an Early Help Assessment and Family Plan. At this level, multi-disciplinary support is usually required to form the Team Around the
Family.

Child’s Developmental Needs (and unborn baby where appropriate)

• The child’s physical and emotional health needs are not being consistently met, which is affecting their ability to grow, learn, and thrive. They may lack access to regular meals, medical care, or emotional support, leading to poor self-care and deteriorating wellbeing.
• Mental health challenges are having an impact on the child’s daily life. This may include signs of self-harm, disordered eating, withdrawal, or other behaviours that indicate distress and a lack of coping strategies.
• The child can be persistently absent from school, and the family is struggling to maintain engagement with education. Despite support and interventions, the child is making little or no academic progress, which is contributing to feelings of failure and isolation.
  • Professionals have ongoing concerns about neglect, including unmet basic needs, lack of supervision, and emotional unavailability. These concerns are persistent and require coordinated, targeted support.
• The child may be displaying anti-social or risky behaviours which reflect deeper emotional and environmental instability and require attention.
• NB: A child not meeting milestones needs to be considered alongside SEND needs

Parenting Capacity

• The parents’ ability to meet their child’s needs is compromised, potentially due to their own learning difficulties, mental health issues, or substance misuse. These challenges are directly impacting the child’s safety, development, and emotional wellbeing.
• Parents are unable to manage their child’s behaviour in a way that is appropriate for their age and developmental stage. The child may be exposed to push/pull factors outside the home, such as peer pressure, unsafe environments, or lack of boundaries, which increase vulnerability.
• There is a lack of consistent routines, emotional regulation, and protective parenting, leaving the child without the structure and support they need to feel secure and understood.

Family and Environmental Factors

• There are relationship challenges within the family, such as conflict, domestic abuse, breakdown in communication, or emotional distance and this is affecting the child’s day-to-day life and sense of stability.
• The child may be a young carer, taking on responsibilities for family members that interfere with their education, social development, and personal wellbeing. These responsibilities can be overwhelming
  and isolating.
• The child is vulnerable to risks outside the home, including exposure to alcohol, drugs, child exploitation, or going missing. These risks can be compounded by a lack of protective factors and supervision.
• The household environment has periods where it is emotionally and physically unstable. Family relationships may be strained or harmful, and the child may not feel supported within their own home.
• Housing insecurity and financial hardship are having a direct impact on the child’s daily life. This may include inadequate living conditions, lack of access to basic necessities, and ongoing stress that affects the entire family system. 

For guidance on how to support the child and family, see Getting More Help

Who will support

This is when a child is at risk of or already experiencing significant harm. Refer to Children’s Social Care. 

Child’s Developmental Needs (and unborn baby where appropriate)

• The child is experiencing serious and immediate threats to their health, safety, and wellbeing. There may be evidence or strong suspicion of non-accidental injury, requiring urgent investigation and protection
• The child is engaging in substance misuse (drugs or alcohol) and there is clear evidence that these behaviours are causing significant harm.
• The child has either disclosed or is known to have suffered significant harm due to abuse. This may include physical or sexual abuse, or chronic neglect that has accumulated over time and deeply affected their development, sense of safety, and emotional stability.
• NB: A child not meeting milestones needs to be considered alongside SEND needs

The child is facing serious and immediate risks to their health and safety, possibly including suspected injury or harm that requires urgent protection. They may also be using drugs or alcohol in ways that are causing significant harm. There is evidence or strong concern that the child has experienced serious abuse or neglect, which is having a major impact on their wellbeing and development.

Parenting Capacity

• Parents are failing to meet their child’s basic and emotional needs, placing them at risk of significant harm. There is a lack of protective parenting, and the child may be left unsupervised, unsupported, or exposed to dangerous situations.
• There may be no adult exercising parental responsibility, leaving the child without guidance, care, or advocacy. This absence of responsible care giving, places the child in a highly vulnerable position.
• Concerns extend to unborn children, particularly where there is a known history of previous children being removed from parental care or where current circumstances suggest a high risk of harm.
• Educational neglect is evident, with persistent failure by the parent or carer to ensure that the child attends school or engages in learning. This neglect is contributing to developmental delays, social isolation, and emotional distress.

Family and Environmental Factors

• The family is facing acute and serious mental or physical health challenges that are directly impacting the child’s safety and wellbeing. These issues may be unmanaged or untreated, creating an unstable and unsafe home environment.
• The child is living in a household where domestic abuse is present, exposing them to trauma, fear, and emotional harm. This environment undermines their sense of security and development.
• There are concerns that the child may be at risk of culturally or ideologically motivated harm, including forced marriage, honour-based violence, slavery, radicalisation, or female genital mutilation. These risks require immediate safeguarding intervention.
• The child is exposed to adults who pose a known risk to children, whether through criminal behaviour, abusive history, or unsafe conduct. This exposure places the child in danger and requires urgent protective action.

For guidance on how to support the child and family, and make a referral please see Getting help to address harm