Early Help is intervening as soon as possible to tackle problems emerging for children, young people and their families to improve their outcomes.
Early Help is for every child from before they are born to the age of 19 (up to 25 if a young adult has identified special educational needs and or a disability).
Early Help allows for support to be put in place at the right time to meet families’ needs prior to issues reaching crisis point. It draws upon families’ own skills and promotes self-reliance.
Effective early help relies upon local organisations and agencies working together to:
- identify children and families who would benefit from early help
- undertake an assessment of the need for early help
- provide targeted early help services to address the assessed needs of a child and their family which focuses on activity to improve the outcomes for the child
We all have a legal responsibility for safeguarding children and young people at the earliest opportunity. We want every child to be safe, healthy, and free from harm and enable all children and young people to achieve the best outcomes.
The Early Help Teams across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole provide help and support with all aspects of family life. Children’s First Response and Early Help First Response Teams work alongside MASH colleagues and is the entry point to all Early Help offers.
How to get in touch with our Early Help First Response Team (MASH)
You can get in touch with our First Response team by:
- phone on: 01202 123 334
- email at: childrensfirstresponse@bcpcouncil.gov.uk
If you need help out of office hours you can:
- phone on: 01202 738 256
- email at: childrensOOHS@bcpcouncil.gov.uk
In an emergency, or if you believe a child is at immediate risk of harm, call the police on 999.
How to get in touch with our Early Help First Response Team (MASH)
You can get in touch with our First Response team by:
- phone on: 01202 123 334
- email at: childrensfirstresponse@bcpcouncil.gov.uk
If you need help out of office hours you can:
- phone on: 01202 738 256
- email at: childrensOOHS@bcpcouncil.gov.uk
In an emergency, or if you believe a child is at immediate risk of harm, call the police on 999.
Early Help Access Point (EHAP)
You can find more help by getting in touch by using our early help access point.
Continuum of need
You can also download our continuum of need document.