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3.3.4 Chronologies and Family History Guidance

SCOPE OF THIS CHAPTER

This chapter explains the terms Chronology and Family History and guides as to the way in which these should be used by practitioners. It was added to this manual in September 2010.


Contents

1. Chronology
  1.1 What is a Chronology?
  1.2 Why use a Chronology?
  1.3 When should a Chronology start?
  1.4 When should a Chronology be updated?
  1.5 When should a Chronology be completed
  1.6 What should be in a Chronology
  1.7 What should not be in a Chronology
  1.8 Chronology Format
2. Family History
  2.1 Why complete a Family History?
  2.2 What information do you need in a Child and Family Assessment?
  2.3 What should trigger a more in depth Family History?
  2.4 What would the more in-depth Family History contain?


1. Chronology

1.1 What is a Chronology?

A chronology lists in date order all the major changes and events in a child or young person’s life. All cases that go to court will be expected to have an up to date chronology and “The Climbie Enquiry” also highlighted the importance of up to date chronologies.

The primary function of a chronology is to record factual information. It is also used to record the social worker’s assessment of the impact of events on the child or young person.

Please see format below.

1.2 Why use a Chronology?

A good chronology

  • Enables agencies to identify the history of a family
  • Provides invaluable information about a child’s life experience.
  • Can reveal risks, concerns, patterns and themes, strengths and weaknesses within a family.
  • Identifies previous periods of professional involvement/support and the effectiveness/failure of previous intervention.
  • Informs the overall assessment regarding the caregivers’ ability and motivation to change.

Chronologies are not only a means of organising and merging information; they enable practitioners to gain a more accurate picture of the whole case and highlight gaps and missing details that require further assessment and identification.

A chronology should be used as an analytical tool to understand the impact, both immediate and cumulative, of events and changes in child’s life/developmental progress and to inform decision making.

1.3 When should a Chronology start?

A chronology should start when the child is born and/or first contact with social care. It should be updated during the period of social care involvement with the child/young person.

At the very least it should be started as part of the process of completing a Child and Family Assessment.

1.4 When should a Chronology be updated?

  1. When there is a significant event, see below (What should be in a Chronology).
  2. It should be regularly updated, at minimum 3 monthly intervals. Where there have been no significant events this should also be recorded in the Chronology at 3 month intervals.

1.5 When should a Chronology be completed

This list is not exhaustive -

  • At the end of an IA for all cases where children were previously subject to CP plans
  • For looked after children
  • Where there is a history of allegations
  • On all cases where a detailed Child and Family Assessment has been completed
  • On all case closures
  • Any case with an allocated social worker should have a record of an up to date chronology

Each child/young person should have their own chronology as this will:

  • Assist the social worker in recognising and understanding the family inter-relationships and dynamics
  • Avoid the assessment becoming preoccupied by one child or incident
  • Avoid the needs of the other children being overlooked

Information can be copied from one child’s records to another but the social worker needs to consider if the information should be amended in recognition of the different perspective or impact for each child.

There are circumstances (i.e. Child Protection Conference and court proceedings where for the purposes of practicality a family group chronology may be completed. The family group chronology will compile the relevant information about all of the children being assessed. When combining chronologies, care needs to be taken to make clear what event and impact, or likely impact, applies to which child(ren).

1.6 What should be in a Chronology

This list is not exhaustive -

  • Changes in family composition
  • House moves and change in address
  • Strategy Discussions/Meetings, S47 investigations, ICPC/ RCPC
  • Periods of Social Care involvement, referrals. IA's. CAs etc
  • Changes in child’s legal status
  • Injuries to child/ periods of hospitalisation
  • Core groups/meetings
  • Placement details
  • Offences
  • Births, deaths, serious illness (adult & child)
  • Separations
  • Imprisonment
  • Domestic Violence
  • Court Proceedings
  • Change of Social Worker
  • Change of School
  • Closing Case
  • Non accidental injury & significant-accidental injury or neglect event e.g. home alone
  • Statement/ disclosure made by child
  • School exclusions
  • Death in the family
  • Attempted suicide or overdose
  • Parent/ carer has new partner or another person moves out of the family home
  • Attendance/admittance to hospital
  • Change in GP
  • Child absconded/missing

If chronologies are to accurately reflect family circumstances, positive factors should also be recorded. Examples include:

  • Evidence of the family’s engagement with professionals
  • Parents self-referral for help/guidance support with relevant agencies
  • The child’s presentation in school significantly improves

The above provide a small number of examples and it is essential that practitioners use their professional judgement in identifying pertinent information. Workers are encouraged to use this information and to consult with their managers if clarity is needed regarding significant events/episodes/information.

A chronology should draw on various sources of information; the child/young person and his/her family should also be involved in the process. This can assist the social worker in obtaining family members’ perspectives on particular events and to develop an understanding of their impact on individuals in the family.

1.7 What should not be in a Chronology

  • SW visits – these points should be in the assessment or the profile case notes.
  • Analysis
  • Descriptions
  • Dialogue
  • Copy of case recording
  • Insignificant telephone contacts with parents/carers

1.8 Chronology Format

Click here to view Chronology Format.


2. Family History

2.1 Why complete a Family History?

  • FH provides a tool to assist understanding and analysis of families.
  • Together with chronology allows identification of patterns and trends
  • FH provides opportunity to test parents account against historical evidence
  • Opportunity to analyse impact of experience on parenting style and capacity
  • Provides information as basis for effective reflection, analysis and planning
  • Provides relevant agencies with shared understanding of challenge families face
  • Explores impact on parental capacity and subsequent experience of child

Can be completed as an addition to the Child and Family Assessment, recorded as Word document and uploaded to FWi.

2.2 What information do you need in a Child and Family Assessment?

Childhood History - If possible for both parents

  1. What is your own experience of being a child and the way your parents parented you? How did your family show affection? Discipline?
  2. Who was in your family?
  3. Did you have sisters/brothers?
  4. Where did you grow up?
  5. Did you get on with your Mum/Dad?
  6. What did you like/not like about your Mum/Dad
  7. How do you think your own childhood has influenced the way you look after your own children?
  8. Can this information be shared with your partner?

History of this Family - Re both parents

  1. Is this a first/eldest/ middle/youngest child?
  2. Do you live with the child’s dad/mum?
  3. Do you have a partner?
  4. How did you meet each other/ what do you like about each other/ what do you not like?
  5. What were your older children like to look after? Was it easier or more difficult than now?
  6. How did you feel when you got pregnant with this child?
  7. How was the pregnancy/ birth?
  8. History since this child was born
  9. Is there a history of offending behaviour in relation to any adults in the household that might pose a risk to a child?

2.3 What should trigger a more in depth Family History?

  1. Legal proceedings or likelihood of
  2. Previous children in care/accommodated
  3. Long history of significant contact with the Dept
  4. Child Protection concerns
  5. History of parenting capacity affected by learning disability, mental ill-health, drug/alcohol or sexual abuse
  6. Pre-birth assessments

2.4 What would the more in-depth Family History contain?

  1. Description and analysis of significant events and opinions from file. If a chronology has been completed then the assessment could refer to this rather than describing incidents/events in detail. Analysis of the impact of these events.
  2. Genogram, especially if this is not available as part of the original Child and Family Assessment.
  3. Childhood history of both parents
  4. How parents met and analysis of couple relationship as well as significant previous relationships.
  5. History of current family prior to birth of the child, including previous pregnancies.
  6. Both parents view of birth of the child
  7. History of current family since birth and meaning of the child
  8. Observation and analysis of any change in parenting over time
  9. Analysis of capacity for growth or change
  10. Availability and consistency of extended family support and willingness of parents to use this. Impact of extended family members.
  11. If appropriate a profile of other key members of the extended family.
  12. Details of any offending behaviour that may pose a risk to the child and impact on child and family.
  13. Confidential information, e.g. that one partner might not want another partner to know or may pose a risk to that partner.

End