Who can be referred?
Home-Start Kirklees has an open referral policy – this means that support is available to any family in the borough experiencing some sort of stress or difficulty. The families we help must have at least one pre-school child under the age of 5 years.
Who can make referrals?
Families can refer themselves, or be referred to Home-Start Kirklees by any agency working with parents or young children, e.g. health visitor, social worker, family support workers, CPNs, or nursery staff.
How do I make a referral?
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Establish that the family has at least one pre-school child under the age of five
- Discuss Home-Start Kirklees with the family – they MUST agree to be referred for Home-Start support
- For each referral, a referral form must be completed which indicates the family’s needs.
- Download our Home-Start Referral Form, and our Guidelines for referrers or contact our office on 01484 421925 and speak to a member of our team.
What happens next?
- We assess each referral to ensure that the support required falls within Home-Start’s remit. We will visit the family to discuss their needs and tell them about Home-Start’s service.
- We will then identify a suitable volunteer whose skills and experience match the needs of the family.
- As soon as a suitable volunteer is available, the co-ordinator will introduce them to the family and accompany them on their first visit. It may take time for a volunteer to become available and if a suitable match cannot be made then you will be informed
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We let you know when Home-Start support starts and ends, and may ask you for feedback about the impact our service has had on the family.
- We keep you informed, within confidentiality guidelines, about progress
