Suffolk father says accessing support for disabled children is 'nearly a full-time job'
Steven Wright says he has taken legal action
Stephen Wright, who also helps run local parent support groups, says families need to see evidence that Suffolk County Council's new Family Help service delivers meaningful change.
The council says the service, which began operating on 1 September, is intended to give families earlier and more coordinated support, with one assessment, one family plan and a dedicated practitioner.
It covers a range of issues including school attendance, emotional wellbeing, parenting and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
But Mr Wright told us that his own experience of trying to access support for his children has been extremely difficult.
“For me, and sadly the same for so many other families, it is nearly a full-time job,” he said.
“Just constantly dealing with, just trying to, every little piece of support, which are legal entitlements, is just so fragile, it has to be fought for every day.”
Mr Wright said the uncertainty around his children's support means his family cannot always rely on arrangements continuing.
He also argued that earlier intervention could prevent some families' needs from becoming more serious.
“Early help just isn't there,” he claimed.
“So a small amount of help, a small amount of monitoring and oversight, which would cost almost nothing, is denied and then needs escalate and more support is required.
“So things escalate rather than get better.”
Father says he has started legal action
Mr Wright also told us he has started legal action relating to the social care provided to his daughter.
He claims Suffolk County Council has declined to follow recommendations concerning her care following a tribunal.
He said: “It's devastating to have to be doing this all the time.
“If it were a simple disagreement between myself and the council, then, you know, that would be one situation.
“But again, here we have an expert tribunal which would have made recommendations and, without giving reasons, the council has refused to accept those recommendations.”
We have asked Suffolk County Council to respond to Mr Wright's account, including his claims about the tribunal recommendations and access to support.
New Family Help service launched
Suffolk County Council says its Family Help service is intended to simplify the way families receive support.
Under the new approach, families contacting the service, or referred by professionals such as teachers, GPs or health visitors, should receive one assessment and one family plan, with a dedicated practitioner coordinating support.
The council says the aim is to intervene earlier and reduce the need for families to repeatedly provide the same information to different services.
The authority's existing published guidance says children's needs are considered on a case-by-case basis and the response is determined following an assessment using statutory guidance.
Its published information about early help also says assessments are reviewed to determine whether the threshold for support has been met and whether a Family Support team is the appropriate service.
Councillor Simon Aalders, Suffolk County Council's Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said when announcing Family Help that families had told the authority they wanted support to be “easier to access and better connected”.
He said: “Family Help means they won’t have to knock on multiple doors or repeat their story over and over again.
“Instead, they’ll have one coordinated plan and the right people working together around them from the start.”
'We need to see some hard data'
Mr Wright said he supports the principle of services working more closely together but wants greater clarity about how the new approach will work in practice.
He said he had contacted other parents before speaking to Greatest Hits Radio and claimed those he had spoken to were also unaware of the new service.
Mr Wright said he now wants the council to demonstrate what difference Family Help makes to families.
“Let's see some hard data as to how effective it was,” he said.
“How many families were supported, how many services, what services were implemented and brought to bear to help those families.
“Hard data in terms of numbers, funding, how much money was actually spent on those services. And let's hear the family stories. How did, what did they think?”
He added: “Let's see something concrete afterwards rather than just a headline which might disappear.”
Suffolk County Council says Family Help forms part of its wider Families First transformation programme, which is intended to bring services and safeguarding partners closer together around children and families.
The council is also testing a Multi-Agency Child Protection Team involving children's social care, police, health and education professionals.
The 12-week trial is intended to improve information sharing and decision-making where children are considered at risk of significant harm. The council says that, if successful, the model will be rolled out across Suffolk from March 2027.