Before the family group conference is held, the facilitator will spend time with you and your family and explore who else needs to attend the conference. This could include members of the extended family and kin, a support person or a community elder. You may also want to invite agencies that have been working with you. If people live overseas or interstate, we will work with you to support their participation in the process. Children and young people may attend the family group conference. This will depend on their age, maturity and what needs to be discussed. They can also write down their thoughts and someone else attending the conference can read this out for them. Children and young people may wish to attend for part of the meeting and we help families to decide how this will look on the day. One Future facilitators understand it feels overwhelming and worrying to be asked to attend a family group conference and talk about personal information. One Future facilitators ensure that you understand what information will be shared, and explain why it needs to be talked about. We can work with you to decide how you want this information shared, and who with. We always remain child-focused and will only share things that are needed to ensure the safety and well-being of your child(ren).

The facilitator can help you to develop a plan that addresses the worries or concerns that services have described in the ‘information sharing’ part of the family group conference. The facilitator can help you to get started by giving you questions to think about for your plan. Most families find that having private family time allows them to talk about and come up with a good plan together using their strengths and support networks. If a family cannot develop a plan that everyone agrees on, the facilitator will talk with services and the family to find a way forward that addresses the concerns. 

The facilitator will explain at the start of the meeting what the expectations are for people who are attending. The facilitator will talk with you before the family group conference about what you think is important to include, but the group agreement will focus on things like having the focus of the conversation about the child/ren, talking about the future and not the past, not blaming, and speaking respectfully and listening to each other. This is to ensure that the family group conference runs smoothly and that all participants agree how they will interact before the meeting starts. 

The facilitator will talk with you about how you will get to the venue and can liaise with the caseworker if financial assistance is needed to attend the meeting. It may be that you can get a lift with a family member or support worker. The meeting will be held locally for the parents and child/ren. If family members live a distance away, the facilitator will look at options using technology to support their attendance at the meeting.

Not all families have contact with their family members for a whole range of reasons.  The facilitator can help you think about who else could be in your support network, for example, good friends, neighbours or people who care and who you trust. The facilitator can also contact family members to see if they would be willing to attend or share information at the meeting. 

One Future uses technology to support family members or services to attend family group conferences and the facilitator of the meeting will talk to you about who you would like to participate in the family group conference. We use our own video conferencing system to include family members who are unable to attend in person.

Family group conferences are one way in which families can work together with child protection services, but they are voluntary. If you decide not to attend a family group conference, the caseworker will continue to work with you and your family to address the concerns for your child/ren. 

The child/ren who the meeting relates to may attend if agreed with the facilitator, but we ask that other children do not come along as this can be a distraction for people. Please talk with your facilitator about childcare if this is an issue for you.

The facilitator’s role is to work hard to make it possible for people to attend by addressing their concerns and dealing with any problems. Often people will attend, even if they are unsure to begin with after talking with the facilitator. If people still do not want to attend the facilitator will talk with you and with the caseworker and together you can make a decision about whether to go ahead with the meeting.

If you decide that a family group conference is not the right thing for you and your family the facilitator will inform the caseworker of your decision.  If you change your mind at any point in the future, you can contact your caseworker and ask them to make a new referral. The caseworker will continue to work with you and your family. 

The out of Home Care organisation or DCJ has made the referral to One Future. It is the case workers job to share the concerns as well as details of support they can offer with you and your family. They will also be able to answer any questions you may have.

You should invite any friends and family who are important to you and your family. You should also invite any service provider or group that are currently offering you some support.