Family Early Help
REMINDER: FROM 16 APRIL 2021, PUBLIC HEALTH GUIDANCE SAYS TO WEAR A TYPE IIR SURGICAL FACEMASK (THE BLUE MASK) WHEN WORKING IN HOMES OR VENUES WHERE 2-METRE DISTANCE CANNOT BE MAINTAINED.
You can find stock of blue masks in the FSCF PPE Store on the 9th floor at 5PS (see PPE Store section on this page for more details)
Preparing For A Face to Face Visit
Here is a flow chart to follow for what to do when you are preparing for a face-to-face visit in the family home, in an alternative venue, or in an outside space. You should also read the Public Health Guidance on Home Visits further down this section. Click the link below, or right-click the image to save it
Face-to-Face Visits - Flow Chart
Individual Risk Assessments
You and your manager should complete an individual risk assessment for you before you start face-to-face visits. This should then be reviewed every 20 days to make sure it is up to date. If you or a member of your family has COVID symptoms, or is self-isolating, let your manager know straight away, and this will trigger an immediate update of your risk assessment.
This is to make sure we have considered your unique circumstances, what you might need to help keep you safe and to mitigate risks as far as possible.
Please complete the individual risk assessment with your line manager before doing any face-to-face visits. You will find the risk assessment here:
https://lbcamden.sharepoint.com/sites/intranet/HR/Pages/COVID-19-Risk-Assessments-.aspx
If the risk assessment suggests using PPE (in addition to a face covering):
PPE supplies are held in the FIF cupboard on the 9th floor. Please talk with your manager about how to access these (there is a duty oncall manager for 5PS every day of the week).
Pre-Visit Checklist
From 3 August 2020, this checklist needs to be completed and casenoted before each face-to-face visit. This includes visits in the home, in alternative venues, or in open spaces.
Casenoting Your Pre-Visit Checklist
From 3 August 2020, you will need to casenote that you have completed the pre-visit checkist before each visit. Guidance on casenoting this is here:
Casenoting Procedure for Pre-Visit Checklists
Day of the Visit Guidance
This is guidance to support you in thinking about what to do on the day of the visit, including ways to help prevent infection spread. It doesn't need to be completed, uploaded or casenoted.
Post-Visit Guidance
This is guidance to support you in thinking about things to do after your visit, including ways to help prevent infection spread. It doesn't need to be completed, uploaded or casenoted.
"Rule of Six" - Exemption for Face-to-Face Visits
From 14 September 2020, the Government has limited the number of people who can meet to 6 people or less. We have checked with Public Health whether this affects family visits. They said:
"Despite the new guidance limiting the number of people who can meet to 6, the guidance also includes the following exemptions, which would apply to [FSCF] in the context of staff providing essential support to vulnerable families:
- for work, and voluntary or charitable services
- providing emergency assistance, or providing support to a vulnerable person
- for you or someone else to avoid illness, injury or harm
Face-to-face visits are therefore exempt from this rule (for example if you and a colleague are doing an initial home visit with a family of 5).
Here is a letter from Martin Pratt confirming this exemption. Please keep a copy with you on visits (electronic or hard copy). If you are challenged, please present the letter and show your Camden ID.
Public Health and Government Guidance
There are three sets of guidance for home visits to be aware of and familiarise yourself with before doing face-to-face visits:
* Camden and Islington Public Health Home Visits Guidance
* Government Guidance on Working in Peoples Homes
* Government Guidance on Meeting Friends and Family (issued 14 May 2021 when the fourth phase of national lockdown lifting began)
Please make sure you read and follow all sets of guidance before doing a face-to-face visit
Public Health Guidance
This is guidance on home visits from Camden and Islington Public Health. It sets out what questions need to be asked before a home visit, how to decide when PPE is needed and how to put PPE on (latest version uploaded 26 May 2021).
Please read this guidance and ask your line manager if you have any questions.
Camden and Islington Guidance on Home Visits COVID V6 updated 26 May 2021
and there is a short infographic about the guidance here
If you ever have queries about this guidance, contact [email protected] who will reply within 48 hours
Government Guidance on Work in Peoples Homes
This is the Governments guidance on working safely in peoples homes, issued 15 May and updated 11 June 2020, 27 November 2020, 14 May 2021 and 4 October 2021.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/homes#homes-3-3
Government Guidance on Meeting Friends and Family
Although aimed at the general public, there is useful information relevant to face-to-face visits that you should keep in mind (issued 10 May 2021, updated 14 May 2021)
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/meeting-friends-and-family-covid-19
PPE Store
FSCF has a PPE store in the FIF cupboard on the 9th floor at 5PS. You can find this cupboard on the right hand side of the 9th floor as you walk towards the kitchen area. Our cupboard has a large red sticker on it.
Our PPE stock is in a cardboard box on the second shelf, marked 'FSCF PPE'.
Our PPE store contains:
- Type IIR face masks (the blue masks that you will need for home visits where 2 metre social distancing cannot be maintained)
- Hand sanitiser (including reuseable small bottles that you can take and refill from the large hand sanitiser container in the cupboard)
- gloves
- aprons
- anti-bacterial surface wipes
- medical waste bags
The stock is checked and replenished monthly, but if you collect PPE and notice something is running low, please let Becca know (on Outlook).
Webinar on Helping Prevent Infection Spread
These slides were from our webinars to help us think about ways to prevent infection spread before, during and after a face-to-face visit.
Getting Ready for Face-to-Face Work Slide Pack
More Information on Wearing Face Masks
There is a whole section of the Guidebook about face masks and coverings, with more advice for family workers. You can find it here (or see the 'NHS and Government COVID information' tab on the Guidebook home page)