This document discusses the challenges social workers face with current case management systems not supporting their work with families. It notes that social workers spend 60% of their time on administrative tasks and only 20% directly working with families. The FamilyStory project aims to develop an open platform that allows social workers to spend more time collaborating with families and gives families more ownership over their case. The goals are to improve outcomes for families, enable better decision making, and reduce costs by allowing social workers to spend quality time on cases. An alpha experience is being built to demonstrate the concept.

1. FamilyStory
Designing world class children’s
services supported by the best in
digital technology
TICTeC Local, Manchester

2. Social workers achieve
amazing things with families.
But are held back by the systems and
technology they work with.

3. “Case management systems
focus on collecting information,
they don’t support the
interaction with families”
Clare Chamberlain
Director Centre for Systemic Social
Work

4. Process, not people, is dictating social work practice
“The art of being a social worker is becoming lost.
Too often, it is regarded as a process to be followed
– a single track which, once started, trundles along
a predetermined path, usually of escalation”
Ray Jones, Emeritus Professor of Social Work
60%
of practitioner time is spent
writing, recording and
processing data into a
system
is spent on other admin,
speaking to agencies,
information gathering or
travelling
Leaving around 20% of
time to spend working
directly with families
20%20%

5. ‘Social work is not a process,
it is an art, a skill, a way of working
with people in crisis to help them
to see their way through it and
strengthen their future’
Sally Robinson
Social Care Network, The Guardian

6. These are the
records of real lives,
they do not belong
to Local Authorities

7. FamilyStory vision
An open platform that allows social workers to
spend more time collaborating with families,
gives families ownership over their story and
enables everyone involved to work better
together.

8. FamilyStory design principles
Practitioners spend
more time with
families, less time
in front of computers
Technology supports
social care practice,
it isn’t just a
reporting tool
Decisions are
collaborative
and technology
enables this
Families have
ownership over
their story
Families Social workers Partners

9. FamilyStory outcomes
Better outcomes for families
(sustainable, less time in
interventions, owned and
breaking cycles)
Enabling better decisions
around commissioning and
strategic direction
Reduced cost
(processing/admin, less
backend resource, quality time
on cases leading to better
decisions
Radically changing social work
practice and enabling the rest of
the country to join an innovative
marketplace

10. Building an Alpha experience

11. What we’re learning...
The concept is far
scarier than the reality
Show the thing to win hearts
and minds
Communicate and
challenge the purpose
of integration with
legacy systems
And don’t be held back by it
Build a network of
supporters and
champions on the
ground

12. ‘Very exciting development in SW
recording with Partners in Practice, Tri-
borough and @FutureGov.
I think we might crack this yet!’
Isabelle Trowler
Chief Social Worker for England