The Integrated Family Support Teams (Composition of Teams and Board Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2012

Title, commencement, interpretation and application

1.—(1) The title of these Regulations is the Integrated Family Support Teams (Composition of Teams and Board Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2012 and they come into force on 28 February 2012.

(2) In these Regulations—

“the 2010 Measure” (“Mesur 2010”) means the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010;

“consultant social worker” (“gweithiwr cymdeithasol ymgynghorol”) means a social worker with at least three years post-qualification experience and with such skills, qualifications and competences as may be set out by the Welsh Ministers from time to time in guidance issued under section 65 of the 2010 Measure;

“health visitor” (“ymwelydd iechyd”) means a person who is registered on the specialist community public health nurse part of the register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and whose entry in that part of the register records competence in health visiting;

“nurse” (“nyrs”) means a person who is registered on the nurses part of the register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Council;

“social worker” (“gweithiwr cymdeithasol”) means a person who is registered as a social worker with the Care Council for Wales, the General Social Care Council, the Health Professions Council or a similar register of social workers maintained in Scotland or Northern Ireland;

“team” (“tîm”) means an integrated family support team established under Part 3 of the 2010 Measure.

(3) These Regulations apply in relation to those areas of Wales in relation to which section 57 (establishment of family support teams) of the 2010 Measure has been commenced(1).

Composition of integrated family support teams

2.—(1) A team must include a minimum of five persons each of whom are from one of the following professional categories—

(a) social worker;

(b) nurse; or

(c) health visitor.

(2) A team must include at least one person from each of the categories in subparagraphs (a) to (c) of paragraph (1).

(3) One member of the team must be a consultant social worker.

3.  A team must contain staff with suitable skills and experience having regard to—

(a) the categories of cases which can be referred to it;

(b) the need of professional staff for administrative support; and

(c) any guidance issued by the Welsh Ministers under section 65 of the 2010 Measure.

Integrated Family Support Boards

4.  In order to achieve the objectives in section 62(1) of the 2010 Measure (functions of integrated family support boards) an integrated family support board must—

(a) receive and consider regular reports from the person managing the team including information about the levels of service activity and outcomes;

(b) seek to resolve issues in relation to the coordination of services provided by the team and other services provided by the local authority and the local health board;

(c) ensure that the team has procedures in relation to—

(i) child protection;

(ii) adult protection;

(d) establish a procedure for resolving disputes between the local authority and the local health board about the arrangements for the team;

(e) ensure that there are adequate arrangements for the supervision and professional development of the professional members of the team as set out in regulation 2(1);

(f) receive reports on the team’s income and expenditure and notify the local authority and the local health board of any financial or other resource issues which are likely to affect the teams ability to fulfil its functions.

Revocation

5.  The Integrated Family Support Teams (Composition of Teams and Board Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2010(2) are revoked.

Gwenda Thomas

Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services under authority of the Minister for Health and Social Services, one of the Welsh Ministers

30 January 2012