The Early Intervention and Youth Support Service

Professionals can access a wide range of support and services through the Early Intervention Targeted Support Team.

We can accept referrals from any professional that identify a child, young person or family that meet the criteria below:

image showing referral criteria. this document can be downloaded

To download a copy of our referral criteria please click here –  Referral Criteria 2026

You will need to complete an online referral form ensuring you have the consent of the parent/ carer and young person (if 13 and over) to request the help and check they are ok to share their information with us).

The referral form can be found here

After submission, the referral is sent via a link to a secure referral management system. All referrals are triaged for suitability by Senior Practitioners within the Early Intervention Targeted Support Team. Referrals where we think support could be offered to the family are assigned to a Practitioner who will then contact the named person on the referral. Initially they will introduce themselves, ensuring the family still want support and will then arrange a time to meet. The practitioner will discuss with the family what help and support they think they require in order to help improve their situation. The Practitioner will work to the individual family’s agenda and, where appropriate, will meet with all family members. The Practitioner will get the views of everyone about the situation and will create a tailored support plan. This is a person-centred approach and the Practitioner works to the Signs of Safety (SOS) model of support.

Please note if after the initial consultation with the family the criteria is not met, we will contact you to advise that we will not be able to support the family and we will notify you.

What happens if the referral isn’t suitable for support?

There are some situations where a referral may not be suitable to receive support from the team. This can be for a number of reasons. A Senior Practitioner will contact the referrer to explain the reasons why they are not able to offer services or support at this time. The Senior Practitioners will offer advice and guidance on possible options for the referrer to access the most appropriate support for the family.

The support services work according to the Government criteria set out in the Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023. The Senior Practitioner team are very experienced at looking at the information on the referral and making sure we can offer the right support at the right time.

What happens to referrals that is not suitable?

The referral is archived in our secure Referral Management System

Details of how personal data is handled, can be found here

For more information about our commitment to Safeguarding please click here