GIRFEC provides Scotland with a consistent framework and shared language for promoting, supporting, and safeguarding the wellbeing of children and young people.
It is locally embedded and positively embraced by organisations, services and practitioners across Children’s Services Planning Partnerships, with a focus on changing culture, systems and practice for the benefit of babies, infants, children, young people and their families.
GIRFEC bases its principles and values on children's rights and promotes eight wellbeing indicators to describe how a child or young person is doing at a point in time.
GIRFEC supports practitioners to consider ways to improve the wellbeing for a child or young person through the National Practice Model.
Messages from pathfinders and learning partners told us that GIRFEC provided greater clarity about who families could go to when they needed help, reduced time in meetings for professionals and parents, children and young people, agencies and third sector partners were able to focus resources on those children who needed most support, support provided earlier, and fewer children required compulsory state intervention.
GIRFEC will improve how support is planned, delivered and co-ordinated for children who require extra support by making a child’s plan available.
Our ambition is to work together with children, young people, families, organisations and communities to make Scotland the best place to grow up.
We want all children and young people to live in an equal society that enables them to flourish, to be treated with kindness, dignity and respect, and to have their rights upheld at all times.