[JELENA]

:jump:Hello! Maybe this helps!

In our role as early years practitioner you will know that teamwork can sometimes be challenging. Multi-agency practice takes place where children spend most of their time and feel familiar - this could be a children's centre , school , village hall , health centre etc.

But it is important to understand what some of the barriers to effective working might be;

* where people have been clearly trained for a role they may find it odd to be managed by a person with different skills and expertise (which could happen in settings such as children's centres)
* they may behave in a different way in dealing with risks and have different priorities in their work with children
* they may not be used to sharing their expertise and knowledge
* each proffesion may have their own language - terms they use that are only recognised by their profession
* they have chosen a specific profession and may feel upset that they have to widen their working practice and find new ways of working.

In order for this to be successful it is important that each profession is respected and the knowledge they have is seen as a valuable asset to any multi-agency work. Professionals will need to have forums so they can share their practice with fellow professionals while opening their minds to consider a different way of working in multi- agency teams. There are a number of practical issues that will help to make multi-agency work run smoothly.

Best practice checklist;

Effective multi-agency working.
* if different professionals are sharing an office ensure that every member of the team has their own desk and computer , telephone etc.
* there must be a space that can be booked to hold meetings.
* there should be a suitable space , ideally two rooms, for group and individual work with children and parents.
* for multi-agency services based in settings such as a children's centre each service should have a dedicated telephone line for parents who want to contact them directly.

The key to removing barriers that may exist when different professionals begin to work together is to have a person to coordinate communication and activities. The person who takes responsibility for integrated services and support to children is called a lead professionals. This individual takes the lead to coordinate professionals working together from different agencies. The lead professional acts as a point of contact for a child and their family when a range of services are involved and an integrated response is required.

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If you're a student and reading this post kindly submitted by a silkysteps forum member
Do not copy and paste it.
AVOID PLAGIARISM

Read it only, inform your knowledge and find links to creditable sources that you can quote.
Then write from your own perspective using your own words to reflect professional practice & your research
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