The Family Model

The Family Model was a core component of the Crossing Bridges programme, and its aim was to aid a greater understanding of the complex interplay between mental ill health in parents, the development and mental health of their children, and the relationships within family units affected by mental ill health. The model has proved extremely durable, and in this handbook the Family Model has been extensively revised and refined in the light of developments in the field over the last 10 years. Many features have been retained whilst enhancements have been added to ensure contemporary relevance in an ever-growing field. This enhanced Family Model provides the conceptual framework to support clinical approaches to family focused practice. Additional principles have been added, including a service dimension to ensure that service provision is explicitly incorporated into thinking and practice, and a culture and community component to ensure that broader factors influencing individuals and impacting on family life are also addressed. The handbook comes with a fully interactive CD-rom to aid a greater understanding of the Family Model and to explain in a visually engaging way the principles of this approach to working with families affected by mental ill health. Vital information for: Clinicians; voluntary sector workers; policy makers and managers and trainers in mental health and children's services.