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Solution-focused practice toolkit

Topics: Safeguarding and child protection

The solution-focused practice toolkit provides inspiration for worksheets and activities to use, adapt or devise for the children and young people you work with.

Developed by practitioners from our Face to Face service, the toolkit is based on their experiences using a solution-focused approach. It's available as one download or 11 printable sections covering different aspects of solution-focused practice.

Published: 2015


What is solution-focused practice?

Solution-focused practice concentrates on helping people move towards the future that they want and to learn what can be done differently by using their existing skills, strategies and ideas – rather than focusing on the problem.

It was originally developed in the USA in the 1980s and 1990s. The approach has always been used with children and young people, as well as adults. We've been using solution-focused practice in our Face to Face service [internal link] since September 2011.

This approach treats the child or young person as the expert on their own life. Practitioners ask questions to help the young person begin moving towards the future they want and help them make positive changes in their lives.

Although the principle is simple, the delivery is often not an easy process. Practitioners need to ask questions that really get to the heart of the issue and come up with creative ways to help young people find their solution.


Who is the toolkit for?

Practitioners who already have some training in solution-focused practice and are looking for resources to use when working with children and young people.

The worksheets and activities are designed to be used with children and young people aged 5-19 years old.


Creating the toolkit

Our practitioners have lots of experience using a solution-focused approach with children of different ages, interests and needs.

And in the process, they’ve come up with some really creative ways of working with children and young people.