MORE than 2,000 Derby families, with problems ranging from crime, truancy, domestic violence and unemployment, are to benefit from £3.8 million from the Government.
The city was chosen for the Whitehall cash after transforming the lives of 475 troubled households under an earlier version of the programme.
And the news has been hailed by one Derby mother, who said that the scheme had "worked miracles for me".
The woman, whose young son ditched school while she battled alcoholism, said she was delighted that the scheme which turned around their lives would now help thousands more Derby families.
She and and her teenage son were among 475 households whose lives were improved by the city council's "priority families" programme.
Now that scheme has been selected for a major expansion, with 2,110 families to benefit from help worth up to £3.8 million of Government money over five years.
The Chaddesden mum, who does not want to be identified so that she can put her chaotic past behind her, said: "The scheme worked miracles for me.
"My family worker never judged me, never looked down her nose at me. It's changed my life."
Starting this month, a team of 12 dedicated family support workers will be helping a new wave of troubled families.
These will have problems such as crime or anti-social behaviour, truancy, unemployment and domestic violence.
A total of £1,800 will be available to spend on each family for things like counselling, mental health support and parenting lessons.
The 34-year-old mum said she was unemployed, drinking too much and in legal trouble, when concerns were raised about how her lifestyle was affecting her son.
The teenager, whose parents are separated, said: "I couldn't go to school without worrying about what my mum was like and how my mum would be when I got home."
Council social workers were first told about the situation by the grandparents on the son's father's side.
The mum said: "I was drinking a lot and that was affecting my lifestyle and my son's.
"His attendance at school and behaviour was suffering. I was angry when I found out what had been said [to the council] and worried.
"You instantly think they are coming to poke around your life and might even take your kid away."
A social worker assessed the family and decided they were a case that could be helped by the priority families team.
The service is provided on a voluntary basis – but the mum knew that the situation needed fixing and agreed to use it.
Shortly after that, she was at her lowest ebb, having been evicted from her home. Her son was living with his grandmother.
But the programme quickly began to take effect, thanks to a dedicated family support worker giving her help finding a Derby Homes property, and bringing in parenting support through the charity Nacro, which helps rehabilitate offenders.
The mum and her son were given one-to-one support to build their confidence.
The social worker said: "A lot of the time we were just having a chat. "We'd talk about any issues she was having at that time. It was a case of encouraging her to keep going to the job club, for example."
Meetings were held between social workers, probation officials and the son's school to discuss issues.
Now the pair live in a well-kept home. She works in retail in the city centre, and he is attending school much more often.
The mum said: "I've got my dignity back. My son is happy. That's all that matters."
Since the first phase of the scheme began in April 2012, the council's priority families team has worked with 660 families, of which 475 successfully had their lives "turned around" by October last year.
This meant, for example, that a child with truancy issues would have achieved more than 85% attendance in school and no more than two fixed-term exclusions over three consecutive terms.
The council is continuing to work with the families with which it has not yet been successful.
In this first phase, local authorities were paid up to £4,000 per family for the work on a "payment-by-results" basis.
The next phase will see council's get paid £1,000 up front per family and then receive £800 once a family's situation has been improved.
The authority was selected to be an "early-starter" for the next phase after ranking among the top councils in the country for success in turning around families.
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