VULNERABLE young people and their families in Gloucestershire will have their lives transformed thanks to the council securing £1.5million in government funding.

Gloucestershire County Council (GCC) has been working with NHS Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), 2gether NHS Foundation Trust, and Prospects and Families First to explore new ways of working together for the benefit of vulnerable young people and their parents.

The funding will help GCC and its partners trial a new way of working with vulnerable young people aged 11 and above who are in need of protection.

The aim is to create teams of professionals including social workers, youth support, youth offending workers and mental health workers, so that families get the specialist support they need.

It is estimated that around 2,300 young people and their families could benefit from the service.

Cllr Paul McLain, cabinet member for children and young people, said: “We are pleased that we have been awarded this funding from the Department for Education. It will help pave the way for closer joined up working, ensuring that vulnerable families get the right support at the right time.

“Every family and every child is different and there is no one-size-fits-all approach. We need to keep being radical in our thinking and develop our wide variety of expertise. This will help us change the lives of some of the most vulnerable young people and their families in the county.”

The government’s Innovation Programme aims to kick start the most promising proposals for new ways of providing children’s social care, such as supporting young people in care and taking their first steps into adulthood.