There are one million children under the age of 16 in Scotland. Eighty of those become homeless every day, 9,000 run away each year, and 100,000 live with domestic violence. A third of Scottish households live in or on the margins of poverty.

Last month’s Scottish Executive report For Scotland’s Children makes sorry reading with its tales of children born to fail, the most vulnerable removed from the system through GP deregistration, school exclusion or eviction; and families in distress given no specialist help.

In an attempt to remedy the situation, the Government is committed to “a Scotland in which every child matters, where every child, regardless of their family background, has the best possible start in life”. And this was reiterated by Jack McConnell last week in his vision of Scotland as he prepared to take the reins as First Minister.

The key strategy for preventing children falling through the net is “to ensure that agencies work together effectively to provide services to children”. The report cites examples of projects from Falkirk to Glasgow, Forth Valley to Fife, such as children’s commissions which bring together all children’s services; family projects which combine nurseries, health demonstrations and community facilities; and young people’s drug and alcohol offending services.

Two authorities are particularly praised for their efforts to “close the gap” between those who succeed and those who fall behind. One of these is Highland, the other Stirling. Both have a clear vision of children’s services working together to improve the system and the roles and responsibilities of agencies, departments and professions, sharing information and even financial resources.

Highland has established a Joint Committee on Children and Young People which offers a model of good practice. The committee brings together the council (with representatives from social work, education and the chief executive’s office), NHS Highland and other relevant organisations such as the Children’s Panel, Scottish Children’s Reporters Administration, Youth Voice (Highland’s young people’s parliament), Who Cares? Scotland (for looked-after children) and the Northern Constabulary.

The committee is the “co-ordinating body for services to vulnerable young people and families”, says Bill Alexander, head of Children, Young People and Families. It is, he believes, already having an impact since its establishment in January 2000.

“In 1999 we had, for example, 44 young people in residential schools at a cost of around pound;4 million. Now we have 25 and want to reduce it further.”

Up until January 2000 children’s services for vulnerable young people were “reactive”, he says. Now they plan to spend money on universal services affecting all young people. This will include early intervention strategies, so that more children are getting more services earlier, but also involve resources aimed at “high-tariff situations”, such as children at risk or with complex needs.

“As recommended in the Government report, we want a seamless service drawing the departments together to serve the children’s needs. It’s about the whole child, not just 9am to 5pm but 24 hours a day. It’s not just about school but about family and community,” says Mr Alexander.

“There are ever-closer relations between the services. It’s an enormous agenda. It’s about supporting families.”

He describes the approach as a triangle with high-tariff crises at the peak and universal services at the base; by spending more money at the base, they hope to flatten the triangle and reduce the crises.

“Universal services will not, for example, help children in high-tariff situations at the moment. But this spend will help reduce such situations for the next generations of young people and we should begin to see results within the next five to 10 years.”

Highland has received an award of pound;2.9 million over the next two years from the Changing Children’s Services Fund, which Mr Alexander describes as “a wonderful catalyst”.

Given the geography of Highland, almost the size of Belgium and with 29 per cent of the population living in rural areas, the region is divided into eight sectors, each served by an Area Children’s Service Forum, each with an education manager, social work manager and manager for the primary care trust (NHS).

The Children’s Services Plan (now at consultation stage) will see these forums in turn served by school liaison groups, organised around secondaries and their associated primaries where multi-agency assessment and planning will take place.

“The geography is daunting,” says Mr Alexander. “This is a council with area managers. So it makes joint services something of a task. It can take all day to get to a meeting, weather permitting. Sometimes management by e-mail seems the order of the day and we also use video and audio conferencing.”

But there is evidence that the new approach is already beginning to pay dividends.

“There are more pupils staying in mainstream education and staying long term. Inclusion is working. We have a range of curriculum initiatives including vocational training, work experience, links with colleges and activity programmes which we didn’t have two years ago, as well as social skills groups. It will continue to grow.”

Irene Bloomfield, principal officer social work, gives an example of the joint approach at work: the recent appointment of a support worker for a child who was being sent to a new family from residential care. The local team, which included the headteacher, area managers and educational psychologist, all agreed the child - who had been out of school for two-and-a-half years - needed the support.

“All made time to meet, to problem solve and to share costs between departments so that it could happen,” she says. “Money is now child-based in Highland rather than service or department-based.”

Another initiative involves the employment of trained carers so that children can stay locally rather than be sent to residential care outwith Highland. The carers are paid around pound;20,000 per annum, including allowances. They are usually women.

Their partners must be in secure employment. They will not have other children but may take another placed child in time. There are five such carers at present, with a budget for another five.

“You have to avoid duplication through joint planning but combine the goals,” explains Stephen Iliffe, principal educational psychologist. “Social workers have a responsibility to see a child gets a good education just as much as a teacher has to see that children are happy and well looked after.”

The message which comes over clearly from Highland is that success depends on the joint approach being located at senior management level in the council.

“If you’ve not got joint services represented at very senior posts, then you don’t have joint services,” says Irene Bloomfield.

“You need to focus on good outcomes for children and see where you need to collaborate. If you start by worrying about budgets and departments then you get nowhere.”

Access Unit at Merkinch Primary, Inverness

Located in Highland’s only area of multiple deprivation, Merkinch Primary has more than 60 per cent of its pupils on free school meals. A feeder school for Inverness Community High, it has set up an ACCESS Unit (additional community care to encourage successful schooling) which is managed jointly by social work and education staff.

Here, a social care worker and a family care worker operate alongside a support auxiliary from education in a project which is co-ordinated by senior teacher Fay Bradley.

Originally intended to help children with difficulties in accessing formal education, the unit is now used by all P5 to P7 pupils for Lessons for Living, a programme focused on emotional intelligence.

“Lessons for Living is an extension of personal and social development, where pupils learn about managing, recognising and dealing with emotions so that they don’t escalate,” says Merkinch headteacher Sheena Morrison.

The unit opened in February 2000 but has only been using Lessons for Living since the start of this session.

“We’re starting to see it have an effect in situations where previously a child might not have coped. The children say they use it to cope with other pupils’ behaviour too. Many use the techniques at home, keeping a diary, and some teach them to their parents, though we have also had parents attending sessions,” says Mrs Morrison.

The techniques concentrate on good breathing habits and relaxation, exploring ways to get rid of tension. The pupils attend in year groups of eight maximum, but always mixed to include good role models.

“The feeling of joint responsibility is strong,” says Mrs Morrison. “The commitment comes from the top in the local authority and that helps. Time and money are clearly contracted and everyone sticks to the deal,” she says.

After watching social care worker Brian Folley complete a session, it is evident that children are calmer and the pupils want to be there.

He says: “The children participate positively and are responsive. Every school should have a unit like this.”

Alternative Learning Zone, Inverness Community High

At Inverness Community High, 200 out of 484 pupils are on clothing allowances. Free school meals are three times the Highland average.

An Alternative Learning Zone has been set up for pupils requiring additional support. It operates as a stepping stone back into the mainstream curriculum and as a support for pupils struggling with the curriculum or emotionally.

“Originally envisioned as a space for learning support, the offer of social work funds to employ a social care worker meant it could be staffed more of the time,” says rector Ritchie Cunningham.

“The position of a full-time care worker made all the difference and we’re now looking to see if we can extend the Zone, perhaps using it as a respite resource for pupils having difficulties.”

Care worker Dot Coghill works alongside pupil support teacher Linda Thom and helps five pupils in effect, though only two are officially assigned.

“I support them and keep them on task with their school work,” she says. Mrs Coghill’s contract runs out in July but the school is keen to see her input extended.

“We’re looking at education and social work working together and blurring the areas of budgeting,” says Mr Cunningham. “If we can show health, social work and education working together I believe we can get extra support.”

The Black Isle Education Centre

Formerly Raddery school, this is a day centre near Fortrose for 12 looked-after boys aged from upper primary to secondary. Gavin Sked is head of the centre.

“There is definitely an openness to ideas in Highland which fits with my philosophy of ‘Education plus’,” he says. “You take the good parts of residential education and add them to day school.

“It means that our two care workers as well as the teachers have to work longer hours - we had a bonfire night, for example - and we have to work with parentscarers as well as the pupils.

“The local authority is open to the idea that we should not just be highlighting academic education but teaching better social skills, which is why a lot of these kids are here in the first place.

“We have an alternative curriculum which runs in the afternoons from Tuesday to Thursday. Two major things we are doing are setting up a motorbike workshop and building a BMX track.

“The boys are repairing the motorbikes which have been donated and which they will be able to use when they are fixed.

“In building the BMX track, the boys are helped by our maintenance man Taff and his digger. But that means they have to help him with painting doors and windows before the winter sets in.

“Initially the council wanted to bring school dinners from an off-site location. But we argued that lunchtimes here were an important social time. So we have a healthy, home-cooked menu and a breakfast club.

“The work is intensive, but the resources aren’t bad. Otherwise we wouldn’t have an alternative curriculum.”