Multi-Agency Support Hub (MASH)

This section assumes that you are concerned enough about a child to want to make enquiries about additional support to enable them to achieve or maintain a reasonable standard of health or development.

Revised MASH Integrated Front Door Approach to Early Help & Safeguarding

What has changed?

The MASH brings together Early Help and Safeguarding to ensure children and young people receive the right support at the right time. The Front Door will incorporate the MASH function and will include additional partners based in the MASH Screening Team.

The Front Door will ensure that all enquiries and contacts are triaged upon receipt and directed to the appropriate service to provide a seamless process for children to receive support proportionate to their needs in a timely way.

Why have we implemented the changes?

The new Front Door approach will support the early identification of support needs for children and families to focus on ensuring the right support can be put in place in a timely manner.

How do we process referrals?

Following screening of referrals, children and young people meeting Level 2 threshold will be referred to the Early Help Co-ordinator & Team Around the Family Adviser for processing Early Help Support Services. By having a dedicated triage hub focusing on the enquiries and referrals at first point of contact we can become more effective and efficient with the services we deliver and provide better support to referrers. The previous referral form has been updated to reflect the changes and you can make enquiries to the Multi Agency Support Hub using the Multi Agency Referral Form (MARF) below.

word icon Multi Agency Referral Form (MARF) - Fillable - Dec 24 [489kb]

Once completed please send to MultiAgencySupportHub@gov.gg

The MARF will be screened in the MASH and those referrals meeting Level 1 or 2 of the threshold will be triaged to the Family Support Services via the early Help Co-ordinator & Team Around the Family Adviser. Those children where the threshold is not clear from the initial screening, or the concerns are at Level 3 or 4, will be triaged to the Duty Response Team.

The Duty Response Social Worker will undertake additional tasks which could include further agency checks, social work visits, strategy meetings and Child Protection Investigations, dependent on the level of risk and need.

The MASH Manager or Deputy Manager will review the Duty Response Social Worker's recommendations and where appropriate the child/ren will be discussed at the weekly allocations meeting with consideration for transfer to the Child in Need Team (Level 3) or Children's Safeguarding Team (Level 4) for further assessment.

The Early Help Co-ordinator & Team Around the Family Adviser

An Early Help Co-ordinator & Team Around the Family Adviser based in MASH responds to referrals at Level 2 of the threshold through Early Help consultations, providing advice and guidance to agencies about the early Help Assessment and Team Around the Family (TAF) meeting processes and signposting to Family Support Services. Family Support Services' focus is to provide effective Early Help interventions and signposting to community resources.

The Family Support Services website can be found at Family Support Services - States of Guernsey (gov.gg)

The MASH Operational Framework

Please find below a link to the new MASH Operational Framework. This provides a comprehensive guide to the new MASH process and procedures.

pdf icon MASH Operational Framework [510kb]

Contact details


If you are worried that a child is being mistreated and is at risk of harm, it is important that you let us know as soon as possible. During normal office hours (Monday to Friday, 8.45am - 5.00pm except public holidays), you should contact the MASH team on 223182. If the situation is urgent outside of these hours, please call the Emergency Duty Team on 222222. If you think a child might be in immediate danger, please call the Police on 999.