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Functional Family Therapy (FFT)
What is Functional Family Therapy (FFT)?
FFT is an evidence based, manualised family therapy approach to working with young people (10 – 17 years old)
and their families. It is strength based intervention that has been applied successfully to a range of emotional and
behavioural difficulties experienced by young people and their families. The approach enables the therapist to work
creatively with each unique family, the team works particularly hard to be respectful to families’ uniqueness with
regards to race, religion, belief systems, sexual orientation, language and other differences.
The Functional Family Therapy team (FFT) is located within the Early Intervention Support Service in Croydon. We
are a creative, keen group of practitioners trained in the FFT model to offer family therapy in the family home. Our
professional backgrounds include parenting and family support, social work, family and systemic psychotherapy,
psychodynamic psychotherapy and mental health.
Who do FFT work with?
Family life can often be stressful for young people and those that care for them. Sometimes, the stress is
experienced in everyday living for young people and their parents/carers in their relationships and interactions at
home, school or the community. At times families’ attempts to find solutions can themselves become part of the
problem. FFT aims to support families to understand these patterns. By supporting young people and their families
through FFT break down of family relationships can be avoided, preventing young people from becoming looked
after. Evidence from around the UK and internationally has shown that FFT can be helpful with families
experiencing;
Parent-child/family conflict issues, breakdown in home placement/rehabilitation, conduct disorder/oppositional
defiant disorder, school problems/exclusions, offending/antisocial behaviours, sexually risky behaviours/running
away, alcohol and drug misuse, anxiety/depression with behaviour disorder symptoms, self-harming behaviours
How does FFT work with the family and referrer?
Family members have to be committed to wanting change. They need to be able to meet with the therapist weekly
over a six month period; usually within the home. It is important that the therapist works with the whole family
group to think about the function of each member’s behaviour and beliefs in order to promote change.
Referral pathways to FFT are through direct referrals from Croydon Children Social Care, Youth Offending Service
and the Family Resilience Service. Referrals are also made to the service through the weekly Early Help Stage 3
transfer panel. As FFT is an intervention, we cannot be lead professionals and we ask that you keep cases open for
the duration of our work with families.
How do I find out more?
If you have a family in mind for this service or wish to know whether a family is likely to benefit from FFT
intervention, you can email the FFT team on [email protected]