ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the work of New Fulford Family Centre, illustrates the approaches used and explores some of the issues arising in integrated practice. It explores the contribution of a combined or integrated approach to empowerment. Empowerment is sometimes an explicit aim of a centre activity and on other occasions it is an implicit by-product of the work. The centre’s programme is wide-ranging in its implementation of an ecological approach. Groups have considerable potential for empowering their members and examples of groups at New Fulford include closed therapeutic groups, mutual support groups, and carer and toddler groups. Therapeutic groups share similar outcomes to work with individuals and families. The needs of groups can be experienced as competing with individual needs or community development work might be viewed as crowding out therapeutic work. The processes involved in any part of the programme can either contribute to empowerment or hinder it.
