Introduction

Children and families often face challenges that require intervention to promote well-being [1]. The adversities require innovative intervention strategies, including a whole-family approach, strong practitioner-parent relationships, and comprehensive support services [2]. Yobouet [3] posits that the adversities encountered by families require a comprehensive strategy that incorporates the collaboration among governments, non-governmental organizations, and family units. Tyack [4] proposed that co-designing interventions is a more effective approach to addressing the challenges faced by children and families compared to using pre-designed interventions. Family Group Decision-Making (FGDM) has emerged as an effective approach in child welfare addressing child abuse and neglect involving extended family systems during critical decision-making process [5].

The FGDM approach has shifted from a problem-focused approach to a strength-based shared decision-making between clients and service providers [6]. The FGDM is a participatory process that empowers families to collaborate in decisions regarding the care and protection of their children [7], enhancing family cohesion and preventing child maltreatment [8]. Family Group Decision Making (FGDM), or Family Group Conferencing (FGC), is a collaborative approach that empowers families to participate in decision-making about child welfare. Ramon [9] posits that the approach is based on the belief that families can effectively address their challenges, leading to better outcomes for children and adults. Edwards, Parkinson [10] assert that FGCs are a type of family-led decision-making process in social care, emphasizing family expertise and participation. Hillebregt, Scholten [11] defined the FGDM as a systematic decision-making process designed to redistribute power from professionals and individuals in need and their families. Family Group Conferencing is a child welfare approach that brings together immediate and extended family members, along with others from the child’s social network, to collaboratively determine the best strategy for addressing the needs of a child requiring support or protection [12].

Despite the implementation of FGDM, there is still a lack of understanding regarding its application, [6] including its use in safeguarding children and strengthening families. While Family Group Decision Making/Conferencing (FGDM/FGC) has been adopted in several high-income nations, for instance, New Zealand [13], the United States [7], the United Kingdom [10], and the Netherlands [14], empirical evidence from developing countries, particularly within Sub-Saharan Africa and other low- and middle-income context, remains scarce. The FGC model has been adopted in some of the high-income countries including Australia, Canada, Sweden, Norway and Denmark [15]. The majority of research originates from developed nations with well-resourced and institutionalized child welfare systems. Consequently, there is a limited synthesis of evidence specifically examining its application in developing countries. This results in a contextual gap in understanding how the model functions within resource-constrained child protection environments.

Existing scholarship and implementations, in South Africa, frequently concentrate on legislative frameworks, (the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 and the Child Justice Act 75 of 2008) or restorative/child justice paradigms, rather than the broad application of FGDM/FGC in routine child protection and family strengthening initiatives designed to safeguard against abuse and neglect. Moreover, developing nations in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America present distinct family structures, community-based support systems and child protection challenges that may require modified approaches to FGDM. This geographical and contextual disparity underscores the need for a systematic synthesis of existing evidence from developing nations to inform culturally relevant and family-centered child welfare practices in resource-constrained environments. To address this limitation, the review will employ a subgroup analysis of studies conducted in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as defined by World Bank. Subgroup analysis will enable the synthesis of available evidence from these specific contexts while also leveraging the broader and more established body of research from high income countries to inform the overall analysis and identify key implementation factors relevant to resource-constrained settings. A major finding is that the FGDM has been diversified to include care of the elderly [11] and mental health [9]. Limited systematic review research has focused on the application of FGDM in the context of safeguarding children and strengthening families.

This study contributes to the existing research in many significant ways. First, it addresses the scarcity of FGDM research in developing nations where most empirical studies and systematic synthesis originate from high-income Western contexts. Second, this systematic review provides a comprehensive synthesis of current knowledge on FGDM, offering insights for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers. This review will inform future implementation strategies and help develop best practices in child protection. Finally, the findings will identify areas needing further research, guiding future efforts in family-centred child protection. The terms “Family Group Decision Making (FGDM)” and “Family Group Conferencing (FGC)” will be used interchangeably throughout this study. The aim of the study is to present a protocol for a systematic review examining the application of FGDM in safeguarding children and strengthening families, within child welfare contexts.

The research question will be:

Does the application of FGDM enhance child safety and family strengthening outcomes within the child welfare systems?

Materials and methods

This systematic review protocol has been registered with the Open Science Framework (OSF) to ensure alignment with the intended methodology. The registration DOI is https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/B3TH8. In terms of amendment plan, there are no protocol amendment to date, any future amendment will be dated, documented in the OSF record and reported in the final systematic review. This research will rely on previously published data, so there will be no public or participant involvement in the design or dissemination of findings. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols (PRISMA-P) checklist will be used to report the findings of this study.

Discussion

The FGDM has its origins in New Zealand and has been used as a mechanism in child protection issues. Family Group Decision-Making (FGDM) is a commonly employed methodology in the domains of child welfare and social services. This approach emphasizes the active involvement of family members and their social networks in the decision-making processes pertaining to the well-being and welfare of children or other family members [20]. The FGDM model has been applied in child abuse, neglect and youth offending [5]. This approach has been employed in diverse settings, including child welfare, adult services, medical rehabilitation, youth offending, and mental health services [7]; elderly care, and the care of individuals with dementia or mental health [11]. The approach has also been applied in the care of mental health clients in public mental health care [9,21]. Based on the preceding analysis, it can be posited that the Family Group Decision-Making (FGDM) model has been employed in addressing child welfare issues; however, its application has also expanded to encompass various factors that impact families and necessitate their involvement in mitigating the adversities they face. The findings of the study are expected to contribute to the literature in the field of child protection and family strengthening. Furthermore, the findings are anticipated to benefit social services agencies that focus on children, child safeguarding, families and family strengthening providing best possible mechanism that can be applied in families and enhancing family involvement in welfare initiatives. The findings from this systematic review will assist policymakers in the developing family involvement intervention that prioritize the application and utilisation of FGDM in safeguarding children and strengthening families.

Limitations

The predominance of FGDM research originating from developed countries may constrain the availability of studies pertaining to developing country, thereby affecting the granularity of subgroup analysis. This predominance as noted in preliminary scoping, may stem from implementation deficits and limitations in research capacity. The final review will document the geographic distribution of included studies, and address the potential implications of any underrepresentation of developing country contexts.

Supporting information