This book has given an overview of FGC practice both in the UK and in other countries across the globe in both children's and adult's services. It has outlined FGC practice and offered suggestions for good practice. It has also brought together much of the research and evidence base on FGCs, their application and efficacy. A variety of authors have contributed, representing the academic community, FGC practitioners and those who have used FGC services. FGCs have been used in numerous practice areas and this book has considered their use in specific settings within children's services. This has included their use in harmful sexual behaviour, youth justice and domestic abuse. It has also outlined a growing practice body within adult services and the use of FGCs within specific adult social care specialities which include learning disabilities, mental health and older adults. This is not exhaustive, however, and there are a number of additional areas of FGC use which the book has not explored. These include an in-depth consideration of their use with pre-birth assessments, their use in tackling gangs, homelessness, forced marriage, radicalisation and their use in prisons. The decision not to include these and other specialisms was purely from a pragmatic perspective of these being new and emerging areas of practice, with little or no research base and few services in operation. While these have been omitted from the scope of this book it is recognised that they may nonetheless constitute a valuable addition to the FGC spectrum.

The authors consider that the book has provided an exploration and a recognition of FGCs as a widely researched and applied area of social work practice which offers a culturally competent approach to working in a strengths-based manner with families. It has provided the reader with an overview of a wide range of practice areas and demonstrated that FGCs constitute a versatile tool for working with families involved with social work services.

It is clear that FGCs can be located within a strengths-based approach to social work (Burford and Hudson (eds.) 2000; Ashley and Nixon (eds.) 2007; Barnsdale and Walker, 2007; Metze, Abma and Kwekkeboom 2013) and are often linked to the concept of empowerment (Metze, Abma and Kwekkeboom 2013).