This paper argues that the current national policy context offers an opportunity to develop more family-inclusive mainstream mental health services. It outlines a strategy to enhance working partnerships with carers and families and discusses its training implications. The first phase of a trust-wide training programme in Somerset is described and the potential role for family therapists in promoting the wider application of systemic ideas is considered.

Although research has shown the efficacy of family interventions in psychosis, there has been little research into families' own experience of services in routine clinical settings. Fifteen of the first twenty-two referrals to a Somerset Family Interventions Service agreed to take part in semistructured interviews regarding family satisfaction and clinical outcome. High levels of engagement and satisfaction with the service were reported in spite of initial apprehension regarding family sessions. Family members thought that the sessions had helped them deal more effectively with problems and relatives' symptoms. They valued the opportunity for open discussion, developing new perspectives and problem-solving, as well as liaison/closer working with mental health services. Positive therapeutic qualities/skills (e.g. empathic, non-judgemental approach; mutually agreed goals) were highlighted. This study also indicated that successful engagement in family work requires referral at an early stage. The findings of this study, particularly those relating to the therapeutic relationship, are discussed, including their relevance for future research.

This paper describes a project in which family interventions in psychosis services were successfully established in a routine clinical setting. This has involved the development of a whole‐team training approach, an accredited one‐year training course, and a clinical approach which integrates the systemic and cognitive‐behavioural psychoeducational approaches. Since the original description of this project (Burbach and Stanbridge, 1998) the training course and service have been evaluated and the clinical approach has been further developed. These developments, particularly the ‘cognitive interactional’ approach and collaborative therapeutic stance, are detailed. The paper explores the factors which have contributed to the successful establishment and maintenance of the service, and describes more recent initiatives to bring about more family/carer‐friendly mental health services.

A project to establish new family intervention services to support people with psychotic symptoms and their families is described. The new services are developed by training a whole team in each main population centre. The multidisciplinary training course and the family intervention service are described, and the way in which we integrate the 'family management' and 'family therapy' approaches is discussed.

In spite of policies advocating the involvement of families in the care of mental health service users in the UK there are few examples of training initiatives to bring this about. This article describes the delivery of a whole‐team training initiative to promote family inclusive working in all acute inpatient units in Somerset. The three‐day staff‐training programme is described and training outcomes are reported. Staff reported a significant increase in confidence in their skills for working with families, and a pre‐ and post‐training case note audit showed an increased consideration of the needs of families. This was accompanied by a modest increase in the average number of family meetings. Obstacles to family inclusive ways of working on inpatient units are described, and strategies to overcome these are discussed.