1.14.1 Child and Adult Protection

Contents

1. Introduction, Summary and Definitions
2. Reporting Concerns, Suspicions or Allegations of Abuse or Harm 
3. Receiving Concerns or Allegations of Abuse or Harm  
4. Action by the Manager
5. Allegations made against Children or Young People
6. Protection of Vulnerable Adults

1. Introduction, Summary and Definitions

1.1 Introduction and summary

These procedures are part of the system to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people and to ensure that children and young people are protected from abuse. The procedures should be known and understood by all managers and all staff (including ancillary, volunteer and agency staff)

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and in particular protecting them from abuse and harm is a shared responsibility and depends on effective joint working between agencies and professionals. All Local Authorities have a duty to promote and safeguard the welfare of children in their area and to investigate and take necessary action to protect children and young people from abuse and harm.

The Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) is the inter-agency forum which acts as the coordinator for all agencies and professionals to work together. However, homes in Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin are governed by one set of LSCB Procedures (West Mercia LSCB Procedures), and homes in Wales are also governed by a single set of procedures.

• Click here to view the Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin / West Mercia LSCB Procedures
• Click here to View the All Wales LSCB Procedures

If there is an allegation of abuse or neglect, or a suspicion of abuse or neglect managers and staff are expected to adhere to the procedures in this Chapter in conjunction with Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures in the area where their home is located and the procedures of the Placing Authority.

The procedures are mandatory and any failure to comply with them will be addressed through appropriate procedures.

Staff must report any concerns, suspicions or allegations of abuse or harm to any child. Staff should report concerns to the manager unless the concern relates to the manager, in which case, the report must be made to a manager not implicated or to one of the following:

• Local Authority Children's Social Care Services in whose area the Home is situated
• Police
• NSPCC
• The Regulatory Authority
• The Placing Authority

It is acknowledged that reporting concerns regarding the possibility of abuse can be difficult but anyone who, in good faith, reports his or her concerns that a child or young person is being or is at risk of abuse or harm or that a colleague may pose a risk to a child or young person will be provided with support and assistance.

The company reserves the right to assess and act upon any concerns expressed under these procedures about the behaviour of a member of staff towards children, irrespective of the outcome of any investigation undertaken by the police or local authority children's social care services or a decision not to investigate and whether or not the behaviour has occurred in or outside of the work situation.

1.2 Definitions

For detailed guidance on the meaning and identification of Significant Harm, see Recognising and Treating Abuse Guidance, the following is a summary of that guidance.

A person may abuse or neglect a child by inflicting harm, or by failing to prevent harm. Children may be abused in a family or in an institutional setting or community setting; by those known to them or, more rarely, by a stranger.

Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces illness in a child.

Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child's emotional development. It may involve conveying to children that hey are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only in so far as they meet the needs of another person. It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations placed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond the child's developmental capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction. It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another. It may involve serious bullying causing children to frequently feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone.

Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, including prostitution, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative (e.g. rape, buggery or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts. They may include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, pornographic material or watching sexual activities, or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways.

Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child's basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child's health and development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to provide adequate food and clothing, shelter including exclusion from home or abandonment, failing to protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger, failure to ensure adequate supervision including the use of inadequate care-takers, or failure to ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment. It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child's basic emotional needs.

Significant Harm is broadly defined as any physical, sexual, emotional abuse, or neglect which is sufficiently serious to adversely affect the child. Significant Harm is the threshold that justifies compulsory intervention in the best interests of children, and gives local authorities a duty to make enquiries to decide whether they should take action to safeguard or promote the welfare of a child who is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.

2. Reporting Concerns, Suspicions or Allegations

The following actions should be taken when there is any concern, suspicion or allegation about the welfare of a child or young person which is causing or likely to cause significant harm.  This includes harm perpetrated by another child or young person (including serious or persistent bullying), a member of staff, a manager, a visitor, a person in the community, a teacher, a social worker, a parent or other family member, and or colleague within the company.

Staff should report concerns to the manager unless the manager is implicated.  In which case staff must notify one of the following:

A manager who is not implicated

• The Local Authority Children's Social Care Services in whose area the Home is located
• Police
• NSPCC
• The Regulatory Authority
• The Placing Authority

In an emergency, where there is an immediate risk to the child, staff must take necessary action. This may involve asking for Police assistance or seeking emergency medical assistance e.g. taking the child to hospital or contacting the emergency services via 999. If the child is taken to hospital or the Police are called, staff must inform them that there is a suspicion of abuse or harm. Thereafter staff must notify the manager (or other agency) as described above.

Once notified, the manager will be responsible for following the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures (see links to Shropshire / Telford and Wrekin and All Wales Procedures at the top of this Chapter) and making contact with the Local Authority Children's Social Care Services. (See Section 4: Action by the Manager).

The manager must inform his/her line manager or other senior manager. The manager or line manager must inform the Regulatory Authority of the instigation and outcome of any subsequent Child Protection Enquiry (See Notifiable Events Procedures).

At this stage any action taken must not alert the person(s) who may have caused or be implicated in causing the abuse or harm. 

3. Receiving Concerns or Allegations of Abuse of Harm

The following is good practice that must be followed.

Staff members seeing, hearing or being told anything that causes them to become concerned that a child or young person may be at risk of, is being or has been abused must report it immediately to a manager.

Non-action is not an option in the protection of children and all staff have a duty to act.

Children and young people will sometimes disclose abuse to an adult who they have come to feel they can trust. If a child or young person discloses abuse it is important that staff respond appropriately by remaining calm and receptive; listening with interrupting; only asking questions of clarification; acknowledging the child's courage in telling.

It is not staff members responsibility to investigate or in any way make judgements about what is reported to them.  Investigations, if necessary, must be undertaken by properly trained, independent professionals.

If a disclosure or allegation of abuse or harm has been made, staff should discuss with the child or other person who has made the complaint what steps they would like taken to protect them and their wishes should be shared and, if not in conflict with procedures, followed.

Where the allegation is of an historical nature, e.g. relating to abuse or harm that may have been perpetrated in another placement or by family members, allegations must be taken seriously and must be reported in the same way as any other allegation. 

Staff must not give absolute guarantees of confidentiality to those who report possible abuse or harm, but they should guarantee that they will take steps to ensure that appropriate action is taken and the child or young person protected.

If an allegation or any suspicion is about the behaviour, past or present of another member of staff, including managers, which may in any way put children at risk, staff must follow the reporting procedures in accordance with Section 2: Reporting Concerns, Suspicions or Allegations 

Staff must make a written record as soon as possible of their concerns, what they have been told, any questions they asked and the replies given and the actions taken and by whom.  They must then give the report to the manager.

The record should be placed on the child’s file except where a colleague is implicated or there is any risk to the child as a result, in which case notes/records should be given to the manager dealing with the matter.

Staff should not discuss the matter with others, including other staff, parents etc unless asked to do so by those responsible for dealing any subsequent investigation or enquiry.

4. Action by the Manager

After receiving a report of a concern, suspicion or allegation of abuse or harm, the manager must firstly take any steps needed to protect any child or young person from risk of immediate harm and should then consult the Director of Care (unless the Director is implicated, in which case, the manager should consult an independent Director or the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) in Shropshire / Telford and Wrekin according to the boundaries of either authority.

The manager should be familiar with and follow the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures in the area in which the home is located. These procedures will normally require the manager to contact the relevant Local Authority Children's Social Care Services Team; if the allegations relates to a member of staff, the manager must consult the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) in the area where the abuse is reported - the LADO will advice on the steps that must be taken - see Allegations Against Staff Procedure.

The manager should also inform the Regulatory Authority of the instigation and outcome of any subsequent Child Protection Enquiry (See Notifiable Events Procedures).

It will be for the Local Authority Children's Social Care Services team, probably after discussing the matter with the Placing Authority and conducting a Strategy Discussion/Meeting, to decide whether to initiate a Child Protection Enquiry and, if so, to agree the following with the manager

1. Who should inform the child’s parent(s)
2. Arrangements for any medical examination of the child
3. Any immediate arrangements for protection of the child
4. Any immediate arrangements for protection of other children involved or at risk
5. Whether it is necessary to inform staff within the home and if so who will do it
6. Who should inform/update the person making the initial allegation of the steps/actions taken.

The manager should ensure that the child is supported during any enquiries/investigation, this may require an independent advocate or independent person to be involved. The manager should also ensure that all staff co-operate fully. 

5. Allegations made against Children or Young People

Abuse and Harm can be perpetrated upon one child or young person by another in many different ways, including persistent or serious bullying, sexual exploitation, aggressive, exploitative or other threatening behaviour which places a child or young person at risk. 

Where there is any suspicion or allegation of abuse or harm perpetrated by one child or young person upon another, the procedures in Section 2: Reporting Concern, Suspicions or Allegations should be followed.

Protecting the rights of both victim and alleged perpetrator is important. It may be necessary, dependent on an assessment of all the facts, to separate the alleged perpetrator and victim but it may not be possible to explain why this is necessary to the perpetrator.

Throughout the process thereafter it will be necessary to ensure that children or young people with allegations made against them are properly supported, by an Independent Person if appropriate or required, as well as their social worker and parent(s).

Once the investigation is complete, consideration will then need to be given to the needs and interests of both alleged victim and perpetrator, and whether counselling and/or other support should be given.

Children or young people who are known to have sexually abused other children cannot live together unless a risk assessment has been undertaken by someone specially qualified to do so, that is independent of the home.

6. Protection of Vulnerable Adults

A vulnerable adult is a person aged 18 or over who is or may be in need of community care services by reason of mental or other disability, age or illness; and who is or may be unable to take care of him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or exploitation.

For the purposes of this procedures, such adults may include people with:

• learning or physical disabilities
• a sensory impairment
• mental health needs
• who are HIV positive
• substance misuse needs
• dementia

Abuse may consist of a single act or repeated acts.  It may be physical, verbal or psychological, it may be an act of neglect or an omission to act or it may occur when a vulnerable person is persuaded to enter into a financial or sexual transaction to which he or she has not consented or cannot consent.  Abuse can occur in any relationship and may result in Significant Harm to or exploitation of the person subjected to it.  Some cases of abuse and neglect may fall under the classification of domestic violence.

Where there is a suspicion that a vulnerable adult is suffering or is likely to suffer from abuse, the manager must consult (see last paragraph) relevant social worker(s) or the Placing Authority.  Such consultations should not be made without the consent of the vulnerable adult, unless notifying the adult places them at risk; in which case, the manager must consult the social worker/Placing Authority before notifying the adult.

In consultation with the social worker/Placing Authority, consideration should be given to making a referral to the Safeguarding Adults Team in the area where the abuse is suspected to have taken place.

Where a child is also at risk, e.g. as a result of Domestic Violence, the local Safeguarding Children's Board must be contacted.

At all times, the manager must take reasonable steps to protect the vulnerable adult from harm; where a person is in immediate danger, urgent action should be taken at once by calling the emergency services

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