1.3.1 Referrals and Placements

Contents

1. Admission and Referrals Policy
2. Pre-Referral Responsibilities (Of the Placing Authority)
3. Placement Process - Planned Placements
4. Placement Process - Emergency Placements
5. Notifications of Placements
6. Health Care
7. Support, Monitoring and Ending of Placements

1. Admission and Referrals Policy

Our policy is to consider as a referral, any young person who is experiencing difficulty in their life and who would, with an appropriate approach, take up the opportunity to better manage their difficulties. Serious consideration is given during the process of exchanging information, to our ability to meet the needs of a particular young person and the impact a move to Bryn Melyn Care may have on the individual.

Bryn Melyn Care offers a unique level of commitment to the young person and we believe that if we make an informed decision to work with a particular young person, we have a responsibility to see that work through as long as it is deemed by all involved to be in their best interests.

Bryn Melyn Care strives to ensure that each young person admitted into their care can do so in a well planned way so that all necessary arrangements have been made and the young person has the least disruption possible in what is usually a traumatic and stressful time for them. 

The first stage of the admission process is the sharing of information with local authorities. They are given an information pack about Bryn Melyn Care and our admissions manager requests information from them about the young person, both in the standard referral information format as well as via further discussion. Once an agreement has been reached that the young person would be suitable for a placement with Bryn Melyn Care as we could meet their needs, and that Bryn Melyn Care is a suitable placement for the young person and their placing authority, arrangements are made for the care manager and member of his/her care team to go and meet the young person at their current placement whenever possible. On occasions it may not be appropriate or possible to meet the child or young person prior to admission however there are many benefits for having a pre-admission meeting:

1. To inform the young person about Bryn Melyn Care and provide an opportunity for them to engage with our staff and discuss the pending placement move and any surrounding issues
2. To begin relationship building between Bryn Melyn Care staff and the young person
3. To gather further information about the young person from their current placement
4. To enable a pre-admission risk assessment to be undertaken by Bryn Melyn Care, in consultation with the young person's placing authority and current care team, so that the prevalent risks can be prepared for, minimised and managed by Bryn Melyn Care.

On admission to Bryn Melyn Care, the emphasis is on enabling the young person to settle in to their new surroundings as quickly as possible and provide a period of stability for them. The care team provide a copy of our Children's Guide for the young person shortly after their admission and spend time going through this with them, with a particular emphasis on the services they can expect whilst with us and the manner in which care is provided as well as our expectations of them. We envisage the Children's Guide as being used as a tool to empower the young people we care for whilst enabling them to understand their rights.

Within the first 7-10 days, we arrange for the young person to meet their designated teacher, our therapist and the care team and manager, whilst encouraging them to explore the local environment and access the facilities in the surrounding area. Once the young person has met the individual members of their care team at their Home, a key worker will be identified. It is the key workers responsibility to provide individual guidance and support to the young person and regularly make time available to them to offer support and advice to the young person, as well as consult and advise colleagues of any current issues necessary for promoting the welfare of the young person.

We endeavour to arrange a meeting within the first 5 days of their arrival with the young person, their placing agency and Bryn Melyn Care professionals to reaffirm the aims of the placement and ensure that all the essential information and relevant records of the young person are made available to Bryn Melyn. The meeting is a vital opportunity for the young person to express their thoughts and feelings about the placement and understand the role Bryn Melyn Care has in assessing and catering for their needs, including health, education, contact with family or significant others and the day to day arrangements. 

Bryn Melyn Care strongly encourage Looked After Reviews to be conducted within the statutory timescales.

Emergency Admissions, Looked After Reviews and Leaving/Moving On

See the following Chapters;

Section 4: Emergency Placements

Looked After Reviews Procedures

Transfers and Moving on Procedures

2. Pre-Referral Responsibilities (Of the Placing Authority)

Amended March 2009: Section 2.4: Children placed outside the area where they normally live was added in March 2009.

This summarises the procedures which should normally be followed by the Placing Authority before a child is referred for placement. However, procedures in individual authorities may differ.

2.1 Consultation

At the point when it is determined that a placement may be required, and throughout the subsequent process of identification, planning and placement, the social worker must consult and take account of the views of the following people:

1. The child
2. The child's parents
3. The Child’s Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO), if the child is moving from another Looked After placement
4. If the child is at Key Stage 4 (school years 10 or 11) a senior manager within the placing authority must be consulted prior to the placement.
5. Anyone who is not a parent but has been caring for or looking after the child
6. Other members of the child's family who are significant to the child
7. The child's school or education authority
8. The Youth Offending Service, if the child is known to them

2.2 Relevant Plans

The social worker should ensure that the proposed placement is in keeping with the overall Care Plan for the child, which should be set out in writing.

The Care Plan should demonstrate that the child's needs will be met by the proposed placement.

The Care Plan should be completed before the child becomes Looked After, or within 10 working days of the child’s placement.

If a placement is approved, the social worker should ensure that a Placement Information Record is drawn up before the placement starts or within 5 working days of the placement.

The manager of the home will be responsible for drawing up a Placement Plan which will incorporate an Individual Crisis Management Plan (ICMP).

2.3 Approval of the Plan to Place a Child

Before a referral is made the social worker is normally required to seek management authorisation, the social worker may also be required to make the referral via a placement service or budgetary management process.

Any transfer of a Child from another Looked After Placement who is at Key Stage 4 (years 10 or 11) must be approved by a senior manager within the placing authority.

2.4 Children placed outside the area where they normally live

For children placed in England, unless it is an emergency placement, the child’s Independent reviewing Officer (IRO) must be consulted before a child is placed outside placing authority. If the child is placed in an emergency, the IRO must be consulted as soon as practicable after the placement starts.

For homes in Wales: Regulation 5(2)(a) of the Placement of Children (Wales) Regulations 2007 places a duty on the responsible authority where it considers placing the child outside the area in which the child normally lives, to refer the child’s case to a panel before making the placement.

Planning for the child should begin prior to placement. However, in the case of an emergency placement, this may not always be possible. In such cases there is a requirement under Regulation 5(2)(a) for the responsible authority to refer the case to a Panel as soon as practicable after placement and in any event not later than 25 working days after the placement date.

When considering the making of a placement, the social worker should consult the Home’s manager to ensure that proper arrangements are in place for the child to have contact with his/her family and significant others; particularly when the child is placed at a distance away from their family home.

3. Placement Process - Planned Placements

See Section 4 for definition and procedures relating to Emergency Placements.

3.1 Definition of Planned Placement

A Planned Placement is the placement of a child with the agreement of the Placing Authority and Director of Care/Area Manager or the Home's Manager.  Before a decision is reached about suitability, the procedures set out in Section 4.2, Emergency Placement Procedure must be followed.

If there is no agreement, the placement is deemed to be an Emergency, and an Emergency Review should be convened within 72 hours of the placement, to consider whether the placement is suitable. See Emergency Reviews Procedure.

3.2 Referral Process

The decision about suitability of placement will be made by the Director of Care Area Manager, or Home's Manager in consultation with the Placing Authority.  Before making such a decision, a Referral Form must be completed and taken into consideration (if this is not possible the placement can still be agreed but is deemed to be an Emergency Placement, subject to an Emergency Review within 72 hours of the child's admission):

Though not essential, the following should be undertaken before a decision is reached:

• Arrangements should be made for the Home's Manager or delegate to meet the child, parent(s) or carers.
• An Information Pack and/or brochure about the home should be forwarded to the Placing Authority, parent(s) or carers.
• An Information/Children's Guide should be forwarded to the child
• Up to date Essential Information Records/Chronology should be obtained
• A copy of the Care Plan should be obtained and forwarded to the home within 10 working days (amended August 2011)
• Other relevant information about the child. For example, recent Looked After Review reports, Pathway Plan, Personal Education Plan, reports from specialists or therapists.

If it is agreed that a placement is offered to the child, the Director of Care Area Manager should arrange for a Service Agreement/Contract to be drafted and forwarded to the Placing Authority for signing.

A copy of the completed/signed Service Agreement/Contract, Referral Form and other documents obtained must be given to the Home's Manager to be placed on the child's file.

3.3 Placement Planning

Once a decision has been reached to place a child, the Home's Manager will co-ordinate the placement with the Placing Authority (usually the child's social worker).

Before or on the day of the placement, it will be necessary for the Home's Manager to obtain the following, which should be taken into account when the child's Placement Plan is completed:

• A copy of the Referral Form and Placement Risk Assessment.
• A copy of the child's Care Plan and Placement Information Record. If these documents are not available, the Home's Manager must clarify the key objectives of the Care Plan with the Placing Authority and arrange for a completed Care Plan to be forwarded to the home within 10 working days (amended August 2011) of the child's placement.
• A Chronology should be obtained at the time of the placement or forwarded to the home as soon as practicable after the placement starts
• Any other relevant documents such as a recent Looked After Review reports, Pathway Plan, Personal Education Plan, reports from specialists or therapists.

The documents/information above should be taken into account when completing the child's Placement Plan and Individual Crisis Management Plan(ICMP). The responsibility for the completion of the Placement Plan and ICMP rests with the Home's Manager.

It is for the Home's Manager/delegate and social worker to agree whether the Placement Plan has been completed sufficiently to sustain the child until the first Looked After Review.

If there is no agreement, a Placement Plan Review must be convened within 7 days of the placement to enable the plan to be completed satisfactorily. 

Subsequent Placement Plan Reviews must be convened each week until the plan is completed satisfactorily.

The detailed arrangements for admitting the child will depend on the circumstances of the case, these arrangements should be made by the Home's Manager in consultation with the child's social worker.

A copy of the Children's Guide must be given to the child before or upon admission.

4. Placement Process - Emergency Placements

See Section 3 for definition and procedures relating to Planned Placements.

We aim to respond to a placing agency's request for crisis intervention within 24 hours of receiving the notification.  This time period allows for the appropriate steps to be taken to ensure a smooth admission for the young person and allows for any required amendments to the staffing levels, property and available resources to be made.

4.1 Definition of Emergency Placement

An Emergency Placement is the placement of a child without the agreement of Placing Authority and Director of Care Area Manager or the Home's Manager (or Line Manager), having completed and considered the following, which may be completed over the 'phone:

• A Referral Form.
• A Placement Risk Assessment.

If there is no agreement, an Emergency Review must be convened within 72 hours of the placement, to consider whether the placement is suitable.  See Emergency Reviews Procedure.

4.2 Emergency Placement Procedure

Ordinarily emergency placements will only take place at the Meadows Crisis Intervention facility, however the nature of the young persons particular circumstances might be such that another Bryn Melyn Care house might be more suitable.

In the event of a referral for an Emergency Placement, the person receiving/administering the referral should do all that is reasonable to follow the procedures set out in Section 3.2 - Referral Process and Section 3.3 - Placement Planning, above.

However, any decision to admit a child in these circumstances must be based on an assessment of the available information that the child's needs are likely to be met by the home.

For emergency admissions, the above process will apply.  However, given the time constraints, the risk assessments will be carried out from information provided over the phone, e-mail or facsimile.  Referral forms need to be completed and received before the young person is admitted despite the time pressures with emergency placements.

The person administering this process must keep a record of the matters that are not undertaken, and pass this to the chair of the Emergency Review, so that they can be followed up.

5. Notifications of Placements

Notification of the placement must be sent, by the Social Worker/Placing Authority, to all those consulted and involved in the decision-making process within 5 working days of the placement starting.

If not consulted during the decision making process, the following people/agencies must be notified:

1. The team/unit, within the Placing Authority, responsible for arranging Looked After Reviews, so that the child's first/next Looked After Review can be arranged, normally within 20 days of the child's placement.
2. The Health Trust.
3. The Local Education Authority (must be notified within 10 working days of the placement)
4. The Children's Services Department in the area where the child is placed;  these notifications must be made in writing advising of the placement decision and the name and address of the person with whom the child is to be placed. 

6. Health Care

Amended March 2009: The whole of this section was amended in March 2009 and again in August 2011 to highlight the need for the Healthcare assessment to take place before the first Looked After review.

It will necessary for the manager of the home to ensure that the following:

• That the child is allocated a Link/Keyworker who will be responsible for promoting the child's healthcare needs and liasing with health care professionals, see Link/Keyworker Responsibilities Procedure.
• For the child to be registered with a GP (within 10 working days of the placement) and have access to a Dentist in the home's locality (within 20 working days of the placement); see General Practitioners, Dentists and Opticians Procedures.
• For a Health Care Assessment to be conducted in relation to the child, before the first Looked After Review; see Health Care Assessments and Plans Procedures.

7. Support, Monitoring and Ending of Placements

The child's social worker must visit the child in the placement within one week of the placement and then at specified intervals; which are set out in Social Worker Visits to Looked After Children Procedure.

The social worker must also co-operate with the manager by attending Placement Plan Reviews, as set out in Placement Plan Reviews Procedure.