Appendix 2 - Children's Safeguarding Recommendations

Safeguarding children report: the second joint chief inspector's review of children's safeguards (2005)

1. Introduction

1.1

For the first time in the Joint Chief Inspectors Report, Safeguarding Children (Social Services Inspectorate et al, 2002), a definition of safeguarding is provided. The joint inspectors have taken the term to mean:

All agencies working with children, young people and their families take all reasonable measures to ensure that the risks of harm to children's welfare are minimised; and
Where there are concerns about children and young people's welfare, all agencies take all appropriate action to address those concerns, working to agreed local policies and procedures in full partnership with other local agencies

1.2

The Safeguarding Children Report reflects the key findings of inspections and special studies of children's services undertaken since Safeguarding Children: the first Joint Chief Inspectors' Review of Children's Safeguards was published in 2002.

2. Recommendations

2.1	Extracted here are the recommendations for all agencies and organisations directly involved with children, local authorities, NHS Trusts and independent hospitals.
2.2	All agencies should review their approach to safeguarding, in line with the requirements of the Children Act 2004 and guidance, in order to: Identify the relevant safeguarding issues specific to their area of work; Ensure that there are policies and procedures in place to address these issues; and Put in place regular quality assurance and monitoring systems to ensure that policy is followed through consistently in practice, and demonstrates effective outcomes; Ensure that staff know how to recognise the signs of abuse or neglect and which procedures to follow when working with or in contact with: Disabled children; Children in private fostering situations; Asylum-seeking children. Audit their recruitment and staff checking procedures so that the following practices are carried out consistently: References are always verified and properly recorded in staff files; A full employment history is available on file for every member of staff, any gaps in employment history are checked and accounted for and qualifications are checked; Enhanced Criminal Records Bureau checks are consistently undertaken on new staff and those working with children who have not previously been subject to checks, including temporary, agency or contract staff, prior to the establishment of the centralised vetting and barring scheme proposed in response to the Bichard recommendations; Review existing safeguarding policies to ensure that they take full account of the needs of children with disabilities and assess the professional development needs of staff who work with children with disabilities to equip them to: Communicate effectively with children; Identify potential child protection concern; Track and monitor behaviour patterns; Follow appropriate child protection procedures.
2.3	Local authorities and partner agencies should ensure, when developing Children and Young People's Plans, that: They reflect priorities for safeguarding, as well as for universal and preventive services; and Thresholds for specialist services are consistent with ensuring that children are safeguarded effectively.
2.4	Local authorities should ensure, in introducing the Common Assessment Framework, that sufficient priority and adequate resources are given to delivering their responsibilities to safeguarding children effectively.
2.5	Ensure that safeguarding requirements are consistently applied to Looked After children in all settings, including: Children placed for adoption; Children on care orders placed with parents; and Children placed with extended family.
2.6	Ensure that robust arrangements for safeguarding children Looked After are in place, including: Specific safeguarding requirements in all placement contracts; and Effective monitoring arrangements, including regular visits by social workers.
2.7	Ensure that unaccompanied asylum seeking children receive a comprehensive assessment of their needs and that appropriate services are put in place.
2.8	Ensure, when children are placed in residential special schools, that their needs are assessed under the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families to inform the care plan.
2.9	Put plans in place to ensure that good working relations between professionals, especially teachers and social workers, are actively promoted.
2.10	Develop parallel pathway plans for unaccompanied asylum seeking children who have been given discretionary leave to remain in the UK to age 18, taking account of the uncertainty about what immigration decisions will be made at that time.
2.11	Local authorities and NHS Trusts should establish clear arrangements, when a looked after child is placed out of their area, for notifying NHS Trusts in the area where they are placed, in line with the National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services.
2.12	NHS Trusts and independent hospitals should develop robust protocols for: Postmortems, to ensure that staff are aware of the criteria for Serious Case Review, and how to request that a case is considered for a serious case review through the Local Safeguarding Children Board; and know which cases of death must be referred to, or discussed with, the coroner, and, for cases not referred to the coroner, are familiar with the process of gaining consent for post-mortem examination; and Ensuring that staff working with children who spend more than three months in hospital notify LA children's social care about these children to trigger an assessment, under the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families, and follow up on their welfare needs.

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