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Safeguarding Procedures

• Introduction
• Scope
• Key Principles
• Sharing Information
• Managing Individual Cases
  • Recognition, referral and response
    • Recognition
    • How to get advice if you have concerns
    • Before you make a referral
    • How to make a referral
    • Information to include in a referral
    • Response by Manchester Children’s Social Care to a referral
    • Possible outcomes following a referral to Children’s social Care
  • Initial assessment procedures
    • Initial Assessment
    • Possible outcomes following an Initial Assessment
    • Significant Harm threshold
    • Immediate Protection
    • Strategy Meetings
    • Core Assessment (S47 Child Protection Enquiries)
  • Initial Child Protection Conference
    • Criteria for convening an Initial Child Protection Conference
    • Purpose
    • Timing
    • Attendance
    • Role of the Chair
    • Providing Information
    • Principles
    • Process
  • Child Protection Register
    • What the register provides
    • Management of the Register
    • Placing a child’s name on the Register
    • Child Looked After by the Local Authority
    • Registration categories
    • Deciding to consult the Child Protection Register
    • Appeals against the decision to make a child subject to a child protection plan
    • The Appeal Process
  • Key Worker roles and responsibilities
    • Key Worker roles and responsibilities
    • The Core Group
    • Core Assessments
    • The Child Protection Plan
    • The Child Protection Review Conference
  • Legislative Framework
    • Statutory duties in relation to Safeguarding Children
    • Legal powers and duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children – Civil Law
    • People identified as presenting a risk, or potential risk, to children
    • Manchester Safeguarding Children’s Board duties

Introduction

The Manchester Safeguarding Children Board (MSCB) Child Protection Procedures have been revised in 2007, updating the version published in 1999.

They have been revised to take account of the guidance entitled “Working Together to Safeguard Children” 2006, which builds on the Green Paper “Every Child Matters”, developed in part in response to the inquiry into the death of Victoria Climbie.

The policy and procedures provide a framework within which all agencies and professionals can work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people across Manchester.

They are underpinned by Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, and Section 175 of the Education Act 2002, which place a statutory duty on all organisations and individuals to ensure that their functions are discharged with regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.

Scope

The policy and procedures relate to children and young people under the age of 18.

The policy and procedures apply to everyone whose work (including voluntary work) brings them into contact with children and young people, including people working with adults who may be parents or caregivers.

Key Principles

The following principles are fundamental to the implementation of the policy and procedures and underpin work to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.

Child Centred

The child or young person must always be kept central in any work undertaken with them. Their views and feelings must always be sought and taken account of. Involving children, young people and their families in the assessment of their needs is central to providing the best for the child.

Work undertaken with children and young people should be outcomes focussed - workers need to be clear what they want to happen as a result of the services they provide for the child or young person, and ensure everybody involved with the child or young person sees the person and not a set of circumstances.

Integrated working

Agencies and professionals working together to provide an holistic service to children and young people is fundamental to the successful implementation of these policy and procedures. All workers need to be confident about other people’s roles and responsibilities, and sharing information across disciplines. Measures to safeguard children should be viewed as part of the wider range of support available to meet the needs of children, young people and their families.

Shared responsibility

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people is everyone’s business. Therefore all workers who come into contact with children and young people must accept a shared responsibility to work jointly across agencies to effect the best outcomes for children and young people

Safe working practices

All agencies and staff working with children, young people and their families have a duty to ensure that the services they deliver keep the children and young people they are working with safe. This includes robust recruitment practices, promoting safe staff conduct and ways of dealing with staff who pose a risk to children.

Evidence based practice

All agencies and staff must acknowledge that effective practice is underpinned by an evidence base.

Sharing Information

Sharing information is essential in working to safeguard children and young people. Workers and agencies are required to share information about

• Children and their health, development and exposure to possible significant harm
• Parents who may not be able to care adequately and safely for children
• Individuals who may present a risk to children

Often it is only when information from a number of sources is shared that it becomes clear that a child or young person is at risk of or suffering from harm.

Personal information held by agencies and their workers is subject to a legal duty of confidence and will normally only be disclosed to third parties with the consent of the subject of the information. In some circumstances however, the safety and welfare of a child dictates that information must be shared, without seeking consent, or where consent has not been given

Where there are concerns that a child is, or may be, at risk of harm, the needs of the child or young person must always come first - priority must be given to safeguarding the child and information must be shared.

Sharing Information

As we move towards integrated working, professional and confident sharing of information is key to realising the potential of these new arrangements to deliver benefits for children, young people and families.

In some situations, however, you may be unsure about whether you can share information or not. This guidance aims to provide clarity on when you can share information, and help you be confident in your judgments about when and when not to share information.

The guidance is based upon the HM Government non-statutory guidance Information sharing: Practitioners' guide www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/informationsharing

Information sharing agreements & protocols

The question has been posed recently by some local authorities as to whether information sharing agreements and protocols are required before frontline practitioners can share information about a specific child.

The view of the DCSF (previously DfES) is that they are not. The decision to share or not to share information about a child should always be based on professional judgement, supported by the cross-Government Information Sharing: Practitioners’ Guide (published in April 2006) and informed by training. The lack of an ISA between agencies should never be a reason for not sharing information that could help a practitioner deliver services to a child.

Who might I be sharing information about?

You may be sharing information about children and young people with whom you are working and providing a service to. You may also be sharing information about their parents/carers, and significant others.

Why might I be sharing their information?

Sharing information is essential to ensure children, young people and families who need additional services access help and services at the earliest opportunity. It assists with the assessment of need and the development of a plan to deliver co-ordinated services to meet these needs. These services could include additional help with learning, specialist health services, help and support to move away from criminal or anti-social behaviour, or support for parents in developing parenting skills.

Information sharing is also vital to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. A key factor in many serious case reviews has been a failure to record information, to share it, to understand the significance of the information shared, and to take appropriate action in relation to known or suspected abuse or neglect.

In some instances, you may have a niggling concern about a child that may be allayed or confirmed if shared with a colleague.

What information might I be sharing?

You may be sharing information about the child/young person and their family circumstances, concerns you may have about their well-being, or concerns you may have about a risk of or actual significant harm. You will also share information about family strengths and protective factors. You may also be sharing information about the impact of the local community on the child and family.

In some instances, you may be sharing information that you have been asked to keep confidential.

Not all information is confidential. Confidential information is information of some sensitivity, which is not already lawfully in the public domain or readily available from another public source, and which has been shared in a relationship where the person giving the information understood that it would not be shared with others. For example, you may know that a parent of a child you are working with misuses drugs. This is information of some sensitivity, but may not be confidential if it is widely known or it has been shared with you in circumstances where the parent understood it would be shared with others. If, however, that information was shared by the child or young person in a situation in which they understand it would remain confidential, it would be confidential.

Confidence is only breached where the sharing of that confidential information is not authorized by the person who provided it or to whom it relates. If the information was provided on the understanding that it would be shared with a limited range of people or for limited purposes, then sharing in accordance with that understanding will not be a breach of confidence. There will not be a breach of confidence where there is explicit consent to sharing i.e. the person has given consent for the information to be shared. (See later for more guidance on when confidential information can be shared)

The key factor in deciding whether or not to disclose confidential information is proportionality i.e. is the proposed disclosure a proportionate response to the need to protect the child’s welfare. The amount of confidential information disclosed and the number of people to whom it is disclosed should be no more than is necessary to meet the public interest in protecting the health and well being of the child or young person.

The approach to confidential information should be the same whether any proposed disclosure is between you and your team members, or between you and other professionals.

Who might I be sharing with?

You may be sharing information with your team members, other practitioners and professionals involved with the child and family e.g. schools, early years, YOT, the community and voluntary sector, adult services, associated health professionals, the police. You may also be sharing information in other forums e.g. Area Casework Panels, Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARAC), Vulnerable Babies planning meetings.

The information will be shared on the basis that other practitioners with whom the information is shared, will adhere to their professional codes of conduct and best practice with regard to information sharing e.g. Caldicott.

Can I legally share this information?

The decision whether to disclose or share information may arise in various contexts. In all cases the main restrictions on sharing information are

Common law duty of confidence
Human Rights Act 1998
Data Protection Act 1998

If you are sharing information for the purpose of assessing the need for and delivering preventative services, seeking consent should be the first option. (See later for guidance on consent). Children, young people and their families will need to be informed when they first engage with the multi-agency team, about why, when and with whom their information will be shared, and their consent sought.

Information which is not confidential may generally be shared where that is necessary for the legitimate purpose of preventative work e.g. when completing a common assessment. Where information is confidential, however, and consent is refused that should be respected, unless in your professional judgement on the facts of the case, you are justified in sharing the information.

There will be cases where you can share confidential information without consent in order to make decisions on whether to share further information or take action.

In general the law will not prevent you from sharing information with other practitioners if:

Those likely to be affected consent:

The public interest in safeguarding the child’s welfare overrides the need to keep the information confidential Disclosure is required under a court order or other legal obligation
It prevents disorder or crime
It is necessary to protect the vital interests of the “data subject” i.e. who the information relates to
It is necessary for the exercise of a statutory function or other public function exercised in the public interest e.g. a section 17 assessment or a Section 47 enquiry under the Children Act 1989

If you have reasonable cause to suspect that a child or young person may be suffering or may be at risk of suffering significant harm, you should always consider referring or discussing your concerns with a social worker. It is good practice to discuss any concerns with the family and, where possible seek their agreement to a referral. This should not delay or interfere with a referral, however. The child’s interests must be the overriding consideration in making any such decision.

You should consider sharing information if you are concerned that an adult is at risk of harm.

If you are not sure what to do, talk to a colleague, a manager, a lead person on child protection, or a Caldicott Guardian, to help you decide.

Do I need to obtain consent?

Personal information about children and families kept by professionals and agencies should not generally be shared or disclosed without the consent of the subject. This is known as the duty of confidence.

The first option should be to obtain consent from the person who has provided the information on the understanding it is or was to be kept confidential and, in the case of medical records, the person to whom the information relates.

A young person aged 16 or 17, or a child under 16 who has the capacity to understand and make their own decisions, may give (or refuse) consent to share information. Children aged 12 or over may generally be expected to have sufficient understanding. Younger children may also have sufficient understanding. You will need to assess whether the child has sufficient understanding to give or refuse consent.

If you judge a child or young person to be competent to give consent, then their consent or refusal to consent is the one to consider even if a parent or carer disagrees.

In most cases where a child cannot consent or where you have judged that they are not competent to consent, a person with parental responsibility should be asked to consent on behalf of the child.

Where parental consent is required, the consent of one such person is sufficient. In situations where family members are in conflict you will need to consider carefully whose consent should be sought. If the parents are separated, the consent of the resident parent would usually be sought.

Consent must be "informed" – this means that the person giving consent needs to understand why information needs to be shared, who will see their information, the purpose to which it will be put and the implications of sharing that information.

Consent can be explicit or implicit.

It is good practice to obtain explicit consent either orally or preferably in writing.

Implicit consent can be valid in many circumstances. Consent can be legitimately implied if the content is such that information sharing is intrinsic to the activity, and especially if that has been explained at the outset, e.g. when conducting a common assessment.

Consent should not be obtained through coercion, or inferred from a lack of response to a request for consent. Consent should be sought again if

There is a significant change in the use to which the information will be put
There is a significant change in the relationship between the agency and the individual

The duty of confidence, however, is not absolute and you may share information without the consent of the subject if:

The information is not confidential in nature e.g. it is trivial or readily available elsewhere
The person to whom the duty of confidence is owed has “expressly” authorised disclosure (orally or in writing) or "implicitly" authorized disclosure (a parent of a child in school would expect their child’s educational progress to de discussed by staff members)
Seeking permission would place the child or young person at increased risk of significant harm
Seeking permission would place an adult at risk of serious harm
Seeking permission would lead to an unjustified delay in making enquiries about allegations of significant harm
Such action might reasonably assist in the prevention or detection of serous crime
Such action will protect the vital interests of the person

Consent issues can be complex, and involve the exercise of professional judgement. You must always act in the best interests of the child, even where that means overriding refusal to consent to information being shared or disclosed.

You will need to decide whether the circumstances justify the information being shared, taking into account what is being shared, for what purposes and to whom.

If you are not sure what to do, talk to a colleague, a manager, a lead person on child protection, or a Caldicott Guardian, to help you decide.

What am I telling service users and how

You will need to tell service users why, when and with whom their information will be shared, and seek their consent. You will need to tell them when their consent may be overridden and why e.g. if you thought a child/young person was at risk of harm. It is good practice to be honest with service users from the start and be very clear if they ask to tell you something in confidence when you may not be able to keep that confidence.

How and when might I share information?

You may share information in meetings, in consultation with colleagues, by telephone or in writing. You may be asked to share information to complete assessments, for planning purposes, to assist a colleague in allaying or confirming concerns, to assist with enquiries under Section 17 and Section 47of the Children Act 1989. You may sometimes be asked to share information in court proceedings.

You can share information with consent, when you judge it appropriate to do so in the best interests of the child or young person.

You can share information without consent where to do so would

Place a child or young person at increased risk of significant harm
Place an adult at risk of serious harm
Prejudice the prevention or detection of a serious crime
Lead to an unjustified delay in making enquiries about allegations of significant harm

The court can also direct you to share information in specific circumstances.

When sharing information, adhere to the principles outlined above.

How will I record and hold shared information?

You and the person requesting information from you must record the event in accordance with your agency policies and procedures. The recording must indicate whether the consent of the relevant individual was sought and obtained, sought and refused, or not sought. If information is provided without consent, the reason/s for doing so must be made clear and the record indicate whether the person in question is subsequently informed of the information transfer.

Information should be stored securely in line with your agency policies and procedures.

The Caldicott principles and processes provide a framework of quality standards for the management of confidentiality and access to personal information under the leadership of a Caldicott Guardian. The Caldicott principles are: -

Justify the purpose(s)for using confidential information
Only use it when absolutely necessary
Use the minimum that is required
Access should be on a strict need to know basis
Everyone must understand his or her responsibilities
Understand and comply with the law

Who else can access this information?

The information that has been shared and recorded can be accessed by those who have been given implicit or explicit permission to do so, and by the courts if an order to disclose has been granted.

How long will this information be stored for?

The information will be kept in accordance with your agency’s policies and procedures.

What responsibility does my manager have?

Your manager will advise and support you in making decisions about whether to share information or not, will ensure that you understand and apply good practice when sharing information, and will ensure that information and decisions to share or not are recorded in line with your agency policies and procedures.

Key points to remember

You should explain to children, young people and families at the outset, openly and honestly, what and how information will, or could be shared and why, and seek their agreement. The exception to this is where to do so would put that child, young person or others at increased risk of significant harm or an adult at risk of serious harm, or if it would undermine the prevention, detection or prosecution of a serious crime

You must always consider the safety and welfare of a child or young person when making decisions on whether to share information about them. Where there is concern that the child may be suffering or is at risk of suffering significant harm, the child’s safety and welfare must be the overriding consideration.

You should, where possible, respect the wishes of children, young people or families who do not consent to share confidential information. You may still share information, if in your judgement on the facts of the case, there is sufficient need to override that lack of consent.

You should seek advice where you are in doubt, especially where your doubt relates to a concern about possible significant harm to a child or serious harm to others.

You should ensure that the information you share is accurate and up-to-date, necessary for the purpose for which you are sharing it, shared only with those people who need to see it, and shared securely.

You should always record the reasons for your decision – whether it is to share information or not.

Questions designed to support effective information sharing

Is there a legitimate purpose for the you or your agency to share the information?
Does the information enable a person to be identified?
Is the information confidential?
If the information is confidential, is there consent to share?
Is there a statutory duty or court order to share the information?
If consent is refused, or there are good reasons not to seek consent to share confidential information, is there a sufficient public interest to share information?
If the decision is to share, is the right information being shared in the right way?
Has any decision made been properly recorded and professional codes of conduct adhered to?

Managing Individual Cases

Recognition

Everyone, including members of local communities, has a part to play in keeping every child and young person safe, and needs to know what to do when they have concerns that a child or young person may be at risk of harm.

See "What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused"

Everybody who works with or has been/is in contact with children, parents and other adults in contact with children should be able to recognise, and know how to act on, evidence that a child’s health or development is, or may be, being impaired, and especially when they are suffering, or at risk of suffering, significant harm.

With Children

All professionals working with children, and especially those in health and social care, should be familiar with the core standards set out in the ‘National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services Core Standards’ (link) and in particular standard 5, ‘Safeguarding and Promoting the Welfare of Children and Young People’. When dealing with cases of domestic abuse, the police and other involved agencies should consider the implications of the situation for any children in the family.

With parents or caregivers who may need help in promoting and safeguarding their children’s welfare

For example, adult mental health or substance misuse services should always consider the implications for the children of their service users. Day nurseries, children’s and family centres should keep the interests of children uppermost when working with parents, working in ways intended to bring about better outcomes for children, and be alert to possible indicators of abuse or neglect. When dealing with cases of domestic abuse, the police and other involved agencies should consider the implications of the situation for any children in the family.

With family member, employees or others who have contact with children

For example, the police and probation services, mental health services and housing authorities should be alert to the possibility that an individual may pose a risk of significant harm to a particular child, or children in a local community. Employers of staff or volunteers who have substantial unsupervised access to children should guard against the potential for abuse, through rigorous selection processes, appropriate supervision and by taking steps to maintain a safe environment for children. When dealing with cases of domestic abuse, the police and other involved agencies should consider the implications of the situation for any children in the family.

How to get advice if you have concerns

It is important to seek consultation and get advice about concerns that practitioners may have. There should be at least one designated senior doctor and nurse within each PCT, and a designated member of staff within each school or further education institution.

There should always be the opportunity to discuss child welfare concerns with, and seek advice from, colleagues, managers, a designated or named professional, or other agencies.

Concerns can also be discussed with senior colleagues in another agency in order to develop an understanding of the child’s needs and circumstances.

Staff employed by the Health Authorities, Education Department, Children's Services Department, Police, Probation and NSPCC, should follow their individual agency's procedures at this stage.

If they have concerns about a child or young person, all staff should:

• Never delay emergency action to protect a child from harm
• Always record in writing concerns about a child’s welfare, including whether or not further action is taken
• Always record in writing any discussions about a child’s welfare. At the close of discussion, always reach a clear and explicit recorded agreement about who will be taking what action, (or that no further action will be taken).

Before you make a referral

Following consultation and advice, where possible, and provided this will not place the child at greater risk of harm, talk to the family and carers. There are some circumstances where you would not discuss with parents, such as where discussion may place the child at greater risk of harm and / or there are concerns of sexual abuse.

DISCUSS your concerns with the family / carers and seek their agreement and inform them before making the referral to Children's Services.

Parents’ permission, or the child’s permission where appropriate, should be sought before discussing a referral about them with other agencies, unless permission-seeking may itself place a child at increased risk of significant harm.

These procedures must also be followed if there are concerns about the welfare of an unborn child (link)

Information Gathering

If there is a physical injury:

• Ask the child and parent how it happened, make a note on the skin map if appropriate
• Consider the need for urgent treatment / safety
• Make a note of what the child says recording accurately and in the child’s own language
• Do not over-question or ask leading questions

NB No one other than a qualified medical practitioner is competent to diagnose the nature, extent or severity of an injury.

If there is an allegation of sexual abuse:

• Let the child know that she or he will have to tell someone who may be able to help her or him
• Allow the child to say what has happened to her or him
• Record carefully what the child says in their own language
• Reassure her or him that it is not her/his fault and that s/he is right to tell.

NB No one other than a qualified medical practitioner is competent to diagnose the nature, extent or severity of an injury. All cases of suspected/actual sexual abuse should lead to an immediate Strategy Meeting, involving St. Mary’s Centre

If there is a possibility of Neglect or Emotional Abuse:

• Record carefully the impact on the child’s development
• What steps have been taken to date, including any health assessment
• Why a Strategy Meeting is now required.

If you are not sure what to do, consult with your Line Manager/Children’s Safeguarding Advisor or the Quality Assurance and Performance Management Unit - 0161 203 3232

How to make a Referral

If you believe that a child may be suffering, or be at risk of suffering, significant harm, you must make a referral to Manchester Children Social Care.

If you are a resident or a member of the public and have a concern about a child or young person, please contact Children Services Contact Centre on 0161 255 8250

If in the course of your work come into contact with children and young people, and their families and have a concern about a child or young person, you need to make a referral by completing an inter-agency referral and assessment form and sending it to the contact Centre

NB The above form, will be replaced following the implementation of CAF in 2008

If you do not have access to the above forms you can make a telephone referral to the contact centre. Any telephone referrals must be confirmed in writing within 24 hours.

Please click here for a pdf copy of the referral form and for guidance on completion.

Referrals can also be made online at www.manchester.gov.uk/ssd/access/index.html

Information to include in a referral

It is helpful to include as much of the information detailed below in your referral. If you are making a referral by telephone you will be asked for the following information:

• details of the referrer,
• the child's name, date of birth, age, if not available then approximate age, gender and school or childcare setting, if attended
• the child's address or place of residence
• the names date of birth and ages of any other children in the household
• the names date of birth and ages of any adult members of the household
• details of any other agencies involved or working with the family
• details of any allegation or incident or concern/s, including when and where it occurred, and who was present
• a description of evidence of any injury observed on the child
• the name of the person/s alleged to be responsible for the potential or actual significant harm
• impact of the alleged harm on the child
• brief details of any assessments if available (please attach CAF if available)

Response by Manchester Children’s Social Care to the referral

Flow chart 1 (link) illustrates the processes from the point that concerns are raised about a child and are referred to a statutory organisation that can take action.

When a referral is made to the Contact Centre, it is the responsibility of Children’s Social Care to clarify with the referrer (including self-referrals):

• The nature of concerns
• How and why they have arisen
• What appear to be the needs of the child and family

This process should always identify clearly whether there are concerns about maltreatment, what is their foundation, and whether it may be necessary to consider taking urgent action to ensure the child(ren) are safe from harm.

Children’s Social Care should acknowledge a written referral within one working day of receiving it. If the referrer has not received an acknowledgement within three working days, they should contact Children’s Social Care again.

Children's Social Care should make the following clear to any referrer following an assessment of the referral:

• Proposed action and timescales
• Who will take what action or
• That no further action will be taken.

The decision about action or no action must be recorded by Children's Social Care and by the referrer, when the referrer is a professional. The decision will be confirmed in writing by Children’s Social Care.

Children’s Social Care should decide and record next steps of action within one working day. This information should be consistent with the information set out in the Referral and Information Record (Department of Health, 2002 link).This decision should normally follow discussion with any referring professional/service and consideration of information held in any existing records, and involve discussion with other professionals and services as necessary (including the police, where a criminal offence may have been committed against a child).

Possible outcomes following a referral to Children’s Social Care

These are:

• No further action, in which case the referrer should be informed in a way which respects the confidentiality of the child;
• Agreeing with the referrer (if not a member of the public) regarding the provision of services to the family or other help, co-ordinated by the identified lead professional
• Initial Assessment of the needs and circumstances of the child, which may lead to :
  • emergency action, preceded by a Strategy Meeting/Discussion, (link)
  • S47 enquiries, preceded by a Strategy Meeting/Discussion (link)
  • Core Assessment case planning

If new information is received regarding an open case and there are concerns that the child may be suffering harm, then a decision must be made about whether a strategy discussion should be initiated. It may not be necessary to undertake an initial assessment however, in order to understand the child’s current needs, it may be necessary to undertake a core assessment or update a previous one.

Initial Assessment

Referrals to Children’s Social Care regarding concerns about alleged or actual harm to a child will result in an Initial Assessment in accordance with the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families (Department of Health et al. 2000). Where a common assessment (CAF) has been completed, this information should be used to inform the Initial Assessment.

The Initial Assessment should be completed by the allocated Social Worker, working with partner agencies, within 7 working days from the date of the referral.

The process of undertaking an Initial Assessment will involve:

Seeing and speaking to the child (according to age and understanding) and family members as appropriate.

Parents' permission should be sought before other agencies are approached, unless doing so could put the child or young person at increased risk. The child should be seen within a timescale that is appropriate to the nature of concerns expressed at the time of the referral. This involves observing and communicating with the child in a manner appropriate to his or her age and in the preferred language of the child.

Children from abroad

All relevant information should be taken into account which may include seeking information from relevant services if the child or family have spent time abroad. Details of who to contact can be obtained via the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 0207 008 1500.

The Initial Assessment should address the following questions -

• What are the developmental needs of the child?
• Are the parents able to respond appropriately to the child 's identified needs?
• Is the child being adequately safeguarded from significant harm?
• Are the parents able to promote the child's health and development?
• What impact are family functioning and history, the wider family and environmental factors having the parents’ capacity to respond to their child’s needs and the child’s developmental progress.
• Is any action required to safeguard and promote the child 's welfare?

"Working Together to Safeguard Children" 2006 ch5, 5.38

Initial Assessment and enquiries – Ten pitfalls and how to avoid them

1. Not enough weight is given to information from family, friends and neighbours.
Ask yourself. Would I react differently if these reports had come from a different source? How can I check whether or not they have substance? Even if they are not accurate, could they be a sign that the family are in need of some help or support?

2. Not enough attention is paid to what children say, how they look and how they behave.
Ask yourself. Have I been given appropriate access to all the children in the family? If I have not been able to see any child, is there a very good reason, and have I made arrangements to see him/her as soon as possible, or made sure that another relevant professional sees him/her? How should I follow up any uneasiness about the child/ren's health or well-being? If the child is old enough and has the communication skills, what is the child's account of events? If the child uses a language other than English, or alternative non-verbal communication, have I made every effort to enlist help in understanding him/her? What is the evidence to support or refute the young person's account?

3. Attention is focused on the most visible or pressing problems and other warning signs are not appreciated.
Ask yourself What is the most striking thing about this situation? If this feature were to be removed or changed, would I still have concerns?

4. Pressures from high status referrers or the press, with fears that a child may die, lead to over-precipitate action.
Ask yourself Would I see this referral as a child protection matter if it came from another source?

5. Professionals think that when they have explained something as clearly as they can, the other person will have understood it.
Ask yourself Have I double-checked with the family and the child/ren that they understand what will happen next?

6. Assumptions and pre-judgements about families lead to observations being ignored or misinterpreted.
Ask yourself What were my assumptions about this family? What, if any, is the hard evidence which supports them? What, if any, is the hard evidence which refutes them?

7. Parents ' behaviour, whether co-operative or un- co-operative, is often misinterpreted.
Ask yourself What were the reasons for the parents ' behaviour? Are there other possibilities besides the most obvious? Could their behaviour have been a reaction to something I did or said rather than to do with the child?

8. When the initial enquiry shows that the child is not at risk of significant harm, families are seldom referred to other services which they need to prevent longer term problems.
Ask yourself Is this family 's situation satisfactory for meeting the child/ren's needs? Whether or not there is a child protection concern, do the family need support or practical help? How can I make sure they know about services they are entitled to, and can access them if they wish?

9. When faced with an aggressive or frightening family, professionals are reluctant to discuss fears for their own safety and ask for help. Ask yourself Did I feel safe in this household ? If not, why not? If one or another professional should go back there to ensure the children 's safety, what support should I ask for? If necessary put your concerns and requests in writing to your manager.

10. Information taken at the first enquiry is not adequately recorded, facts are not checked and reasons for decisions are not noted.
Ask yourself Am I sure the information I have noted is 100% accurate? If I didn't check my notes with the family during the interview, what steps should I take to verify them? Do my notes show clearly the difference between the information the family gave me, my own direct observations, and my interpretation or assessment of the situation? Do notes record what action I have taken/will take? What action all other relevant people have taken/will take?

(Cleaver, Wattam, Cawson, Gordon, Assessing Risk in Child Protection,1998, quoted in Working Together to Safeguard Children 2006,p.114)

Possible outcomes following an Initial Assessment

Following an Initial Assessment, the Social Worker will make one of the following recommendations to their Manager in relation to their assessment of the child or young person in question:

• The child is not ‘in need’ as defined by the Children Act 1989 (link) and that the concern about abuse is not substantiated.. A plan will still need to be in place (agreed by partner agencies and parent/carer) and a Lead Professional agreed to ensure the ongoing promotion of and safeguarding of the child’s wellbeing. No action is required by statutory social work
  
  The child is a ‘child in need’ as defined by the Children Act 1989 (link) but that there are no substantiated concerns that the child may be suffering, or at risk of suffering significant harm. If there is adequate information to assess the child’s needs, a plan should be agreed as to how best to meet these needs, and a lead professional identified. If more information is required, a Core Assessment will be completed to inform case planning.
• There is reasonable cause to suspect that the child is suffering, or is likely to suffer significant harm, and a strategy discussion is required in order in order to determine whether a S47 enquiry is required in order to establish the action to be taken to promote and safeguard the welfare of the child(ren)
• There is a risk to the life of a child or a likelihood of serious immediate harm and emergency action is needed to secure the immediate safety of the child.

See flow chart 2 for outcomes following Initial Assessment

Significant Harm threshold

Some children are in need because they are suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. The Children Act 1989 introduced the concept of significant harm as the threshold that justifies compulsory intervention in family life in the best interest of the children.

The Local authority is under a duty to make enquiries, or cause enquiries to be made, where it has reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm. Decisions about significant harm are complex and should be informed by a careful assesement of the child’s’ circumstance, and discussion between statutory agencies and with the child and family.

What is abuse and neglect?

Abuse and neglect are forms of maltreatment – a person may abuse or neglect a child by inflicting harm, or by failing to act to prevent harm.

Physical Abuse

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

Sexual Abuse

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

Emotional Abuse

Is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effect on the child’s emotional development. It may involve conveying to a child or young person that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person. It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond the child’s developmental capability as well as over protection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child from participating from normal social interaction. It may also involve serious bullying, causing children to frequently feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children. Some level of emotional abused is in involved in all types of maltreatment, though it may occur alone.

Neglect

Is the persistent failure to meet a child or young person’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health pr development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born it may involve a parent failing to:

• Provide adequate food, clothing and shelter
• Protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger
• Ensure adequate supervision
• Ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment

Immediate Protection

If Manchester Children's Social Care or Police receive a referral which indicates that a child's life is at risk or the child is likely to suffer a serious injury, they must secure the immediate safety of the child by invoking their statutory powers by undertaking one of the following :

• Applying to the Court for an Emergency Protection Order,
• Police Protection Orders
• Exclusion Orders.

Responsibility for taking immediate action rests with the Authority where the child is found following the incident. If:

• The child is looked after by another Authority, or
• Is subject to a child protection plan in another area, the Authority taking immediate action should, whenever possible, seek to involve the Authority responsible for the child.

The Authority where the child is found is only absolved from taking responsibility for ensuring that the child is in a safe place, if the Authority which is responsible for the child is prepared to take immediate action, and confirms this in writing.

Emergency Child Protection powers

If the child or young person is deemed to need immediate protection, Manchester Children’s Social Care or the Police will explore the possibility that a parent can take action to protect the child by removing the alleged perpetrator from the home.

Exclusion Orders

The Court may include an exclusion requirement in an order if it is satisfied that:

• There is reasonable cause to believe that if the person were to be excluded from the home in which the child lives, the child will cease to suffer, or cease to be likely to suffer, significant harm; and
• Another person living in the home is able and willing to give the child the care which it would be reasonable to expect a parent to give, and consents to the exclusion requirement.

Family Law Act 1996

If, however, it is necessary to remove the child from parental care -the Local Authority should apply for an Emergency Protection Order in preference to utilising police protection powers.

Emergency Protection Orders

The Court may make an Emergency Protection Order, for up to 8 days (with a possible further extension of 7 days), if it is satisfied that a child is likely to suffer significant harm without intervention:

• To remove a child from a given place, or
• To make sure that s/he remains in a given place.

Legal advice should normally be obtained before initiating legal action in particular when an Emergency Protection Order is sought. When Emergency Protection Order is applied, Children Social Care must consider quickly whether to initiate care or other proceedings, or to let the order lapse and return home.

Alternatively, and to be used in exceptional circumstances and only if necessary to ensure the child 's safety, Police Protection Powers may be used.

Police Protection Powers

Where a Police Officer has reasonable cause to believe that a child would otherwise be likely to suffer significant harm, s/he may, for not more than 72 hours:

• Remove the child to suitable accommodation and keep him or her there, or
• Take reasonable steps to ensure that the child's removal from any hospital or other place is which the child is then accommodated is prevented.

Children Act 1989, S.46

Timing of immediate action

If there is a risk to the child's life or the immediate likelihood of serious harm, emergency action should be taken as soon as possible. This could be -

• as soon as an initial referral has been received, or
• at any other time when abuse or neglect presents such a risk of significant harm that immediate protection is required.

If it is necessary to take emergency action before a Strategy Discussion, the strategy discussion and s.47 enquiry should take place as soon as possible afterwards.

See flowchart 3 on immediate protection.

Strategy Meeting

Where there is reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering, or is likely to suffer significant harm, a Strategy Meeting should take place. This should take place following a referral, or at any other time that concerns about possible significant harm emerge in respect of a child receiving support.

Best practice would expect that the discussion takes place at a meeting. However, this can take place by telephone in exceptional circumstances.

Purpose of the Strategy Meeting

The purpose of the Strategy Meeting is to:

• Share available information,
• Agree the conduct and timing of any criminal investigation
• Decide whether a Core Assessment/enquiries under S47 of the Children Act 1989 should be initiated, or continued if it has already begun
• Plan how the Core Assessment should be undertaken, if one is to be initiated, including the need for medical treatment, and who will carry out what actions, by when and for what purpose
• Agree what immediate action is needed to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child, and/or to provide interim services or support. If the child is in hospital, decisions should be made about how to secure the safe discharge of the child
• Determine what information from the Strategy Discussion to share with the family and when, unless such information sharing may place a child at increased risk of significant harm or jeopardise police investigations into any alleged offence
• Determine if legal action is required.

The meeting will be convened and chaired by Children’s Social Care who should invite representatives from the following agencies. (Representatives should be sufficiently Senior and able to contribute to the discussion, and make decisions on behalf of their agencies):

• The referring agency
• The Police
• Health. Professionals should always be aware that although injuries or incidents may not appear sufficiently serious to justify a medical examination or assessment, it is health professionals who are who are in the best position to make that judgement. For example, although an injury or incident may appear minor it may result in the need for further treatment or support services. The presumption should always be in favour of obtaining an opinion from health
• Other agencies involved with the child e.g school/children’s centre/hospital department

Such a meeting should be held at a convenient location for the key attendees, such as a hospital, school, police station or children’s social care office. Any information shared, all decisions reached, and the basis for those decisions should be clearly recorded by the Chair of the Strategy Discussion and circulated within one working day to all parties to the discussion.

Children’s Social Care should record information that is consistent with the information set out in the Record of Strategy Discussion (ICS, Department of Health, 2002). Any decisions about taking immediate action should be kept under constant review.

In complex types of maltreatment, a meeting is likely to be the most effective way of discussing the child’s welfare and planning future action. More than one strategy discussion may be necessary. This is likely to be where the child’s circumstances are very complex and a number of discussions are required to consider whether – and, if so, when – to initiate a Core Assessment, as well as how best to undertake this.

It is good practice to inform attendees at the Strategy Meeting of the outcomes of the s47 enquiry and confirm that all actions agreed at the Strategy Meeting have been undertaken. A review Strategy Meeting may assist this process.

Core Assessment (S47 Child Protection Enquiries)

The purpose of a Core Assessment/S47 enquiry is to collect and analyse information to determine whether or not action is needed to promote and safeguard the child/ren's welfare, who are the subject of the enquiries.

A Core Assessment should be completed within 35 working days of -

• The completion of the Initial Assessment, or
• The decision being made to initiate S47 enquiries
• Where new information received on an open case indicating that a Core Assessment should be done.

The Core Assessment, led by a qualified and experienced Social Worker, is the means by which a S47 enquiry is carried out. This must include:

• An in-depth assessment which addresses the central or most important aspects of the needs of a child
• The capacity of his or her parents or caregivers to respond appropriately to these needs within the wider family and community context.

The principles on which Core Assessment/S47 enquiries should be based.

• The possible need for legal action to safeguard the child at any stage in the enquiry, taking such action when necessary,
• Sensitivity to the child 's feelings, wishes and circumstances,
• Consideration of the child 's age, race, gender, and special needs,
• Keeping to a minimum the number of times a child is asked for a personal account of his/her experiences,
• Parents are kept informed, consulted and involved unless there are clear indications that one or both should be excluded at particular stages, or that their views should be overridden. Indications that parents should not be involved are:
  • Danger or threats to the child or other children,
  • Threats of violence to the staff involved,
  • Concern for carers ' mental health',
  • Fabricated Illness
  • Forced marriage

Those making enquiries should always be alert to the potential needs and safety of any siblings, or other children in the household of the child in question.

Working Together to Safeguard Children,2006.

The lead in conducting enquiries should be taken by Children's Services when

• There is concern about possible neglect, advised by a health representative who has access to a Paediatrician
• There is concern about emotional abuse, advised by a health representative who has access to a Child Psychiatrist, a Child Psychologist, or a Paediatrician
• There is concern about possible physical abuse, advised by a Paediatrician

The lead should be jointly taken by Police and Children's Services jointly when

• There is concern about physical abuse involving:
  • Serious injury to the child
  • A high risk that the child will suffer serious injury, or high risk to his or her life
  • A history of frustrated access to the child
  • A possibility of abduction
• There is a concern about possible sexual abuse, except that - the Police should investigate on their own when there is concern about physical or sexual abuse by a complete stranger.

Sometimes there will be a need for an investigative interview with a view to gathering evidence for criminal proceedings. All such interviews with children should be conducted by those with specialist training and experience in interviewing children. (See ‘Achieving best evidence guidance 2002’(link))

Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2006

Questions to consider when undertaking a Core Assessment

The analysis of the information obtained should enable a judgement to be made about whether the child is in need under s.17 of the Children Act 1989 or is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm (s.47 Children Act 1989), and a decision to be made about possible causes of action it should provide answers to the following questions:

1. What is your evidence of harm, for example. indicators apparent in the child 's appearance or behaviour?
2. What is your assessment of the impact of the harm on the health and development of the child and other children in the household?
3. Is any harm attributable to the care given by the parent / carer? Is this due to acts of omission or commission?
4. are there any factors in the carers 'lives likely to lead them to harm the child? including any past or current factors in their personal lives, or in their present circumstances?
5. Are there any risk or protective factors in the child’s wider family and community.

The assessment should consider the parent's or carer's capacity and motivation to keep the child safe and promote his or her wellbeing by seeking answers to questions such as:

1. what has to change to make the child safe and adequately cared for?
2. do the carers have the potential and commitment to make these changes? That is, do they agree that the child is suffering harm? do they recognise that they are contributing to the harm?
3. are they committed to changing their attitude and behaviour towards the child?

The core assessment / S47 enquiry will determine any necessary course of action

Outcome of the enquiry

Children’s Social Care must decide how to proceed following S47 enquiries, after discussion between all those who have conducted, or been significantly involved in those enquiries, including relevant professionals and agencies, as well as foster carers where involved and the child and parents themselves.

The information recorded on the outcome of the S47 enquiries should be consistent with the information set out in the Outcome of the S47 Enquiries Record (ICS, Department of Health, 2002)(link).

Parents and children of sufficient age and appropriate level of understanding (together with professionals and agencies who have been significantly involved) should receive a copy of this record, in particular in advance of any Initial Child Protection Conference that is convened. This information should be conveyed in an appropriate format for younger children and for those people whose preferred language is not English. Consideration should be given to whether the Core Assessment has been completed, or what further work is required before it is completed. It may be valuable, following an evaluation of the outcome of enquiries, to make recommendations for action in an inter-disciplinary forum, if the case is not going forward to a Child Protection Conference. Enquiries may result in a number of outcomes. Where the child concerned is living in a residential establishment that is subject to inspection, the relevant inspectorate should be informed.

• It may be decided that the Core Assessment has been completed and no further action is required by Children’s Social Care. However, Children’s Social Care and other relevant agencies as necessary should always consider, with the family, what support and/or services may be helpful, how the child and family might be provided with these services if they wish it, and by whom.
  
  In some cases, there may remain concerns about significant harm, despite there being no real evidence. It may be appropriate to put in place arrangements to monitor the child’s welfare. Monitoring should never be used as a means of deferring or avoiding difficult decisions. The purpose of monitoring should always be clear – i.e. what is being monitored and why, in what way and by whom. It is also important to inform parents about the nature of any ongoing concern. There should be a time set for reviewing the monitoring arrangements by holding a further discussion or meeting. These considerations should be taken into account during a case planning meeting.
• Concerns are substantiated, but the child is not considered to be at continuing risk of significant harm. There may be substantiated concerns that a child has suffered significant harm, but it is agreed between the agencies most involved, and the child and family, that a plan for ensuring the child’s future safety and welfare can be developed and implemented without having a child protection conference or a child protection plan. Such an approach is of particular relevance where it is clear to the agencies involved that there is no continuing risk of significant harm.
• Concerns are substantiated and the child is judged to be at continued risk of significant harm. Where the agencies most involved judge that a child may continue to suffer, or be at risk of suffering, significant harm, Children’s Social Care should convene a Child Protection Conference. The aim of the Conference is to enable those professionals most involved with the child and family, and the family themselves, to access all relevant information and plan how best to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child.
• The risk is such that immediate action must be taken to protect the child. i.e:
  • Sec. 20
  • Police Protection Order
  • Emergency Protection Order

Criteria for convening an Initial Child Protection Conference

An Initial Child Protection Conference should always be convened where:

• There is reasonable cause for concern that a child is suffering, or likely to suffer significant harm
• The harm can be attributed to the quality of the care and protection given by the parents or carer
• Information needs to be shared between agencies so as to establish the need for a Child Protection Plan.

Specific Circumstances

See here(link) for the procedures to be followed in the following special circumstances where the convening of an Initial Child Protection Conference should be considered:

• Children who go missing
• Forced Marriage
• Child Sexual Exploitation
• Other forms of exploitation
• Children with a disability
• Managing allegations against people who come into contact with children
• Children living in an environment where there is Domestic Abuse
• Female genital mutilation (also known as female circumcision)
• Peer abuse (also known as abuse carried out by a child or young person)

The purpose of the Conference

• To bring together and analyse the information which has been gathered about the child and her or his parent's or carer's capacity to ensure her/his safety and promote health and development, and
• To make judgements about the likelihood of the child suffering significant harm in the future, and
• To decide what action will be needed to safeguard the child and promote his or her welfare, how to take forward that action, and what the intended outcomes should be.

See here (link) for Child Protection Review Conferences

Power to convene an Initial Child Protection Conference

An Initial Child Protection Conference can only be convened by agencies with statutory powers to do so (Manchester Children's Social Care or the NSPCC).

Other agencies should convey their judgement that a Conference should be held to the appropriate Children’s Social Care Deputy District Manager and Head of Safeguarding for resolution. Where this cannot be achieved, the principle will be that the referring agencies request is upheld and an Initial Child Protection Case Conference is convened.

The Timing of an Initial Child Protection Conference

The Conference should take place as soon as possible, and, at the latest, within 15 working days of the Strategy Meeting/Discussion (link) at which it was decided to start S47 enquiries, or the last Strategy Meeting/Meeting if more than one is held. The precise timing should depend on the urgency of the situation, and allow for sufficient preparation and assessment. Any delay beyond 15 working days must be clearly recorded by the QAPM Unit, which will monitor the incidence of delay.

Attendance

Who and how many people should attend will depend on -

• The need to reach well informed decisions about the action required and realistic proposals to undertake it, and
• The requirement for quoracy

The minimum representation will be from Children's Social Care and at least two other agencies in order for a decision to be made. To avoid inhibiting discussion and intimidating family members only those with something to contribute should be invited and large numbers should be avoided.

Those who are likely to have the most to contribute are:

• Members of the family, including the wider family
• The child, where appropriate, and
• The professionals who have most to contribute, who may include the following:
  • Children's Services staff who have done an assessment of the child and family,
  • professionals involved with the child such as health visitors, the GP, the school nurse, paediatrician, school or Education representatives,
  • professionals involved with the parents such as family support services, adult mental health services, probation, the GP,
  • Greater Manchester Police HQ Family Support Unit,
  • The view of the local authority child care legal services should be sought prior/post conference,
• NSPCC or other voluntary organisations involved,
• A representative of the armed services if there is a service connection.

Other agency professionals whose presence should always be considered are -

• Children’s Guardian
• Foster Cares
• Midwives
• School Attendance Officers
• Manchester Drugs Services
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist or Psychologist
• School, day care or family centre staff

Please see provision of information to parents/carers about the conference process for guidance about:

a. preparing children, parents and carers, for attending;
b. the circumstances in which children and young people, supporters, observers, the Children’s Guardian, and the Council's Legal Department should attend.

Invitations

Written invitations will be sent to all people to be invited to attend the Initial Child Protection Conference by the QAPM Unit. Parents will also receive an explanatory leaflet. Both parents and children will also be provided with consultation booklets in order to allow them to contribute if they are unable to attend.

See guidance.

In most cases invitations to parents/carers will be sent by first class post. Where it is preferable for reasons of confidentiality, safety or other circumstances the invitation should be presented to the parent/carer in person by the Social Worker.

Attendance of parents/carers

The parents should normally be invited to attend the conference and helped to participate fully. (Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2006)

It is essential that parents and appropriate carers are invited to play as full a role in the conference process as possible on the basis of the 'paramountcy principle'. They should always be invited to attend for the whole duration of the Initial Child Protection Conference unless exclusion is warranted.

Criteria for being invited to the Initial Child Protection Conference

• anyone with 'Parental Responsibility', and/or
• anyone else who has had substantial care of the child.

Persons Who Have Parental Responsibility

• A mother automatically obtains parental responsibility at the birth of the child.
• A father automatically obtains parental responsibility if he was married to the mother at the time of the birth.
• Parental responsibility can be obtained by the parents entering into a legally prescribed form of agreement.
• Any person who obtains a residence order or special guardianship order in respect of a child also obtains parental responsibility.
• Adoptive parents obtain parental responsibility when the court makes the adoption order.
• A Local Authority obtains parental responsibility when the court makes an Interim Care Order or Care Order. Parental responsibility lasts for the time span of the order.

It is the responsibility of the investigating Social Worker to -

• Try and establish the identity of all persons with 'Parental Responsibility' during the S47 enquiry,
• Negotiate the appropriateness of the attendance of these people with the Chair from the QAPM Unit.
• In circumstances where agreement cannot be reached the Chair will hear any relevant views family members may have why a carer should not be invited, and make a decision.
• The decision must then be clearly recorded on the QAPM Unit file.

See Guidance for more information on exclusion of parents/carers and children and supporting other people who may attend. Link needed

The Role of the Chair

Initial Child Protection Conferences are chaired by Quality Assurance Officers from the QAPM Unit, all of whom have extensive experience in the field of Child Protection but no direct involvement in the case to be considered. When questions arise which require a decision on the process to be followed a particular Conference, the Chair will discuss the issues with the relevant professionals and make a decision.

Providing Information

All those providing information should take care to distinguish between fact, observation, allegation and opinion. Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2006

Manchester Children's Social Care

Manchester Children's Social Care, must provide the Initial Child Protection Conference with a written report based on the Initial Assessment and the S47 enquiries/Core Assessment which covers:

• An accurate family composition,
• A chronology of the significant events and contacts which agencies and individuals have had with the child and the family,
• Information about child 's current and past health and development,
• Information about parents/carers parenting capacity, family and environmental factors,
• Parents capacity and willingness to cooperate with actions to safeguard and promote the child's welfare,
• The views, wishes and feelings of the children, the parents and other members of the family,
• Information about any significant others,
• An analysis of the implications of this information for the child 's future safety and welfare,
• The agency/individuals view of the needs of the child including any need for protection.

See appendix 5 for a copy of the proforma report.

A copy of the report should be shared with the child/parent by the author, ideally at least 48 hours prior to the meeting. (See for the guidance on preparing parents and children for attending the Conference – link)

Other professionals

Other professionals should also bring details of their involvement with the child and the family, and share their knowledge of the child's health and development and the parents 'capacity to safeguard the child and promote her or his health and development’, contained within a written report , which must be sent to the Chair 24 hours in advance of the Conference. See appendix 5 for copy proforma report.

Professionals should endeavour to share the content of their reports with relevant family members in advance of the meeting.

It is assumed that parents or carers and children will usually attend the Initial Child Protection Conference. Requests for a closed session should be the exception rather than the rule.

Conference Principles

All contributions should be presented through the Chair and must be fair, accurate and free from discriminatory remarks or jargon. It must be made clear whether information is fact or opinion.

1. As a general rule information presented to Initial Child Protection Conferences and contained in the minutes of Conferences is confidential. Copies of the minutes should not be made without the permission of the QAPM Unit.
2. Information presented at conference should not be discussed, or the contents of minutes shown to anyone outside the conference, other than to protect children. See appendix 5.
3. People presenting written reports should summarise the main points verbally to ensure that the family members and professionals present understand the issues fully. Parents and children when attending will be encouraged to offer a response to all reports.
4. In the event of any member of the conference exercising their right to withhold confidential information from the family members, the family will be asked to leave the conference briefly for a closed session. Conference members may decide that such information is relevant to the protection of children and must therefore be shared with the family on their return to the conference room.
5. Conference members should be mindful that any person has a right to see confidential information held about themselves whether they attended the conference or not. All conference members should be mindful of this when making their contributions.

Confidentiality Statement

Information shared at the Initial Child Protection Conferences is confidential and should not be disclosed outside the conference. There are a number of circumstances when information must be disclosed:

• Subject to limited exceptions, any person has a right to see personal information held about themselves. This includes information contained in Child Protection Conference minutes and must be disclosed upon request whether the individual attends the conference or not. It should be noted that non family members can apply to see information about themselves which may be contained in Child Protection Conference minutes.
• If there are court proceedings then a judge may order that Child Protection Conference minutes are disclosed to the parties. This applies to both civil (family) proceedings and to criminal proceedings. Conference members may be asked or ordered to attend court to give evidence.
• If there are legal proceedings, a Children’s Guardian (an independent Social Worker appointed by the Court), can see the Initial Child Protection Conference minutes, and may refer to them in their reports.
• Child Protection Conference minutes may be disclosed to other professionals involved with the child who have not attended the conference.
• Permission must be obtained from the Conference Chair before passing information to a third party including other agencies.
• All Conference attendees may disclose the minutes of the conference to their own legal advisor.
• Finally the law permits the disclosure of confidential information when necessary, in the public interest when persons may be at risk of significant harm.

The public interest in child protection overrides the public interest of maintaining confidentiality. Disclosures should be justifiable in each case and legal advice sought in cases of doubt.

The Conference Process

The Conference must consider whether the child or young person is at risk of significant harm, basing its judgement on the evidence of:

• The records and reports from other agencies
• The Initial Assessment
• The S47 enquiry/Core Assessments
• Contributions from the child and their family

The test is either:

• That the child can be shown to have suffered ill-treatment or impairment of health and development as a result of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse or neglect, and professional judgement is that further ill-treatment or impairment are likely, or
• That professional judgement, substantiated by the findings of enquiries in this individual case or by research evidence, is that the child is likely to suffer ill-treatment or the impairment of health or development as a result of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse or neglect.

Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2006

If the child is considered to be at continuing risk of significant harm, he or she will require inter-agency help and intervention delivered through a formal Child Protection Plan (link)

Conference decision making

The Initial Child Protection Conference is the forum for deciding whether a child should be the subject of a Child Protection Plan, and child's name added to the City's Child Protection Register

The process of decision- making should take account of all the information. If it is decided that a Child Protection Plan is needed, and the child's name placed on the Register the Chair will determine under which of the categories it should go.

The Conference should make recommendations on how the agencies, the professionals and the family should work together to safeguard the child.

If it is decided the child does NOT need a Child Protection Plan or the child's name placed on the Register but he or she still needs help to promote his or her health or development, the Conference should make sure that arrangements are made to consider what help should be offered through a formal Case Plan.

Dissent amongst agency representatives

The Chair should enable those present at the Conference to reach agreement on the decisions, if at all possible. If there is dissent over the question of the child being the subject of a Child Protection Plan then the following rules should apply:

• The view of the majority should be taken. For these purposes a simple majority of the agencies represented should apply.
• Dissent to the decision expressed by particular agencies should be clearly recorded. Dissent does not excuse the dissenting agency from contributing to the development and implementation of the Child Protection Plan
• If there is no clear majority then the child should be the subject of a child protection plan. The Child Protection Plan should specify the work to be undertaken before the first Review Conference.
• If the decision is that the child/ren is not the subject of a child protection plan and concerns are expressed, these will be addressed by Conference and recorded.

Objections from the family or child

The family or the child may express concerns or wish to complain about -

• The conference process
• The outcome
• The decision that the Child is the subject of a Child Protection Plan and his/her name placed on the Register

Responding to complaints

Complaints should be responded to as follows:

• Complaints about particular agencies, including those about services, should be addressed and responded to through that agency's complaints procedure
• Complaints about conference process should be addressed to the Chair and their manager

What the Register provides

• A record of all children in the City who are -
  • considered to be at continuing risk of significant harm, and
  • for whom there is an inter-agency Child Protection Plan;
• A central point of speedy enquiry for professional staff who are worried about a child and want to know whether the child is or has previously been the subject of an inter-agency Child Protection Plan;
• A means for ensuring that Child Protection Plans are regularly reviewed;
• A source of information for the Child Protection agencies and for the MSCB’s policy development and strategic planning.

Management of the Register

The Manchester Child Protection Register is managed by Manchester Children's Services Quality Assurance and Performance Management Unit, on behalf of the Manchester Safeguarding Children’s Board. The Register is computerised.

It is essential that the Unit is informed of changes in details in order to ensure that the information on the Register is accurate.

The Register is held at:
The Quality Assurance and Performance Management Unit
3rd Floor
Victoria Mill
Lower Vickers Street
Miles Platting
MANCHESTER
M40 7LY

Fax - 0161 203 3242

Access to the Register is by telephone on a ring back system available to all grades of relevant professional staff listed under Appendix 3.

To consult the Register:

RING 0161 203 3232,
8:45am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday.

Outside these hours
RING 0161 255 8250
and speak to the Emergency Duty Team

The information supplied from the Register will usually be confined to:

• whether or not the child (or siblings) are currently registered and therefore subject to an inter-agency Child Protection Plan, and
• if so, the name and telephone number of the relevant Key Worker.

See Appendix 3 for the principal information held on the Register.

Placing a child’s name on the Register

A child's name can only be put on the Manchester Child Protection Register following the decision of a Child Protection Conference or a Review Conference, unless a child whose name already appears on the Child Protection Register of another Local Authority moves into the City of Manchester. In this case, the child will be registered temporarily pending a decision by a Child Protection Conference about formal registration.

Child Looked After by the Local Authority

In general children who are looked after should not require a child protection plan unless particular circumstances apply. This is because the needs of these children are monitored and assessed via the statutory Review LAC system, and also because they have often been removed from a setting that might place them at continuing risk of significant harm. In addition, a number of these children will be subject to court proceedings within which assessments will be commissioned and plans will be formulated.

However, there will always be circumstances where it remains appropriate to convene an initial child protection conference on a child who is looked after, in response to a Section 47 strategy meeting/discussion. This may include children who are subject to a court order, placed at home on a care order with parents/carers or accommodated under a voluntary arrangement with their parents/carers.

An Initial Case Conference should be called, including pre-birth cases, where the threshold of significant harm or likelihood of harm is met, and it is an agreed action following a strategy meeting/discussion. “All initial case conferences should take place within 15 working days of the strategy meeting/discussion, or the last strategy meeting/discussion if more than one has been held.” (Working Together 2006, Para 5.81)

Where the decision is made following an initial case conference that a child should become the subject of a Child Protection Plan then there will be a formal review meeting, the first within 3 months and thereafter at no more than 6 monthly intervals.

Children already on the List/Register of Children who have a Child Protection Plan who are subsequently looked after
by the Local Authority

In such circumstances, the child protection review conference may agree that the child no longer requires a child protection plan, as there is no continuing risk of significant harm. Exceptions to this are likely to be where voluntary arrangements for accommodation are in place and assessments have not been completed and future plans are undetermined, where they may relate to unsupervised contact between the child and the alleged abuser, where a decision has already been made to rehabilitate, or in the case of children subject to an order, where the local authority is unable to exercise parental responsibility.

Children who are looked after and have a Child Protection Plan

In circumstances where a child who is looked after is also the subject of a child protection review conference, as outlined in Working Together (2006), the overriding principle must be that the review systems are integrated and carefully monitored, in a way that promotes a child centred and not a bureaucratic approach. It is important to link the timing of a child protection review conference with a statutory childcare review to ensure that information from the conference is brought to the review meeting and informs the overall care planning process.

The focus of conference and core groups should be to assess and seek to reduce the risks through multi agency work. This will enable decisions to be made as soon as possible regarding the child’s safe reintegration into their family or alternative long term plans are made.

Children placed at home on Supervision, Interim or full Care Orders

Where a section 47-strategy meeting/discussion has determined that the threshold of significant harm is met, the fact that the child is placed at home with their parents/carers should not in any way influence the decision to call an initial child protection case conference. It is for the case conference to decide if the child is in need of protection and requires a formal child protection plan.

The information and risk assessment shared at the conference should influence the care planning arrangements for the need to seek an alternative placement or revocation of the order.

Registration categories

Children's names are registered under one or more of the following four categories, according to the decision of the Chair of the Initial Child Protection Conference:

Neglect defined as the actual or likely -

• persistent or severe neglect of a child, or
• failure to protect a child from exposure to any kind of danger, including cold or starvation, or
• extreme failure to carry out important aspects of care, resulting in the significant impairment of the child 's health or development, including non- organic failure to thrive.

Physical Abuse defined as the actual or likely -

• physical abuse to a child, or
• failure to prevent physical abuse (or suffering) to a child including deliberate poisoning, suffocation, Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy (see Section 3),and Female Genital Mutilation (see Section 3 )

Sexual Abuse defined as the actual or likely -

• sexual exploitation of a child or adolescent, including children who are dependent and/or developmentally immature.

Emotional Abuse defined as the actual or likely -

• severe adverse affects on the emotional and behavioural development of a child caused by persistent or severe emotional ill-treatment or rejection.

All abuse involves some emotional ill treatment .This category should be used only where emotional abuse is the main or sole form of abuse. It should never be used as one among several categories in a multiple category registration.

Deciding to consult the Child Protection Register

Whenever a professional considers a child to be at risk of significant harm he or she must make immediate contact with their designated officer for Child Protection.

The Designated Officer has the authority to decide about the appropriateness of consulting the Child Protection Register. The decision about whether or not to do so should be made by assessing the concerns against the four categories of actual or likely significant harm listed above.

The Register must always be checked as part of S47 enquiries.

It is particularly important for medical staff in the following circumstances to consult the Register:

• staff in Accident and Emergency Units, or
• Children's Outpatient Departments, or
• Medical Officers who might examine children routinely when they present with injuries which are incompatible with the explanation given.

The role of the QAPM Unit

• Recording all register consultations.
• Initiating discussion with relevant professionals after
  • one enquiry in respect of an unregistered child at the same address of a registered child
  • two enquiries about an unregistered child
  • any enquiries about any child who is on the register.
• Monitoring the outcome of cases which have generated Register checks.

Appeals against the decision to make a child subject to a child protection plan

The appeal system exists to provide parents and family members with a means of challenging the decision to make a child the subject of a Child Protection Plan through a fair and impartial process. This procedure is not available to professional agencies.

The best interests of the child will always be the paramount consideration in making decisions on appeals

Grounds for Appeal

i. The criteria for the child being the subject of a Child Protection Plan were not met.
ii. Facts are available now which were not known at the time of the original decision to make ta child the subject of a Child Protection Plan and that these facts invalidate the original decision.
iii. The information considered as having a bearing on the decision to make a child the subject of a Child Protection Plan has proved subsequently to be inaccurate

The Appeal Process

i. The parent or carer, should write to the Head of Safeguarding , explaining the reasons for the appeal , within 28 days of the Initial Child Protection Conference or the Review Conference which made the decision against which they wish to appeal. If new evidence becomes available after this date, consideration will be given to accepting an appeal later on. This decision is at the discretion of the Head of Safeguarding .
ii. The Head of Safeguarding , in conjunction with an independent Children's Social Care Deputy District Manager, will decide within 21 days whether or not they consider there are grounds for an appeal hearing. The appellant will be notified of the decision in writing.
iii. To ensure impartiality a Deputy District Manager from a different district , who has no operational involvement with the case will be involved in the decision
iv. If it is agreed that there are sufficient grounds, the appeal will be heard quickly by a Panel of three people from the list which follows. People asked to sit on the Panel must not have attended the relevant Initial Child Protection Conference or Review Conference which prompted the appeal. It is preferable that they should have had no previous involvement with the family.

• Designated Nurse for Child Protection, or their deputy
• an Officer from Greater Manchester Police PPIU
• Senior Officer from School Attendance Improvement Service
• NSPCC Manager
• a District Manager from Greater Manchester Probation Service (Manchester City District)
• Deputy District Manager, Children's Social Care

The precise composition of the Panel will be agreed by the Head of Safeguarding and the previously identified Deputy District Manager based upon the expertise needed to resolve the issues presented by the case. They will have the authority to co-opt other professionals where specialist advice is required.

v. The parent/carer will be informed in writing by the Head of Safeguarding whether or not an appeal has been agreed and the date on which it will be heard. S/he will be invited to attend to explain verbally her or his reasons for lodging the appeal and to make further representations if they so wish. The Appeal Panel may ask the parent/carer to clarify certain points.
vi. The parent or carer is welcome to bring a supporter to the Panel meeting.
vii. The Appeal Panel may request the attendance of the Initial Child Protection Conference or Review Conference Chair to clarify any points.
viii. The Panel will make its decision on the basis of the parent's or carer's submissions, the Minutes of the relevant Initial Child Protection Conference or Review Conference, and any information given by the Chair.
ix. The Panel's decision is final.

Communicating the decision

The decision of the Appeal Panel will be communicated verbally and in writing to the Appellant and to all members of the relevant Conference within seven days of the appeal being concluded.

Key Worker roles and responsibilities

After the Initial Child Protection Conference the following actions are required:

• A Key Worker/lead professional must be allocated
• A Core Group established, and
• A Child Protection Plan agreed.

Allocating a Key Worker

All children whose names appear on the Manchester Child Protection Register must be allocated a Key Worker by Manchester Children's Social Care as soon as possible after registration, and within three working days at the latest.

It will be best practice for Manchester Children's Social Care to nominate a Key Worker prior to the Initial Case Conference. If this person is to be different from the Social Worker who carried out the Section 47 enquiries, she or he should also attend the Initial Child Protection Conference. Changes in the identity of the Key Worker must be notified, in writing, to all Core Group members, including the relevant family members, without delay.

The Key Worker is responsible for :

• Acting as the lead professional for the inter-agency work with the child and family.
• Making sure that the outline Child Protection Plan is developed into a more detailed inter-agency plan.
• Completing the Core Assessment of the child and family, securing contributions from Core Group members and others as necessary.
• Co-ordination of the contribution of family members and other agencies to planning the actions that need to be taken,
• Co-ordination of the collective responsibility to implement the Child Protection Plan and reviewing progress against the planned outcomes set out in the plan.
• Ensuring that the role of the Key Worker is fully explained at the Initial Child Protection Conference and at the Core Group.
• Regularly ascertaining the child’s wishes and feelings, and keeping the child up-to-date with the child protection plan and any developments or changes.

Frequency of Key Worker's visits

In order to decide the frequency of visits to a particular child or family an assessment of risk should be done, taking account of

• the age of the child,
• the nature of the concerns, and
• the level of contact between the family, other professionals, and supportive wider family members.

The minimum frequency of visits to all families with a child on the register in Manchester is once every four weeks. This minimum standard requires that the Key Worker sees the child on every visit, so that they can satisfy her or himself of the child's general well being.

The minimum frequency of visits should only apply when:

• The child is being seen very regularly by other professionals and this is in line with requirements of the Child Protection Plan,
• The decision to visit at this minimum level of frequency has been agreed with the Team Manager and recorded on the child's file, with the reasons stated,
• All the core group members have been informed at a core group meeting.

All contact with the registered child must be clearly recorded on the child's file and all dates of visits by the Key worker must be recorded in the Collective Report for the Review meeting.

The Core Group

The Core Group must be set up whenever a child’s name is put on the Register. This meeting must take place within 10 working days of the Initial Child Protection Conference.

The Core Group is responsible for developing the Child Protection Plan as a detailed working tool, and implementing it, within the outline plan agreed at the Initial Child Protection Conference. It is expected that all relevant people attend the Core Group in order to take collective responsibility for development of the child protection plan, and its implementation. It is essential that all identified Core Group members attend all meetings or make appropriate deputising arrangements.

Membership will include as a minimum;

• Key Worker, who leads the Core Group,
• The child (if appropriate). Children under the age of 8 will not normally be invited to Core Group meetings. Where the child is aged over 8, a decision will be taken by the Key worker as to whether an invitation to attend the Core Group meeting is appropriate
• Family members
• Professionals or foster carers who will have direct contact with the family.

Although the Key Worker has the lead role, all members of the Core Group are collectively responsible for the formulation and implementation of the child protection plan, refining the plan as needed, and monitoring progress against the planned outcomes set out in the plan

N.B. Membership may need to change as the circumstances of the family change or as additional needs are identified. Some professionals may become members of the Core Group for a short period only while they undertake a specialist piece of work with a member or members of the family.

Consideration should be given to allowing a parent to bring a friend or an advocate to Core Group Meetings.

Responsibilities of the Core Group

The Core Group is collectively responsibility for;

• Developing, implementing and reviewing the Child Protection Plan as a detailed working tool
• Including a written agreement with the family within the detailed Child Protection Plan
• Deciding how the core assessment will be completed within the timescale of 35 days
• Reviewing the Core Group membership
• Preparing a report for the Child Protection Review Conference.(link to report format) This must be submitted to the Quality Assurance Unit at least 48hours before the Child Protection Review Conference takes place

Chairing Arrangements

The Key Worker would normally be responsible for chairing the meetings. Where this is not possible i.e. due to sickness or other unforeseen absence, it is expected that the Key Worker’s agency would take responsibility for taking the Chair.

There should be a written note recording the decisions taken and actions agreed at Core Group meetings. The Child Protection Plan should be updated as necessary. Arrangements should be made jointly by group members to take the minutes on a rotational basis. Minutes need to be distributed to members of the Core Group via the Key Worker within 7 working days of the meeting taking place.

Thereafter, Core Groups should meet sufficiently regularly, but no later than 6 weekly intervals, to facilitate working together, monitor actions and outcomes against the child protection plan, and make any necessary alterations as circumstances change.

Any further identified areas of actual or potential significant harm should be recorded and linked to further identified needs and actions.

It is the responsibility of the Key Worker to ensure that typed accurate records of the detailed Child Protection Plan, and any amendments to the plan identified by the core group are maintained and distributed to core group members. The minutes should be distributed within 7 working days.

There is a strong presumption within the recording documentation of agreement between carers/parents/professionals in respect of the Plan. It is particularly important that any disagreements with the Plan are specifically recorded on the documentation. Completion of the detailed inter-agency plan record will serve as a written agreement. (see Appendix 5 for recording forms)

The implementation of individual components of the Child Protection Plan remains the responsibility of the individual workers and their agencies.

Venue

The venue of Core Group meetings should be agreed between the Core Group members. Any agency within the Core Group membership may be asked to provide a venue. The venue should be comfortable, convenient and accessible to the family and child/ren. Consideration should be given to the wishes of the family in arriving at a decision and should be sensitive to the need to retain confidentiality. Possible venues would include family centres, school, health clinics, district Children's Social Care offices. Only in extremely exceptional circumstances should the family home be used.

Core Assessments

Completion of the Core Assessment, within 35 working days, should include an analysis of the child’s developmental needs and the parents’ capacity to respond to those needs, including parents’ capacity to ensure that the child is safe from harm. It may be necessary to commission specialist assessments (e.g. from child and adolescent mental health services) that it may not be possible to complete within this time period. This should not delay the drawing together of the Core Assessment findings at this point.

The analysis of the child’s needs should provide evidence on which to base judgements and decisions on how best to safeguard and promote the welfare of a child and support parents in achieving this aim. Decisions based on analysis of the child’s developmental needs should be used to develop the Child Protection Plan.

The Child Protection Plan

The Initial Child Protection Conference must be used for agreeing an outline Child Protection Plan. Professionals and parents/caregivers should agree a detailed plan in the Core Group. The overall aim of the plan is to:

• Ensure the child is safe and prevent him or her from suffering further harm
• Promote the child’s health and development – i.e. his or her welfare
• Support the family and wider family members to safeguard and promote the welfare of their child, provided it is in the best interests of the child

An inter-agency Child Protection Plan must be formulated for every child whose name is placed on the Child Protection Register.

Content of the Child Protection Plan

The Outline Plan will be drawn up at the Initial Child Protection Conference and must

• Identify risks of significant harm to the child and ways in which the child can be protected through an inter-agency plan based on assessment findings
• Establish short term and longer term aims and objectives that are clearly linked to reducing the risk of harm to the child and promoting the child's welfare
• Be clear about who will have responsibility for what actions-including actions by family members-within what specified timescales
• Outline ways of monitoring and evaluating progress against the plan.

The Outline Plan will be sent to all Core Group members within three working days of the Initial Child Protection Conference taking place.

The Detailed Plan will be drawn up at the first Core Group Meeting and must;

• Specify the reason for registration, and identify the risks of significant harm
• Describe the identified needs of the child, and what therapeutic services may be required
• Include specific, achievable, child-focused objectives intended to safeguard the child and promote his or her welfare
• Include realistic strategies and specific actions to achieve the objectives
• Identify the specific roles and responsibilities of each Core Group member.
• Establish the frequency and purpose of contact with the child and family including the names and contact details, including the frequency of visits of Key worker, which must be recorded
• Clarify the arrangement for inter-agency communication
• Establish dates and frequency of Core Group meetings, to include when and how progress will be monitored and reviewed
• Clarify the arrangement for inter-agency communication
• Establish systems for managing disagreements and conflict
• Identify consequences and plans for protecting the child if the objectives are not achieved.

Agreeing the plan with the child

The Child Protection Plan should be explained to and agreed with the child in a manner appropriate to their age and understanding. An interpreter should be used if the child’s level of English means that s/he is not able to participate fully in these discussions unless they are conducted in her/his own language. The child should be given a copy of the plan written at a level appropriate to his or her age and understanding, and in his or her preferred language.

Agreeing the plan with parents

Parents should be clear about the evidence of significant harm that resulted in the child becoming the subject of a child protection plan, about what needs to change, and what is expected of them as part of the plan for safeguarding and promoting the child’s welfare. All parties should be clear about the respective roles and responsibilities of family members and different agencies in implementing the plan. The parents should receive a written copy of the plan so that they are clear about who is doing what when and the planned outcomes for the child.

Disagreement Among the Professionals Over the Plan

If there is serious disagreement amongst the professionals about the Child Protection Plan which cannot be resolved within the Initial Child Protection Conference or the Core Group, consultation should take place with the Key Worker's Line Manager and the person or people in the equivalent positions within the relevant agencies to resolve the issues. If the issue remains unresolved the matter must be resolved within 15 working days.

The Child Protection Review Conference

The purpose of Child Protection Review Conference is to;

• To review the child's safety, health and development against the planned outcomes set out in the Child Protection Plan
• To consider whether or not the child continues to be at risk of significant harm, and ensure that the child continues to be well safeguarded
• To consider whether the Child Protection Plan should continue as it is or be changed, and whether or not the child's name can be removed from the Child Protection Register.

The Plan which will be reviewed will be the detailed Child Protection Plan. The progress of the Plan will be evaluated against the identified risk of significant harm, the child's identified needs, the actions taken to reduce the risk and the intended outcomes.

All the principles which apply to the size and the process of Initial Child Protection Conferences also apply to Child Protection Review Conferences (see section 5 and associated guidance)

For a Child Protection Review Conference, three agencies are required to attend to achieve quoracy for decision making.

The reviewing of the child’s progress and the effectiveness of interventions are critical to achieving the best possible outcomes for the child. The child’s wishes and feelings should be sought and taken into account during the reviewing process.

Timescale for Child Protection Review Conferences

Working Together 2006 states that Child Protection Review Conferences should be held at the following intervals:

• First review within three months of the Initial Child Protection Conference taking place
• Second and subsequent Review Conferences at intervals of not more than six months for as long as the child remains the subject of a Child Protection Plan

In Manchester, the following timescales are applied:

• First review within two and a half months of the Initial Child Protection Conference taking place
• Second and subsequent Review Conferences at intervals of not more than five months for as long as the child remains the subject of a Child Protection Plan

Where necessary reviews should be brought forward to address changes in a child’s circumstances.

Power of the Child Protection Review Conference

The Child Protection Review Conference has the power to make the following decisions:

i. To remove the name of a child from the Child Protection Register. There must be a majority decision amongst the agencies
ii. To change the category of abuse under which the child is registered. This decision must be based upon a majority view
iii. To add to the Child Protection Register the name of a child who lives in the same household as another child whose name appears on the Child Protection Register This provision only applies in circumstances where the unregistered child is felt to require registration under the same category and for the same reason as the child already registered.
iv. If registration is considered to be necessary for different reasons, a decision to register or not register the child must be made by an Initial Child Protection Conference This will often apply to siblings born into households where children live whose names are already on the Register. Where an unborn child has had siblings removed previously, an Initial Child Protection Conference must be convened.
v. To consider information arising from further S47 enquiry about a child whose name is already on the Child Protection Register and decide about continued registration and any changes which may be needed to the Child Protection Plan. A Child Protection Review Conference should be convened as soon as possible after any incidents which have called for further S47 enquiries. For de-registration to occur, there must be a majority agreement between the agencies.
vi. To consider information about a looked after child currently on the Child Protection Register whom the Local Authority are thinking about returning to the care of her or his parents or carers where there have been previous concerns about their parenting capacity.

Information for the Child Protection Review Conference

The Core Group should produce a collective report for the Child Protection Review Conference

i. to show what work has been done by the family and by the professionals, and
ii. to evaluate the effect of this work against the objectives set in the Child Protection Plan for improving the child's welfare.

Preparing a Collective Report

It is essential that Pre-Review Conference Core Group meeting takes place to specifically consider the outcomes from the actions undertaken within the detailed Child Protection Plan and identify any outstanding risks of significant harm.

The Core Group should then evaluate the progress of the plan against the identified risk of significant harm and the short and long term actions and objectives to reduce risk and promote the welfare identified in the outline Child Protection Plan.

The Core Group should evaluate all the available information which would relate to the need for a continued Child Protection Plan and draw together a Collective Report which gives a clear recommendation on the issue of registration. The detailed Child Protection Plan must be attached to the Collective Report. (see Appendix 5 for recording forms).

It is the Key Worker's responsibility to ensure that the report is typed and sent to the Quality Assurance and Performance Management Unit 48 hours before the Child Protection Review Conference is due to take place.

The Core Group's conclusions and recommendations will be shared with the family prior to the Review core Group and the final document provided for the carers or parents prior to the Child Protection Conference. When parents and children (where appropriate) are not present at the Core Group, a written copy of the Collective Report will be provided for them at the earliest opportunity, and at the latest immediately prior to the Review Conference commencing.

Child Protection Conference Review Agenda

The Agenda for the Child Protection Conference will reflect the headings in the collective report (see Appendix 5 for recording forms).

The Child Protection Conference will consider the Collective Report and recommendation and will actively consider the requirements for de- registration. In addition, it will consider identified unmet needs from the core assessment and evaluate the impact which these may have on the need for a protection plan.

If the Conference considers that the child continues to be at risk of significant harm, the Outline Child Protection Plan should be amended as appropriate to take account of any changes to the family composition, the Core Group membership, the identified risks of significant harm and associated needs.

Does the child and their family need continuing services?

A child whose name is removed from the Register may still require additional support and services and de-registration should never lead to the automatic withdrawal of help.

When a child whose name is removed from the Register still has identified unmet needs, a record of the needs and a case plan, with clear recommendations for each agency and timescale for completion of the tasks, should be drawn up and integrated within the case planning arrangements for Children in Need case planning

When a Child Protection Review Conference agrees de-registration, a multi-agency planning meeting must be held and a date and venue arranged with the current Core Group. This must be recorded as one of the recommendations.

As agreed under case planning procedures, Children's Social Care will service and chair these meetings. The worker responsible for doing this will either be a team manager, senior practitioner or the Key Worker and their name must be recorded in the minutes.

Distribution of documents

The procedures for distributing Child Protection Review Conference minutes are the same as for the Initial Child Protection Conference (see Section 5).

Removing the child’s name from the Register

A child’s name should be removed from the Child Protection Register in the following circumstances:

• It is judged that the child is no longer at continuing risk of significant harm requiring safeguarding by means of a Child Protection Plan (e.g. the likelihood of harm has been reduced by action taken through the Child Protection Plan; the child and family’s circumstances have changed; or re-assessment of the child and family indicates that a Child Protection Plan is not necessary). Under these circumstances, only a Child Protection Review Conference can decide that registration is no longer necessary
• The child and family have moved permanently to another Local Authority area. In such cases, the receiving Local Authority must convene a Child Protection Conference within 15 working days of being notified of the move. Only after this event may the child be de-registered from the Manchester’s Child Protection Register.
• The child has reached 18 years of age, has died or has permanently left the UK.

When a child’s name is de-registered, notification should be sent, as minimum, to all those agency representatives who were invited to attend the Initial Child Protection Conference that led to the plan.

A child whose name is de-registered may still require additional support and services, and discontinuing the Child Protection Plan should never lead to the automatic withdrawal of help. The Key Worker should discuss with the parents and the child what services might be wanted and required, based on the re-assessment of the needs of the child and family.

Recording the decision

i. If the Child Protection Review Conference agrees that the child's name should be removed from the Child Protection Register this must be recorded in the minutes.
ii. Dissenting views or failure to agree must be clearly recorded.
iii. The decision and future plans should be confirmed in writing to all those who attended the Review Conference.

Legislative Framework

A legislative framework governs the work that agencies do in relation to child protection and safeguarding. This framework consists of the following (this list is not exhaustive):

• Acts of Parliament (primary legislation) e.g. Children Act 1989 and 2004
• Regulations/Statutory Instruments (secondary legislation) e.g. Local Safeguarding Children Board Regulations 2006.
• Statutory Guidance issued by the Government. If may be issued to local authorities under S 7 of the Local Authority and Social Services Act 1970 (LASSA). If so, whilst it will not have the full force of statute, it must be followed unless there are exceptional reasons for departing from it e.g. Working Together 2006
• Circulars issued to Heads of Service by Government for individual statutory agencies e.g. Local authorities (LAC), Health (HSC), Police (HO). Some may be issued jointly, the most common of these being social care and health. Many are quasi legislative. Circulars are generally used to explain aspects of policy and legislation more fully.

Other information of relevance will be contained within:

• Case law
• Non-statutory and