OPEN Youth Trust
CHILD PROTECTION POLICY
16 October 2018 CONTENTS
Title Contents 1. Purpose of Policy 2. Statement of OPEN Youth Trust on the Protection of Children Key Safeguarding Contacts 3. The Policy 4. Definitions of Abuse 5. Examples of Significant Harm 6. Internet Safety 7. Signs of Abuse 8. Symptoms of Abuse 9. Procedure for responding to and reporting concerns 10. Procedure for dealing with a disclosure 11. Third party/anonymous referrals/allegations 12. Working Safely 13. Record Keeping 14. Safe Recruitment
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15. DBS Procedures 16. Reporting a ‘Serious Incident’ to the Charity Commission
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Appendix 1:
Useful contact details
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Appendix 2:
Summary from the UN Convention on the Rights of the
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Child
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Appendix 3: Legal references and guidance
1. Purpose of this Policy To inform those working with children that some children do get abused and advise them of the procedure to be carried out if abuse is disclosed to them, or if they suspect abuse. This policy also outlines some of the Law in regard to Child Protection, which will assist us in providing a secure environment for children.
2. Statement of the OPEN Youth Trust on the Protection of Children The OPEN Youth Trust (OYT) recognises the need to provide a safe and caring environment for children, young people and vulnerable adults whom we acknowledge can be the victims of physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect.
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We accept the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant of Human Rights, which states that everyone is entitled to “all the rights and freedoms set forth therein, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.” We also concur with the Convention on the Rights of the Child which states that children should be able to develop their full potential, free from hunger and want, neglect and abuse. They have a right to be protected from “all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s), or any other person who has care of the child.” We have therefore adopted the procedures set out in this safeguarding policy in accordance with statutory guidance and are committed to build constructive links with statutory and voluntary agencies involved in safeguarding. Key Safeguarding contacts at OPEN Youth Trust Designated Child Protection Officers OPEN Norwich: Karl Dickerson – 01603 763111 / 07776 204041 – karl@opennorwich.org.uk 20 Bank Plain, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 4SF OPEN Norfolk: Lara Nicole – 01603 763111 / 07473 464377 – lara@opennorwich.org.uk 20 Bank Plain, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 4SF Norfolk County Youth Orchestra: Juliet Rickard 07786 122374 – jrickard@cym.org.uk 20 Bank Plain, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 4SF Overall Lead Charlene Ledgard – 01603 763111 / 07595 851472 – charlene@opennorwich.org.uk 20 Bank Plain, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 4SF
3. The Policy OYT’s Child Protection Policy has been updated following the Children’s Act 2004 and is further influenced by the findings from the Inquiry into the death of Victoria Climbié as well as guidance from other key documents and policies that addressing safeguarding children and promote their welfare, the relevant extracts of which are featured in Appendix 3. Senior personnel are required to ensure that their responsibilities are being carried out in the manner required by Section 11 of the Children Act 2004.
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It follows that, in the absence of senior staff, the worker left ‘in charge’ must follow the policy set out here and that person must have direct contact available with a Designated Child Protection Officer. Failing this all contact should then go to the Overall Lead. There are some key features of effective arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children at OYT, creating and maintaining an organisational culture and ethos that reflects the importance of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. At an organisational or strategic level, these key features are having:
Senior management and Trustees’ commitment to promoting the importance of safeguarding and promoting children’s welfare;
A clear statement of the charity’s responsibilities towards children available for all staff;
A clear line of accountability within OYT for work on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children;
Service development that takes account of the need to safeguard and promote welfare and is informed, where appropriate, by the views of children and families;
Staff training on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children for anyone working with or in contact with children and families;
Safe recruitment procedures in place;
Effective inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children;
Effective information sharing.
4. Definitions of Abuse Each form of abuse is described below, but children may be subjected to more than one form of abuse at a time. Children whose situations do not currently fit the following categories may also be at significant risk of harm. This could include situations where another child in the household has been harmed or the household contains a known child abuser. Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating, or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child. Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to:
provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment);
protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger;
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ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers);
ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment.
It may also include neglect of or unresponsiveness to a child’s basic emotional needs. Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve:
Conveying to children that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person.
Not giving the child opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate.
Age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond the child’s developmental capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction.
Seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another or serious bullying (including cyberbullying), causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children.
Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone. Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example, rape or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside of clothing. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at or in the production of sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways or grooming a child in preparation for abuse (including via the internet). Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males. Women can also commit acts of sexual abuse, as can other children. Organised or multiple abuse may be defined as involving one or more abuser and a number of non-related abused children and young people. The abusers concerned may be acting in concert to abuse children, sometimes acting in isolation, or may be using an institutional framework or position of authority to recruit children for abuse. Complex abuse occurs both as part of a network of abuse across a family or community, and within institutions such as residential homes or schools. 5. Examples of Significant Harm
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The following examples relate to the degree of harm that triggers statutory action to protect a child. It is based on the individual child's health or development compared to that which could reasonably be expected of a similar child, eg. severity of ill treatment, degree and extent of physical harm, duration and frequency of abuse and neglect, premeditation. Department of Health guidance suggests that 'significant' means 'considerable, noteworthy or important.' Fabricated or induced illness (formerly known as Munchausen’s Syndrome by proxy) is a form of child abuse in which the parents or carers give false accounts of symptoms in their children and may fake signs of illness (to draw attention to themselves). They seek repeated medical investigations and needless treatment for their children. The government guidance on this is found in 'Safeguarding Children in whom Illness is Fabricated or Induced' (2002). Spiritual abuse is linked with emotional abuse and could be defined as an abuse of power, often done in the name of God or religion, which involves manipulating or coercing someone into thinking, saying or doing things without respecting their right to choose for themselves. Some indicators of spiritual abuse might be a leader who is intimidating and imposes his/her will on other people, perhaps threatening dire consequences or the wrath of God if disobeyed. He or she may say that God has revealed certain things to them and so they know what is right. Those under their leadership are fearful to challenge or disagree, believing they will lose the leader's (or more seriously God's) acceptance and approval. Radicalisation refers to the process by which a person comes to support a terrorist group, such as ISIL, or forms of extremism leading to terrorism. It is defined as vocal or active opposition to British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. It is the demonstration of unacceptable behaviour by using any means to express views that:
Encourage, justify or glorify terrorist violence in furtherance of particular beliefs
Seek to provoke others to terrorist acts
Encourage other serious criminal activity or seek to provoke others to criminality
Foster hatred which might lead to inter-community violence in the UK
Young people may become susceptible to radicalisation through a range of social, personal and environmental factors and violent extremists exploit vulnerabilities in individuals to drive a wedge between them and their families and communities. It is vital that OYT workers recognise those vulnerabilities, such as identity or personal crisis, unmet aspirations and experiences of criminality whilst watching for early indicators including sympathy for extremist causes, glorifying violence, possessing extremist literature, changes in dress, secretive behaviour, intolerance of faith or culture, verbalising anti-British or western views. Domestic Violence is any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults, aged 18 and over, who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender and
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sexuality. Family members are defined as mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister and grandparents, whether directly related, in-laws or step-family. Acts such as forced marriage and other so-called ‘honour crimes’ which can include abduction and homicide are also included under the definition of domestic violence. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is the term used for all procedures involving partial or total removal or stitching up of the female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs whether for cultural or other non-therapeutic reasons. The practice is medically unnecessary, extremely painful and has serious health consequences, including death, both at the time when the mutilation is carried out and in later life. The procedure is typically performed on girls aged between four and thirteen, but in some cases FGM is performed on new born infants or on young women before marriage or pregnancy. FGM is a criminal offence in the UK and anyone who aids, abets, promotes or procures it will be prosecuted. It is estimated that up to 24,000 girls under the age of 15 are at risk in the UK, primarily amongst African and Asian refugees and immigrants in large urban populations. Self-harm is when somebody intentionally damages or injures their body. It's usually a way of coping with or expressing overwhelming emotional distress, which could be caused by abuse, bullying, distress, unbearable tension or relationship issues. They may well feel that they intend to die, but more often it is a cry for help or they feel the need to punish themselves. Ways of self-harming might include cutting or burning their skin, punching or hitting themselves, poisoning themselves with tablets or toxic chemicals, alcohol or drug abuse, deliberate starvation (anorexia), binge eating (bulimia) or exercising excessively. Self-harmers should be encouraged to visit their GP who can refer them on to a wellbeing therapist who will listen to the issues and develop a programme of regular counselling and medication. Alcohol and drug misuse by teens is very common and can have serious consequences. In the 15-24 year age range, 50% of deaths involve alcohol or drug abuse. Drugs and alcohol also contribute to physical and sexual aggression such as assault or rape. Some teenagers regularly use drugs or alcohol to compensate for anxiety, depression, or a lack of positive social skills. Teen experimentation with tobacco and alcohol should not be trivialised as they can become a pathway to harder drugs. Warning signs of teenage drug or alcohol abuse may include a drop in school performance, a change in friendship group, aggressive behaviour and deterioration in family relationships. There may also be physical signs such as red eyes, a persistent cough and change in eating and sleeping habits. Alcohol or drug dependency may include blackouts, withdrawal symptoms, and further functional problems. 6. Internet safety The internet provides young people with access to a wide-range of content, some of which is harmful. Extremists, paedophiles and abusers use the internet, especially social media, to share their messages and to recruit victims. OYT workers must recognise that children may expose themselves to danger, knowingly or unknowingly, when using the internet or other technologies, such as mobile phones.
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Internet safety is the responsibility of a variety of people, including children, young people and parents and we endeavour to educate young people in appropriate behaviours to enable them to remain safe. 7. Signs of abuse These early warning signs might trigger concern for a young person and, whilst they may not necessarily be evidence of abuse, could indicate that help is required. Changes or regression in mood or behaviour, particularly where a child withdraws or becomes clinging Nervousness/watchfulness Sudden under-achievement or lack of concentration Changed or inappropriate relationships with peers or adults Attention-seeking behaviour Persistent tiredness Running away/stealing/lying 8. Symptoms of abuse One or more of the following list of symptoms or behaviours may be evident and, whilst they are not proof that abuse has taken place, the possibility should be considered and concerns raised: . Any injuries not consistent with the explanation given for them, or where differing explanation have been received Injuries which occur to the body in places which are not normally exposed to falls, rough games, etc. Injuries and illnesses which have not received medical attention Instances where children are kept away from the group or school inappropriately Reluctance to change for or participate in games or swimming Any signs of neglect, under nourishment or inadequate care Any allegation made by a child concerning sexual abuse Child with excessive preoccupation with sexual matters and detailed knowledge of adult sexual behaviour, or who regularly engages in age inappropriate sexual play Sexual activities through words, play or drawing Child who is sexually proactive or seductive at home
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Inappropriate bed sharing arrangements at home
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Severe sleep disturbance with fear, phobias, vivid dreams or nightmares, sometimes with overt or veiled sexual connotations Procedure for responding to and reporting concerns
Where, on the basis of information told to them, a member of staff has reasonable cause to suspect that a child or young person under the age of 18 yrs is suffering, or is at risk of suffering, abuse or significant harm they should make a note, with the date and time on the Safeguarding Incident Form. You should share your concern with a Designated Child Protection Officer who will decide upon the best course of action. Where appropriate you should inform the young person of your action. Even if you are in doubt it is better to mention your concern to a lead worker, rather than keep silent. In any case where a Designated Child Protection Officer is unable to deal with the issue you should inform the Overall Lead of the situation. On receiving such notification the Designated Child Protection Officer will consider whether an “Expression of Concern” needs to be made to Children’s Social Care. If a referral is made, note will be made on the Safeguarding Incident Form of the name of the person spoken to at Social Services together with the date and time they were contacted. After a referral has been made by OYT, it is recognised that Social Services have a duty to investigate the report and that we may be asked, along with other agencies, for cooperation during the investigation. Complete cooperation will be given in all circumstances. If Social Services decide to call a case conference, the most appropriate member of OYT staff team will attend if we are asked to be present. 10. Procedures for dealing with a disclosure A child or young person who is the victim of a form of abuse may feel they need to talk to a member of staff because they feel they can trust that person - thereby ‘making a disclosure’. Almost invariably by the time this stage is reached, the OYT Confidentiality Policy, and particularly the limits of confidentiality, should have been appropriately explained to them. In such cases, it is important to:
Explain that you cannot promise to keep what you have been told a secret, you may have to tell someone else.
Show respect for the child or young person and do not brush their words or feelings aside.
Stay calm and reassuring and avoid expressions of shock or surprise
Carefully listen to what the child or young person tells you
Avoid asking leading questions, e.g. “What did they do next?” or “Was it Fred who did this?”
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Give open responses if the child or young person is looking for a response, such as “What happened?” or “How did you feel?”
Explain that whatever the circumstances they are not to blame.
Let the child or young person set the pace. Stop the conversation as soon as the child/young person wishes.
Tell the child or young person what you are going to do next. Tell them about the people with whom you will share the information.
Reassure the child or young person that you are pleased that they have decided to tell someone
Reassure the child or young person that they were right to tell e.g. “You are not to blame” or “You are not the only one this has happened to. There are people to help you.”
At the end of the conversation, if they have not already done so, the member of staff should write down everything told to them during the disclosure in a factual manner on the Safeguarding Incident Form, as they may be asked for a report at a later date. Notes should include:
The date and time of the disclosure
The name, age and date of birth of the child or young person making the disclosure
The content of the conversation, if possible using the exact words used by the child or young person
Follow up action e.g. time and date that details of the disclosure were shared with the Designated Child Protection Officer, or in their absence the Overall Lead of OPEN Youth Trust (following the procedures previously set out).
It is appreciated that dealing with child abuse or a disclosure of abuse is an emotionally upsetting experience. You are encouraged to seek support and express your feelings in confidence to your line manager. 11. Third party/anonymous referrals/allegations In cases where allegations are made by a third party, the role of the worker is to elicit as much information as possible from the referrer’s details (name, address, telephone number) and as much detail as possible about the subject child, ethnic origin, etc). Information as to the cause of concern/nature of injuries/observations should be included. The worker must inform the referrer that information relating to any child at risk will be shared with management and may result in referral to Social Services who may wish to interview the referrer as part of the child protection investigation. The worker will then report the above information to the Designated Child Protection Officer who will discuss any proposed action with the Overall Lead, who may involve the CEO at his or her discretion.
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12. Working Safely It is important that individual members of staff develop day-to-day safer working practices in order to minimise the risk of false allegations of abuse being made against them. Although it is rare that someone is falsely accused, it can happen and therefore steps to minimise the possibility need to be established. The following is a list of suggested guidelines to protect workers from allegation:
Be proactive - if at all possible try to ensure that no staff member or volunteer has to be on their own with individual children or young people. Ensuring that there are enough people for each session is a key issue for management. In the event of any injury to a child or young person, accidental or otherwise, ensure that it is recorded and witnessed by another adult in the Accident Book and the session evaluation sheet.
Keep written records of any false allegations a child or young person makes against you. This should include everything from “You hit me” to “You’re always picking on me.” Inform another member of the team if you are aware that a child appears to dislike you.
Get another adult to witness the allegation if possible.
If a child or young person touches you in an inappropriate place or manner record what happened immediately and ensure that you inform another team member immediately. Also arrange to meet with the child or young person with the Designated Child Protection Officer to explain the inappropriate behaviour.
Never do something of a personal nature for children or young people that they can do themselves ie. dressing, undressing or taking themselves to the toilet.
Do not go into a toilet alone with children or young people, leave a door ajar and always tell another member of staff where you are going and why.
Be careful how and where you touch children or young people. For instance, never pat a child or young person on the bottom.
Be aware of age appropriate behaviour and reinforce it with young people. For example is it appropriate for a 13-year-old girl to drape her arm around your neck?
Staff team members should be aware of each other’s approaches towards children and young people and should feel able to point out anything that might be misunderstood.
If you feel that a child may have a ‘crush’ on you, talk to your line manager for advice and guidance.
There should be an open culture regarding safe working and anything that causes concern should be discussed either with the colleague concerned, line manager or group meeting as appropriate.
13. Record Keeping
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All records will be securely kept in a locked cabinet/drawer in the OPEN Office. Only the Designated Child Protection Officers and Overall lead will have access and records will only be kept as long as necessary. 14.
Safe Recruitment
All staff and volunteers entrusted with the care of young people will be subject to preemployment checks. A written application must be completed for all posts, confirming address details and relevant qualifications and experience. Two pieces of identification and two references must also be provided. All staff and volunteers must be given details of this policy as part of their induction, and training on child protection issues will be provided. Staff and Volunteers will be expected to attend on-going training as part of their professional development. There will be a mix of internal training conducted by trained staff and external training provided by other professionals. 15.
DBS Procedures
OPEN Youth Trust works with young people between the ages of 13-25 years and vulnerable adults, many of whom are disadvantaged or vulnerable. To safeguard their welfare the Trust will undertake a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check for all employees and volunteers, or an enhanced DBS check for those working directly with young people and/or vulnerable adults. A satisfactory DBS disclosure document will need to be received by the Trust prior to any employee or volunteer working unsupervised. Every employee will also be required to provide two references a character reference and one from the most recent employer. A professional referee must be a previous line manager or someone more senior within the organisation. For those that have worked with young people and/or vulnerable adults before and it is not the most recent employment they will be required to provide an additional referee for that employment, again this must be a line manager or someone more senior within the organisation. Volunteering with the Trust is also subject to a satisfactory DBS disclosure, and employment will be subject to this and comprehensive reference checks. Copies of the full policy are available from the Designated Child Protection Officers or OPEN’s Administrator as are the DBS Code of Practice and policies on DBS Information Handling and the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders.
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Reporting a serious incident to the Charity Commission
Under Charity Commission regulations a serious incident occurs where there is or will be a significant loss of funds or risk to the charity’s property, work, beneficiaries or reputation. Any serious safeguarding incident should be reported as soon as possible by the Overall Lead after consultation with the Trustees, if any one or more of the following occur:
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There has been an incident where the beneficiaries of your charity have been or are being abused or mistreated whilst under the care of your charity or by someone connected with your charity such as a trustee, member of staff or volunteer.
There has been an incident where someone has been abused or mistreated and this is connected with the activities of the charity.
Allegations have been made that such an incident may have happened regardless of when the alleged abuse or mistreatment took place.
You have grounds to suspect that such an incident may have occurred.
The Charity Commission states that these are ‘zero tolerance’ issues which would always be investigated by them. Serious incidents also include not having adequate safeguarding policies in place and failure to carry out criminal records checks on workers and trustees (where legally possible); in summary, anything that could affect the good reputation of the charity.
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Appendix 1 - Useful Contact Details Norfolk County Council Children’s Services & Social Services + Emergency Duty Team (Out of Hours Service) 0344 800 8020 https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/children-and-families/keeping-children-safe NSPCC: 24-Hour Child Protection Helpline 0808 800 5000 for advice or https://www.nspcc.org.uk Childline 24 hour confidential advice and support for anyone under 18 0800 1111 or visit https://www.childline.org.uk Samaritans 24 Hour confidential helpline for anyone who needs support Freephone 116 123 Bishop Bridge House Night Shelter (St Martins Housing Trust) Direct Access hostel, over 18s only. (01603) 666563 The Matthew Project Drug aid Unity helpline. 0800 970 4866 or visit https://www.matthewproject.org/unity NHS Non-emergency number – 111 Emergency - 999 Norfolk Police Non-emergency number - 101 Emergency - 999
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Appendix 2 - Summary from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty that grants all children and young people (aged 17 and under) a comprehensive set of rights. The UK signed the Convention on 19 April 1990, ratified it on 16 December 1991 and it came into force on 15 January 1992. The UNCRC is presently the most widely ratified international human rights treaty. It is the only international human rights treaty to include civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. It sets out in detail what every child needs to have a safe, happy and fulfilled childhood regardless of their sex, religion, social origin, and where and to whom they were born. All United Nations member states, except for the United States and Somalia, have ratified the Convention. The Convention gives children and young people substantive rights, including the right to: special protection measures and assistance access to services such as education and healthcare develop their personalities, abilities and talents to the fullest potential grow up in an environment of happiness, love and understanding be informed about and participate in achieving their rights in an accessible and active manner.
OPEN Youth Trust is committed to the UNCRC and to its implementation. The Department for Education is the lead Government department with responsibility for implementing the UNCRC in England and for coordinating UK-wide reports, although each of the Devolved Administrations implements the UNCRC and addresses the Committee’s recommendations as appropriate to their own local requirements.
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Appendix 3 – Legal references and guidance “The support and protection of children cannot be achieved by a single agency… Every Service has to play its part. All staff must have placed upon them the clear expectation that their primary responsibility is to the child and his or her family.” Lord Laming in the Victoria Climbié Inquiry Report (paragraphs 17.92 and 17.93) Improving the way key people and bodies safeguard and promote the welfare of children is crucial to improving outcomes for children. In his report into the death of Victoria Climbié, Lord Laming concluded that “the suffering and death of Victoria was a gross failure of the system.” Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, therefore, places a duty on key persons and bodies to make arrangements to ensure that in discharging their functions, they have regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. This guidance sets out these key arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. It applies to all those key local people and bodies named under section 11(1) of the Children Act 2004. Part 1 of the guidance sets out the arrangements that are likely to be common to all or most of the agencies to which the duty applies. There will, however, be differences in how they are applied depending on the functions of each agency. Part 2 deals with implementation in each particular agency to which the section 11 duty applies. The guidance is for the Chief Executives and senior managers in all the bodies named in section 11 of the Children Act 2004. In addition this guidance should be considered alongside the Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education guidance (Department for Education and Skills, 2006), issued to support educational organisations in meeting their responsibilities under sections 175 and 157 of the Education Act 2002. This document is one of a suite of five that give guidance on children’s trust governance and strategic planning, and on the cross cutting issue of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. All documents referred to are accessible through http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk. The five documents support provisions in the Children Act 2004 which underpin Every Child Matters: Change for Children. These include the creation of duties on local agencies in relation to improving the ‘wellbeing’ of children and young people and safeguarding and promoting their welfare. These five core documents should be used alongside other key policy and planning documents relating to Every Child Matters. These include:
The National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services which sets out a ten-year programme to stimulate long-term and sustained improvement in children’s health and wellbeing. This guidance will help health and
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social care organisations to meet Standard Five on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people;
Every Child Matters: Change for Children – Young People and Drugs gives guidance on cooperation and joint planning to counter drug misuse;
Duty on Local Authorities to Promote the Educational Achievement of Looked After Children sets out the implications of the new duty in the Children Act 2004 for local authorities’ strategic planning, joint area reviews and day-to-day working practices; The Framework for the Inspection of Children’s Services sets out the principles to be applied by an inspectorate or commission assessing any children’s service, and defines the key judgments which, where appropriate and practical, inspections will seek to make. http://www.ofsted.gov.uk
A number of other documents focus directly on integrated front line delivery and the processes that support it. These include:
The Common Assessment Framework (published in April 2006) which provides guidance for managers on operating the Common Assessment Framework and guidance for practitioners on undertaking common assessments Cross-government guidance on information;
Information Sharing: Practitioners’ Guide (published in April 2006) which aims to help practitioners understand how and when they can share information lawfully.
The Children’s Workforce Strategy and the Common Core of Skills and Knowledge. Both documents should inform strategic planning for developing the children’s workforce locally;
Lead Professional Guides for Managers and Practitioners (published in April 2006) sets out key responsibilities, skills and knowledge required by practitioners to carry out the lead professional role, and draws on good practice to provide emerging models, working solutions and suggestions on how the role might be developed, implemented and managed;
On-line Multi-agency Working Toolkit (published in April 2006) includes practical advice, case studies and resources to help managers and practitioners set up effective integrated services and teams.
Taken as a whole the strategic and operational guidance listed here is intended to support change at all levels within an area and thereby help drive improvement for all children and young people.
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