SENIOR MANAGERS CONFERENCE 27 TH JANUARY 2009

1. SENIOR MANAGERS CONFERENCE27TH JANUARY 2009 on Safeguarding and the Implications of Baby ‘P’

2. Aims of the Seminar • To provide an overview of new safeguarding requirements • Findings from the national review of serious case reviews • The findings from the inspection of Haringey • Government’s response • Council’s response as lead agency for children in Hillingdon

3. Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) – Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 • ISA role is to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children and vulnerable adults. Full implementation October 2009. • Assess every person who wants to work or volunteer with vulnerable people. Only applicants who are judged not to pose a risk to vulnerable people can be ISA-registered. • Applicants will be assessed using data gathered by the Criminal Records Bureau including, cautions, police intelligence and other appropriate sources. • Employers who work with vulnerable people will only be allowed to recruit people who are ISA-registered. • Will cover employees and volunteers in the education, care and health sectors affecting some 11.3 million people.

4. Child Death Overview Panel • Statutory duty since April 2008 to review all ‘unexpected’ child deaths and to take action if the deaths were judged ‘preventable’. • Joint panel with Ealing Council, Police, PCT’s & Hospital Trusts. • Chaired by Director of Public Health • April – December 2008 13 children have died ‘unexpectedly’ • 10 of which were under 1 • 10 cause linked to ‘health’ issues • 3 cause of death unknown

5. National Picture on Serious Case Reviews Serious case reviews (SCR) are carried out when a child dies or is seriously Injured through abuse or neglect. Every two years, an overview analysis of serious case reviews in England is commissioned by Government to draw out themes and trends. In 2008 the third such overview analysis reported on 161 (2/3rd deaths) SCR’s carried out during 2003/05. • A total of 47% of the children were aged under 1. • Only 12% of children were named on the child protection register, although 55% of children were known to children’s social care at the time of the incident. • The families of very young children who were physically assaulted (including those with head injuries) tended to be in contact with universal services or adult services rather than children’s social care.

6. National Picture on Serious Case Reviews (2) • In families where children suffered long term neglect, children’s social care often failed to take account of past history and adopted the ‘start again syndrome’. • In the cases where the information was available, well over half of the children had been living with domestic violence, or parental mental ill health, or parental substance misuse. These three problems often co-existed. Although the majority of these cases may be essentially unpredictable, and working with uncertainty and risk is at the core of work with children and families, in most reviews there were numerous childhood adversities that were not known to practitioners. To have a better chance of understanding the risks of harm that children face, practitioners should be encouraged to be curious and to think critically and systematically.

7. Findings from the Haringey Inspection • Insufficient strategic leadership and management oversight of safeguarding. • Managerial failure to ensure full compliance with the requirements of the inquiry into the death of Victoria Climbie. • The local safeguarding children board (LSCB) fails to provide sufficient challenge to its member agencies - lack of an independent chairperson. • Social care, health and police authorities do not communicate and collaborate routinely and consistently to ensure effective assessment, planning and review. • Too often assessments of children and young people, in all agencies, fail to identify those who are at immediate risk of harm and to address their needs.

8. Findings from the Haringey Inspection (2) • Quality of front line practice across all agencies is inconsistent and not effectively monitored by line managers. • Child protection plans are generally poor. • Arrangements for scrutinising performance across the council and the partnership are insufficiently developed and fail to provide appropriate challenge to both managers and practitioners. • The standard of record keeping on case files across all agencies is inconsistent and often poor. • Too much reliance on quantitative data to measure social care, health, and police performance.

9. Government response – Improved Challenge & Scrutiny • Laming review of Procedures & Governance • All Agencies required to review their Safeguarding services using the Haringey findings • Independent Chairing of Safeguarding Boards & Serious Case Review Panels • Review of inadequate Serious Case Reviews • Those LA’s which have an ‘inadequate’ judgement in 2008 for staying safe - subject to investigation & scrutiny • Workforce Initiatives

10. Hillingdon Response • Audit of arrangements based on Haringey Findings – • December 2008 - Safeguarding Board & report to Lead Member • By end of Jan all agencies asked to report on disagreements. • January 2009 – Action plan - Corporate Management Team & Safeguarding Board • Implementing new database • Integrated Children’s System • Improved Auditing & Monitoring arrangements with remote scrutiny of case records. • Enhanced Management Structure • 2007 Senior managers • 2008 Front-line managers

11. Hillingdon Response • Workforce Plan – Training, Recruitment & Retention • Social work practice pilot • Refocusing the work of Children’s Social Care through the Every Child Matters programme • 30% of referrals are for young people aged 10-15 • Strengthened LSCB Governance – Website • Recruit Independent Chairman – February/March 2009 • Strength of the arrangements recognised by Ofsted APA 2008

12. Education and Children's Services [Hillingdon Council] Schools Hillingdon Primary Care Trust [HPCT] The Hillingdon Hospital Trust [THHT] The Central North West London NHS Foundation Trust [CNWL] Adult Social Care & Housing [Hillingdon Council] The Youth Offending Service The London Probation Service The Metropolitan Police [Hillingdon Borough & Child Abuse Investigation team] Hillingdon Association of Voluntary Services [HAVS] Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service [CAFCASS] Environment & Consumer Protection Services [ Hillingdon Licensing Authority] UK Border Agency [UKBA] Sports & Leisure Services [Hillingdon Council] Uxbridge College SSAFA [Association for the families of the Armed forces in Hillingdon] Group4 Justice services [private sector] Hillingdon Safeguarding Children Board Memberswww.hillingdon.gov.uk/lscb