4.1 All agencies have a responsibility to recognise and actively consider potential risks to a child, irrespective of whether the child is the main focus of their involvement.
4.2 All agencies working primarily with adults as their main client group should always consider if any adult vulnerabilities or behaviours, for example mental health, drug and alcohol use, may impact on the adult’s ability to safely parent their child or any children who may be in their care. Within health services, a ‘Think Family’ approach to assessment and planning is adopted in order to improve outcomes for children and their families.
4.3 All services and professional bodies should have clear, single agency, policies in place for identifying, sharing and acting upon concerns about risk of harm to a child or children. There must be consideration of the needs, rights and mutual significance of siblings in any process that has a focus on a child.
4.4 Each practitioner remains accountable for their own practice and must adhere to their own professional guidelines, standards and codes of professional conduct, including undertaking training relevant to their role and responsibilities.
4.5 Third Sector, private sector and faith organisations should have information, advice and training to make them aware of the potential risks to children and to support their knowledge and confidence about steps they might take to keep children safe.
4.6 Professional curiosity is an essential skill for practitioners to use in the protection of children and young people. Practitioners need to explore and understand what is happening for a child or within a family, rather than making assumptions or accepting things at face value. Professional challenge is part of good child protection practice. Reflective practice and regular supervision are ways to support practitioners to adopt professional curiosity as a nonjudgemental and holistic approach to protecting children at risk of harm.
4.7 Children and young people should get the help they need, when they need it, for as long as they need it, and their wellbeing is always paramount - practitioners should always consider the needs of the child or young person and any impact on them.
4.8 Ensure the child or young person is seen and is safe – and remember all children who may be impacted upon and consider their needs and safety, not only the child who is at the centre of concerns. This would include siblings/ stepchildren, etc, who may have contact with a parent/ carer.
4.9 When there is significant need or risk to a child or young person, child protection procedures must be followed immediately - do not delay. Likewise, a medical/ police response may be needed urgently and should be sought without delay.
4.10 Prevention, early identification, intervention and support is critical – to prevent further escalation, harm and/ or difficulties later.
4.11 Compulsory measures of supervision and early intervention are not mutually exclusive of each other – consideration should be given to compulsory measures of supervision to ensure effective intervention and/ or compliance. The most effective protection of children involves early support within the family before urgent action is needed and purposeful use of compulsory measures is necessary. However, preventative and protective work may be needed at the same time. Preventative, restorative, supportive, collaborative and therapeutic approaches do not stop because compulsory measures or urgent protective legal steps are taken. If a Compulsory Supervision Order is likely to be required to meet the child’s needs for protection, guidance, treatment or control, or to ensure compliance, then a referral must be made to the Principal Reporter, Scottish Children’s Reporters Administration (SCRA) to allow consideration as to whether a children’s hearing should be arranged. A referral to SCRA should usually be made following agreement at a Child’s Plan Meeting.
Named person role
4.12 In keeping with the GIRFEC National Practice Model– always involve the practitioner who is fulfilling the role of the named person. The named person for the child or young person will play a critical role in deciding whether a child or young person needs help, and in accessing such help promptly.
Birth – start school
Named person: health visitor (or family nurse up to 2 years if child is on Family Nurse Programme).
Attending school
Named person: head teacher, depute head teacher in a primary school or a pupil support teacher in a secondary school
Home schooled
Named person: No designated Named Person at this time however, this should be the most suitable person who knows the child.
16 to 17 - left school
No designated named person at this time, however, this should be the most suitable person who knows the child.
4.13 Where there is a child’s plan in place, always involve the practitioner who is carrying out the role of the Lead Professional.
The Lead Professional is the practitioner best placed to co-ordinate multi-agency activity supporting the child or young person and their family. They do this alongside the Named Person. The Lead Professional may also be the Named Person. For Child Protection and Looked-after Children the Lead Professional is always a Children and Families Social Worker.
The Named Person is a professional point of contact in universal services, both to support children and their parents/ carers when there is a wellbeing need for the child, and to act as a point of contact for other practitioners who may have a concern about the child’s safety and wellbeing. In areas where there is no Named Person it may be necessary to identify someone known or trusted to the child or family, or someone who can be a point of contact for other practitioners.
The Child’s Plan is the single agency, or multi agency action plan agreed by all involved services.
4.14 Always consider the wider factors in assessment– the family’s strengths; vulnerabilities; challenges; protective factors; resilience; ability to recover and the impact on the child or young person. Using strengths and relationships based practice will encourage good working relationships.
4.15 A multi-agency Chronology must be considered to ensure all relevant information is available. This will help families and agencies identify patterns over time. Remember that no one agency will have all the history of the child/ family that will enable the best support to be provided. Together we can make a difference and make better decisions. Single agency Chronologies are crucial to this process.
4.16 Ensure you have read and understood your own service and/ or agency child protection procedures and adult protection procedures – know where and how to access them.
4.17 If in any doubt, seek help and support from your line manager and/ or the designated person within your own agency with responsibility for child protection.
4.18 In Dumfries and Galloway, a central register is held and maintained within Children and Families Social Work. This register contains the names of all the children and young people whose names have been placed on the Child Protection Register. The Keeper of the Register is the Chief Social Work Officer.
4.19 In matters where practitioners encounter obstacles/ disagreements that they are unable to resolve, reference should be made to the Children’s Services Resolution and Escalation Framework (in development).
4.20 Information Sharing
4.20.1 Sharing relevant information is an essential part of protecting children from harm. Practitioners should understand when and how they share information. Individual agencies should have systems and procedures in place to ensure lawful, fair and transparent information sharing. Where there is a child protection concern, relevant information should be shared with police or social work without delay, provided it is necessary, proportionate, and lawful to do so.