9.0Recommendations from IMR’s

1. HEALTH SERVICE ACTION PLAN
Recommendation / Action / Lead Person(s) / Target Date / Review Date
Recording
All paperwork in relation to children whose details are on the child protection register must be filed within the health visitor records and alluded to in the main body of the records / Regular audit of records / Methodology to be set by the Child Protection Department and carried out by Primary Care Matrons / Immediate / Audit March 2007 and bi-annually
Health Visitor records must have all contacts and referrals fully and accurately recorded for all children in the family / Re issue Health Visiting Records Policy (Bournemouth, Poole and SE Dorset 2003 – revise if required) and management briefings to all health visitors. Monitored compliance through supervision / Primary Care Matrons and Child Protection Department / August 2006 / Annually/ongoing through supervision
All children to have Significant Event Sheets on Records / Issue and Implement the 2005 policy on ‘Chronology Sheets’ Management briefings of health visitors. Monitor compliance through supervision / Primary Care Matrons and Child Protection Department / August 2006 / Annually/ongoing through supervision
Sufficient detail to be recorded on computerised records (where used) to alert concerns and to track action / Audit current situation across different systems. PCT to issue guidance on recording to GP Practices and Health Visitors / Primary care Matrons and Child Protection Team with Named Doctor for Child Protection / March 2007 / Audit bi-annually
When a Child’s details are removed from the Child Register, evidence of child protection concerns must not be removed from the records / Audit current situation across different systems. PCT to issue guidance on recording to GP Practices and Health Visitors / Primary care Matrons and Child Protection Team with Named Doctor for Child Protection / March 2007 / Audit bi-annually
Recommendation / Action / Lead Person(s) / Target Date / Review Date
Health Visitor Supervision
Following the recent health visitor review and pending development of locality management and working, health visitors to be fully supported and accountable in the discharge of their child protection functions / Management arrangements and accountability for individual child protection cases to be clear in any new arrangements / Director of Service Delivery with Child Protection Department and Head of Children’s Services / Ongoing / Audit bi-annually
Child Protection Plans
The role of individual health professionals in child protection plans should be clearly specified / Multi Agency action through the LSCB Steering and Working Groups / Child Protection Department / ? March 2007 / Monitored through supervision
Training
GP Practices to access PCT Child Protection Training (at least every 3 years) / Named Doctor for Child Protection and Child Protection Department to audit existing uptake and identify non-compliance for action by PCT / Named Doctor for Child Protection and Child Protection Department / September 2006 / Three yearly audit
Health visitors should attend specific training on Child Sexual Abuse / Audit current situation and training to be arranged through supervision. Health Visitors must have attended the 2 day inter-agency training first. (In house half-day training to be considered if demand high) / Child Protection Team / Audit via supervision by December 2006 / Health Visitors to have accessed the training within 3 years of appointment
2. CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES
Recommendation / Action / Lead Person(s) / Target Date / Review Date
1.All Section 47 enquiries should be undertaken by qualified and suitably experienced social work staff. The delegation of tasks and managerial responsibility for
s.47 enquiries between teams must be clear and adhered to. /
  • Managers must ensure that section 47 enquiries are completed by social work qualified staff with appropriate skill levels.
  • Records of strategy discussions/meetings must include a list of actions to be completed, by whom and by what date and signed by a team manager.
  • Compliance with the above to be tracked
  • Revision of the protocol between the Assessment and Family Support Team in relation to s 47 enquiries
/ Team managers
Team Managers
Principal Managers
Principal Manager Assessment and Family Support /

With immediate effect

With immediate effect
July 06 / Dec 2006
Dec 2006
Dec 2006
Achieved
2Core assessments to be completed and regularly reviewed and updated for all section 47 enquiries and on all long term CIN cases. /
  • Managers must ensure core assessments are commenced and/or continued for each child subject to section 47 enquiries. ICS core assessment templates to be used on all cases
  • Managers must ensure that a core assessment is completed on all complex child in need cases or in response to a specific event.
  • A review and up dating of core assessments should take place at key points e.g. case transfer and/or in response to new/significant events .
  • A cross unit working group will be set up to define clear triggers for core assessments and practice development needs
  • Team managers to track the completion and quality of core assessment
/ Principal Managers and Team Managers
Team Managers
Principal Manager Assessment and Family Support / For all S47 enquiries and initial conferences from 1 May 2006
With immediate effect
Nov 2006 / Dec 2006
Dec 2006
Dec 2006
3a Team managers should formally and regularly, review social work practice and recording to ensure that relevant information on cases is identified and changing levels of risk are identified and responded to. /
  • Managers to audit and review the records of one child protection case at each supervision session to ensure that plans are being progressed and recording up to date and that they are aware of
the reasons for any delays in progressing an assessment or intervention and/or
a change in family circumstances and/or
new and emerging information.
  • Principal Managers to receive a copy of the quality assurance file audit checklist and monitor regularly in supervision with team managers
  • Social workers to record all visits to children on the child protection register
  • Managers to record on supervision records at each supervision session when children on the child protection register are seen and spoken to and ensure compliance with the visiting frequency as set out in protection plans in accordance with procedural guidance
  • Senior managers to audit compliance with the above through the case audit process.
  • Principal Managers to independently audit three child protection cases every three months.
/ Team Managers
Principal Managers with Team Managers
Social workers
Team Managers
Principal Managers / With immediate effect
With immediate effect
With immediate effect
With immediate effect
With immediate effect / March 2007
March 2007
Dec 2006
Dec 2006
March 2007
3b The role of the qualified worker and any secondary allocated worker should be clearly set out and regularly reviewed / Managers to
  • record on Management Action and Decision record sheets the expectations of secondary workers and the process for reviewing their work.
  • allocate tasks to staff commensurate with their skill levels
  • Ensure that the contribution of secondary workers is regularly reviewed in supervision.
/ Team Managers
Team Managers
Team Managers / With immediate effect
With immediate effect
With immediate effect / Dec 2006
Dec 2006
Dec 2006
4 Managers should ensure there is no delay in the transfer process for cases between teams. /
  • Managers to review and track the transfer of cases between teams against agreed protocol to ensure this is achieved without unnecessary delay, and all action points addressed
  • Transfer process to be audited
/ Team Managers
Principal Managers / With immediate effect
By October 2006 / Oct 2006
March 2007
5 Additional training for staff in relation to risk assessment and ‘Keep Safe’ work to be provided /
  • Managers to review with staff the agreed training pathway for child protection, identify any gaps and respond to these.
  • Additional training on risk assessment and analysis in relation to specific themes ie domestic violence substance misuse, and Keep Safe work to be commissioned
/ Team Managers
Principal Manager Assessment and Family Support / November 2006
November 2006. / March 2007
March 2007
6 a. Clarity in relation to the referral process and tracking of referrals to the NSPCC to be established.
b. Social work staff to be clear about how to access specialist advice and consultation from the NSPCC and other agencies offering specialist services /
  • Protocol in relation to referrals to the NSPCC to be reviewed and redistributed.
  • Referral tracking system to be established
  • Team managers to ensure that social work staff consult with specialist agencies in advance of referrals to them.
/ Principal Manager with lead responsibility
Team managers / By July 2006
With immediate effect / Jan 2007
Jan 2007
7 Protection plans must clearly specify outcomes, expectations of practitioners and parents and key actions with a timescale for completion / A multi agency review of child protection plans to be undertaken / Specially convened multi agency group / July 2006 / March 2007
3. NSPCC
Recommendation / Action / Lead Person(s) / Target Date / Review Date
The East Dorset CSM review the tasks undertaken by the CSP in the gathering and logging of reports and statements received and a more efficient administrative process is established / Review of tasks has been undertaken by CSM. This has identified very limited scope for improvement since thorough collation of all relevant information requires on site file access by NSPCC and this cannot include the presence of NSPCC admin staff.
Further actions:
Action 1.
a) seek agreement from Poole C & F Services that routine admin tasks will be undertaken by Poole admin on site, as required by allocated NSPCC CSP (childrens services practitioner) i.e. photocopying of reports and statements.
b) agree with Poole that on all new referrals, basic case information is made available to the NSPCC at the time of referral, including all full chronologies, case conference reports, Care plans and latest review.
c) insert above requirements to NSPCC/Poole Service Level Agreement/contract / Andrew Conroy CSM
a)Andrew Conroy CSM
b)Andrew Conroy CSM
c)Alison Kearnes Area Childrens Services Manager (ACSM) NSPCC and Poole Contracts & Commissioning manager / 31st July 06
a)31st.Aug.06
b)31st.Aug.06
c)Sept 06 at SLA review meeting / 17.8.06
a)September 06 at review of contract meeting and quarterly thereafter. Routine monitoring by CSM on every accepted referral, with monthly reporting by CSM to ACSM..
b)September 06 at review of contract meeting and quarterly thereafter. Routine monitoring by CSM on every accepted referral.
c)Annual review of contract.
To prevent drift in referral process time limits are attached to all actions identified in the case plan for East Dorset NSPCC services (and other NSPCC SHFA services) / Action 2.
a)Agree time limits including contingency requirement for any unexpected/unplanned delays prior to and/or subsequent to the Professionals Agreement Meeting (PAM) and acceptance of the referral by NSPCC – review by phone between the accountable practice managers in NSPCC and Poole.
b)Confirm with Poole that any changes or additional case information must be shared with NSPCC in a timely manner, with priority given to prompt information sharing prior to the Professionals Agreement Meeting and acceptance of the referral by NSPCC.
c)Effective implementation of the above actions will require that Poole agrees with NSPCC how referrals that do not meet the commissioned specialist service specification (sexual harm from adults) will be managed, and whether Poole needs to consider commissioning Family Risk assessments from the NSPCC to cover such eventualities in the future. / a) Andrew Conroy CSM
b)Andrew Conroy CSM
c)Andrew Conroy CSM and Poole commissioning and Contract manager / a) August 06
b)31st August 06
c)For discussion and agreed action at September 06 contracts review meeting. / a) September 06 at review of contract meeting and quarterly thereafter. Routine monitoring by CSM on every accepted referral.
b)September 06 at review of contract meeting and quarterly thereafter. Routine monitoring by CSM on every accepted referral.
c)Quarterly SLA review meetings. Routine monitoring by CSM on every referral prior to acceptance/ PAM.
File recording indicates the existing plan of the protection network is assessed from the services specialist viewpoint. Any appropriate additional protective action is sought at the time of referral / Action 3.
File recording will be improved by inclusion of specific heading on NSPCC case records giving CSP’s judgement as to whether the existing safeguarding arrangements and any protection plan are adequate; whether any additional safeguarding actions needs to be considered and if so, the date these concerns are brought to the attention of their line manager CSM for appropriate further action - in accordance with existing NSPCC practice and process requirements, and in accordance with local inter agency CP procedures and Working Together 2005.. / Andrew Conroy CSM / 31st August 06 / September 06 at review of contract meeting and quarterly thereafter. Routine monitoring by CSM on every accepted referral.
4. EDUCATION SERVICES
Recommendation / Action / Lead Person(s) / Target Date / Review Date
File notes should be clearly dated and signed / VW to pursue with service unit and schools / VW/PS / As soon as possible / Jan 07
Chronology of events needs to be in place in all files / VW to recommend to schools and ensure is in place in service unit / VW/PS / Dec 06 / April 07
Schools need immediate feedback when a child is taken into care, about what is happening and when / Children and Families/Pupil and Parent and Youth services to draw up a procedure / SI/PS / Dec 06 / April 07

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10.0Additional and Priority Recommendations from the Overview Group

(a)Establishing New Process/Procedures

1. IMR recommendations to be formatted in a way that provides a clear action point, a lead person to take forward the action, a date by which the action should be completed and a review date / IMR authors
2.A multi-agency review of child protection plans to be undertaken to ensure that SMART objectives are set. / Poole
C&FS
3.A review of the home visiting standards expected of Health Visitors in CPR cases to be undertaken. / Health
4. Develop a multi agency checklist ( including guidance and a training plan) to alert staff to the potential increase in risk of sexual abuse / Adults Who Sexually Harm group
5.Review the provision of sexual offending awareness training for relevant staff groups / ACPC
Coordinating
Committee
6.Review the provision of specialist assessments on the risks to children from sexual perpetrators including the timeliness of such. / Adults who Sexually Harm group
7. That NSPCC develop new processes for referrals which include time frames for action and a tracking mechanism. / NSPCC
8. Where an adult’s involvement is significant to the child protection concerns of a child/ran their GP is invited to any child protection conference/ contacted for information relevant to the child protection process. / Poole
C&FS
9.When an adult presents with mental health issues to their general practitioner the possible impact on children/other vulnerable persons they are involved with should be considered and documented / Named Doctor for Child Protection with Child Protection Department

(b)Re-Establishing Practice

1.Using their statutory status, NSPCC to ensure action is taken to protect children when concerns are raised in any work with perpetrators of risk / NSPCC
2.C&FS to ensure that effective systems are in place to establish that actions from CP Plans are implemented. / Poole C&FS

Andy Hutchinson Assistant Chief Officer, Dorset Probation Area

Daphne Rose, Nurse Consultant, Dorset

Gerry Moore, Service Unit Head, Children’s and Families Services, Poole

Phil James, Detective Superintendent, Dorset Police

July 2006

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