LSCB Self-Assessment Tool

Transcription

1 LSCB Self-Assessment Tool The Local Safeguarding Children board s primary function is to bring together representatives from agencies and professionals responsible for safeguarding children. It is an inter-agency forum that agrees how the different agencies and services should co-operate to safeguard children in the area and make sure that arrangements work effectively to bring about good outcomes for all children. The Local Safeguarding Children Board has a key role in achieving high standard in safeguarding can promoting the welfare of children, not just by coordinating, but also by evaluation and continuous improvement. Individual organisations are therefore asked to self-evaluate, under agreed indicators, and to share their results with the Board. Date for completion/ return Name of agency completing return Person responsible/ Contact details DSCB lead officer and contact details odette.sanderson@darlington.gov.uk/ nicola.forster@darlingtong.gov.uk Date of completion 1

2 To fulfil their commitment to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people all organisations that provide services for children, parents or families, or work with children, should have in place: Clear priorities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children explicitly stated in key policy documents and commissioning strategies A clear commitment by senior management to the importance of safeguarding and promoting children s welfare through both the commissioning and the provision of services A culture of listening to and engaging in dialogue with children, seeking their views in ways appropriate to their age and understanding, and taking account of those both in individual decisions and the establishment or development and improvement of services A clear line of accountability and governance within and across organisations for the commissioning and provision of services designed to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people Recruitment and human resources management procedures and commissioning process, including contractual arrangements, that take account of the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people, including arrangements fro appropriate checks on new staff and volunteers A clear understanding of how to work together to help keep children and young people safe online by being adequately equipped to understand, identify and mitigate the risks of new technology Procedure for dealing with allegations of abuse against members of staff and volunteers or, for commissioners, contractual arrangements with providers that ensure these procedures are in place Arrangements to ensure that all staff undertake appropriate training to equip them to carry our their responsibilities effectively, and keep this up to date by refresher training at regular intervals Policies for safeguarding children, including a child protection policy, effective complaints procedures, and that the procedures are in accordance with locally agreed multi-agency child protection procedures Arrangements to work effectively with other organisations to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, including arrangements for sharing information 2

3 Standard 1. Senior management s commitment to the importance of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children 1.1 There is a designated lead with overall responsibility for safeguarding throughout the organisation. Name of designated lead: 1.2 Staff are made aware of who is the designated lead for safeguarding within the organisation. 1.3 The designated lead for safeguarding has a job description which clearly defines their roles and responsibilities in relation to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people; they receive training and supervision in relation to this role. 1.4 Senior managers promote a culture of listening to and engaging in dialogue with children and young people both when developing services and when making individual case decisions. Children are listened to, taken seriously and responded to appropriately. 1.5 When commissioning a service from another organisation there are clear mechanisms in place to ensure that children and young people are safeguarded. 3

4 Standard 2. A clear statement of the agency s responsibilities towards children is available for all staff 2.1 The agency has written safeguarding policies and procedures that are reviewed regularly (at least every 3 years). Which has been endorsed by the LSCB. 2.2 All staff and volunteers are made aware of the safeguarding policies and procedures and can access these with ease. The policy is mandatory for staff and volunteers. 2.3 All staff are aware of their own roles and responsibilities and those of the organisation for safeguarding and protecting children. 2.4 Effective systems are in place for staff and service users (adult and child) to make a complaint or whistleblow where they have concerns that action to safeguard has not been following in accordance with the agencies procedures. These systems include clear timescales for resolving complaints. 2.5 Children are made aware of their right to be safe from abuse. The policy makes it clear that all children have equal rights to being safe and protected. 2.6 Information about where to go for help in relation to maltreatment and abuse, is made available for children and families. 2.7 Information provided is in a format and language that can be easily understood by all service users. 4

5 Standard 2. A clear statement of the agency s responsibilities towards children is available for all staff 2.8 The policy and procedures take into account the additional needs and circumstances of some children: for example, those with a disability or those from minority ethnic groups. Standard 3. A clear accountability within the organisation for work on safeguarding children 3.1 The organisation has a clear accountability framework, which covers individual, professional and organisational accountability for safeguarding children. Staff are aware of this. 3.2 Staff understand to whom they are directly accountable with regards to child protection, and understand their role and responsibility. 3.3 The organisation makes it clear that all children have equal rights to being safe and protected. 5

6 Standard 4. Service development takes account of the need to safeguard children and is informed, where appropriate by the views of children and families 4.1 Safeguarding children is incorporated within service development and delivery. 4.2 There is a culture of listening to and engaging in dialogue with children and families. 4.3 In service development, the organisation takes into account the additional needs and circumstances of some children, for example, those with a disability or those from minority ethnic groups. 4.4 Children and young people participate in service development, including children who may have a disability. 4.5 The organisation routinely audits and evaluates its work to safeguard and promte the welfare of children. 6

7 Standard 5. Staff training on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children for all staff working with or, depending on the agency s primary functions, in contact with children and families. 5.1 An induction process is in place for all staff who have contact with children. 5.2 A register is kept of staff who have completed induction and basic child protection training. All staff working with children and young people receive training on their professional roles and responsibilities and those of their organisation. 5.3 Additional training (both single and multi agency) is available for all staff working with children and young people, appropriate to their role. Training records are update accordingly 5.4 All individuals who come into contact with children and young people on an individual basis have regular, minuted management supervision and can access further support when required 5.5 Staff are kept up to date with statutory requirements and findings from serious case reviews and inspections 7

8 Standard 6. Safer recruitment/ allegations management 6.1 The organisation has a safer recruitment policy 6.2 Staff involved in recruitment are suitably trained (e.g. at least one member on the short listing/ interview panel must have been on safer recruitment training) 6.3 All staff who have contact with children, young people and families are properly selected and appropriate checks in line with current legislation and guidance: References are always taken up Identity and qualifications are verified Face to face interviews are carried out Previous employment history is checked Any anomalies or discrepancies are taken up Necessary checks are carried out and repeated every 3 years (e.g. CRB) 6.4 Records are maintained detailing checks taken in respect of employees 6.5 New staff have a probationary period 6.6 There is a named senior officer with responsibility in respect of dealing with allegations against staff, carers and volunteers 6.7 There are written procedures for handling allegations against staff, carers and volunteers 6.8 Responsibilities in relation to safeguarding children are made clear to temporary and agency staff 8

9 Standard 7. Effective inter-agency working to safeguard children 7.1 Strong strategic leadership in multi agency working is demonstrated by regular attendance at meetings organised by the Local Safeguarding Children Board 7.2 Policies are in place locally to support effective inter-agency working in individual cases. Staff have access to these policies 7.3 Staff participate in multi agency meetings and forums to consider individual children 7.4 Staff understand when to discuss concerns about a child s welfare with their manager or the designated person for safeguarding. 7.5 Staff are able to identify children who would benefit from additional services and require a CAF 7.6 They are clear about the circumstances in which a referral to the Duty Team is necessary 7.7 Staff participate in Serious Case Reviews and Case Reviews when required to do so 7.9 The agency has a clear process for Completing actions from SCRs Gathering the evidence where required Embedding recommendations into practice 9

10 Standard 8. Information sharing/ recording 8.1 The organisation has in place agency specific guidance on information sharing 8.2 The guidance (and training) are made available to existing and new staff as part of their induction and on going training 8.3 All staff who come into contact with children should understand the purpose of information sharing in order to safeguard children 8.4 Staff must be confident about what they can and should do, including how to obtain consent to share information and when information may be shared, even though consent hasn t been obtained 8.5 The organisation has a robust recording policy that ensures an accurate record of staff involvement with children and families. The policy should emphasise the importance of accurate recording of issues relating to race, culture, language, religion and essentially the observation of the child. 8.6 Data collected is made available to the LSCB, practitioners and other stakeholders in the organisation. 10

11 Standard 9. Quality Assurance 9.1 Arrangements are in place to monitor compliance with the Recruitment and Selection procedures. 9.2 Arrangements are in place to monitor compliance with LSCB procedures. 9.3 The organisation has in place robust information systems that enable them to monitor practice and management of work with all children, to ensure their welfare is effectively promoted. 9.4 All incidents, allegations of abuse and complaints are recorede and monitored. 9.5 Supervision is provided to staff who work with children and young people, specifically in relation to cases where there are concerns about harm to a child or young person. 9.6 The supervisor regularly reads case files and recording, in order to review the work undertaken with child or young person and ensure it is appropriate to the child s needs and in accordance with the organisation s responsibilities. 11