Information on Northumberland's joint safeguarding partnership
Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 and the Care Act 2014 both set out requirements for all local safeguarding partners to work together to safeguard and promote the safety and wellbeing of local children and adults at risk of harm or abuse, including identifying and responding to their needs.
In Northumberland we have introduced a model for safeguarding that will allow us to develop a family focused approach to working across the wider policy and partnership landscape.
The model develops new ways of working and identifies opportunities that reduce duplication and improve practice and outcomes for children, young people and adults across the safeguarding pathway.
The new Partnership arrangements acknowledge that children and adult arrangements are underpinned by different legislation and statutory guidance.
It recognises the similarities and shared benefits of a joint safeguarding approach across the life course.
Our Multi Agency Safeguarding Arrangements document sets out how we will work together and with other agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, young people, adults, and their families in Northumberland. We are committed to the aspirations and content set out in these arrangements and to the need to respond flexibly and creatively to new challenges as they arise.
Our safeguarding arrangements are designed to offer us the chance to work more effectively and with joint purpose to protect children and young people and support those who most need our help into adulthood and beyond. We have undertaken a review of our safeguarding arrangements in light of the Working Together to Safeguard Children (2023) Statutory Guidance.
In accordance with government direction and following a discussion and consultation process across the partnership, the new safeguarding arrangements for Northumberland are available here: Multi Agency Safeguarding Arrangements (MASA). We've also updated our NCASP Groups - Terms of Reference. Our Strategic Plan 2023-2026 sets out our priority areas of focus for 2023-2026 and is reviewed annually.
Our online safeguarding procedures are updated twice a year. Make sure you check our page regularly and register for updates.
The Thresholds of Need document supports professionals working with children, when faced with a decision about their safety and wellbeing. It is a collaborative document and drives our shared ambition of offering children, young people, their families and carers the right help at the right time.
Additional information about how to use the document:
Safeguarding adults practice can be improved by identifying what is helping and what is hindering safeguarding work, to tackle barriers to good practice, and protect adults from harm. Section 44 of the Care Act 2014 places a duty on local Safeguarding Adults Boards to arrange a SAR:
The purpose of a SAR is to learn lessons and make improvements rather than to blame individual people or organisations. This may be where a case can provide useful insights into the way organisations are working together to prevent and reduce abuse and neglect of adults. There may be circumstances where the SAR criteria have not been fully met but it is felt that a review of the case would be beneficial.
SARs and Learning Reviews can also be used to explore examples of good practice where it is likely that lessons can be applied to future cases. These are decisions made by the Safeguarding Adults Review Committee.
The Safeguarding Adults Review Group considers all referrals for SARs. This multi-agency group makes recommendations to the Safeguarding Adults Board on whether a SAR should be held, or if other actions should be taken to respond to the issues identified. Any agency can make a referral to the safeguarding adults review committee. For further information regarding SARs please view the North of Tyne Safeguarding Adult Review Policy and Procedure 2023 Make a referral for a case discussion or sharing of learning/intelligence.
SAR findings and recommendations are reported to the NCASP and action plans are produced. The NCASP then monitors the implementation of these plans, supported by the Safeguarding Adults Review Committee. The SAR report is then published, which is agreed with the family members or appropriate others.
Northumberland Safeguarding Adult Review Reports: In November 2019 the North Tyneside and Northumberland SAB published a Safeguarding Adults Review in relation to Leanne Patterson. Click here to view the report and accompanying statement. In December 2018 the North Tyneside and Northumberland SAB published a Safeguarding Adult Review in relation to Adult W. Click here to view the report and accompanying statement. Please click here to access the National SAR library.
A Child Safeguarding Practice Review is undertaken when a child dies, or the child has been seriously harmed and there is cause for concern as to the way organisations worked together.
The purpose of a child safeguarding practice review is for agencies and individuals to learn lessons that improve the way in which they work, both individually and collectively, to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
The trigger for this is a notifiable incident - There is a duty on local authorities to notify incidents to the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (this is a National Panel).
Working Together 2023 states that a local authority in England knows or suspects that a child has been abused or neglected, the local authority must notify the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel if:
Initially a rapid review will be undertaken to ascertain whether a local child safeguarding practice review is appropriate, or whether the case may raise issues which are complex or of national importance such that a national review may be appropriate.
NCASP has a group which oversees, and quality assures all the child safeguarding practice reviews undertaken by the partnership and provides advice on whether the criteria for conducting a review have been met.
Upon completion of a child safeguarding practice review, there is an expectation that the final report is published in full and will be available on the website for a minimum of 12 months.
The report will include:
Any recommendations will be clear on what is required of relevant agencies and others collectively and individually, and by when, and focussed on improving outcomes for children.
Additional information and guidance in relation to child safeguarding practice reviews can be found in the statutory guidance Working Together 2023 (Chapter 5).
Please see below every Child Safeguarding Practice Review published by the NCASP in the past 12 months.
In addition to child safeguarding practice reviews, the NCASP will also undertake Multi-Agency Case Reviews which do not meet the criteria for a child safeguarding practice review but are considered to offer good opportunities to identify lessons for learning and ways in which multi-agency practice to safeguard children and young people can be improved locally.
Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review (LCSPR) inc Serious Child Safeguarding Incidents and Rapid Reviews - This framework and guidance will be reviewed and updated to reflect changes to national guidance and emerging good practice.
Child Safeguarding Practice Review Referral Form
Complete the referral form if you have concerns about the way that agencies have worked together to safeguard and promote the welfare of a child.
The child death review process collects and analyses information about the death of any child who normally resides in Northumberland.
The North and South of Tyne Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP) is a collaboration between:
CDOP is responsible for reviewing all child deaths up to 18 years old to determine whether any were preventable.
Additional briefings:
To make a referral to the Northumberland LADO please use LADO Referral Form.Information should not be disclosed to the person the allegations are about until discussions have taken place with the LADO, the police and/or LA children's social care as this may hinder investigations. Please do not email LADO information to the named individuals that fulfill this role. Using the LADO mailbox helps to ensure information can be responded to in a timely manner. Please click here to view the allegations flow chart for more information.
The LADO for Northumberland is Louise Prudhoe Call: 07500 606174 (Monday to Thursday 08:30-17:00, Friday 08:30-16:30) or 01670 536400 (Out of hours)
Email: LADO@northumberland.gov.uk
Make a Referral: complete Online Referral Form - Using the online referral form helps to ensure information can be responded to in a timely manner. For more information about LADO and the process, see Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) - Information Sheet and Flowchart
Child Sexual Exploitation: Definition and Guide for Practitioners (DfE, February 2017) - definition and a guide for practitioners, local leaders and decision makers working to protect children from child sexual exploitation.
Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy (GOV.UK)
Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse
Barnardo's - Child Sexual Exploitation - resources and research on Child Sexual Exploitation.
Child Sexual Exploitation: Practice Tool (2017) (open access) - further background information about child sexual exploitation and additional commentary around some of the complexities of practically responding to the issue.
Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation - Policing and Prevention has a number of resources that may be useful for professionals when working with children and young people, their families and communities including more in depth views of some particular themes and issues identifies in this chapter.
Child Exploitation Disruption Toolkit – GOV.UK. The toolkit sets out many of the tools useful for police and other safeguarding professionals to disrupt the sexual and criminal exploitation of children and young people and sets out best practice in information sharing and multi-agency working as well as intelligence and evidence gathering.
NSPCC Report Remove Tool - The tool enables young people under the age of 18 to report a nude image or video of themselves which has appeared online. The Internet Watch Foundation will review these reports and work to remove any content which breaks the law.
Modern Slavery Human Trafficking Centre (MSHTU)
Responding to Child Sexual Exploitation – College of Policing
Child Sexual Abuse – The Children's Commissioner
PACE - PACE works alongside parent, carers of children who are - or at risk of being - sexually exploited by perpetrators external to the family.
Tackling Child Exploitation: Resources Pack (Local Government Association)
Bridging the Gap: Transitional Safeguarding and the Role of Social Work with Adults
Criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults: county lines (GOV.UK) - Guidance for frontline professionals on dealing with county lines, part of the government's approach to ending gang violence and exploitation.
Protecting children from criminal exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery: an addendum November 2018
The presence of a disability increases the vulnerability of children to abuse and neglect. This is a position that is well evidenced in research and reflected across the breadth of legislation, statutory guidance, and agency policies and procedures.
Children with disabilities are:
Children with disabilities are also less likely to receive the protection and support they need when they have been abused. Children with complex needs and disability also have an increased risk of suffering harm through abuse linked to contextual safeguarding, and in the online space. A disability can reduce the capacity of children to recognise that abuse is taking place and to seek help and support.
Professional curiosity: is the capacity and communication skill to explore, challenge and understand what is happening within a family rather than making assumptions or accepting things at face value.It involves practising and taking a respectfully uncertain approach, considering ‘what is the meaning of what I know for this child’.
Seeking Children’s Views: children can use a variety of methods to communicate, these can include British Sign Language, Makaton, PECS, verbal and non-verbal communication and behaviour. Where children communicate non-verbally careful observation will usually assist in understanding their wishes and feelings.
Think Family: NCASP utilises a whole family approach across all agencies. This ensures that we consider the child, parent, and family as a whole. All practitioners should be alert to any issues that could affect a parent’s capacity to meet the needs of their child.
Where a child/young person has speech, language, and communication needs, including those with non-verbal means of communication and children who are deaf, appropriate arrangements should be made to seek their wishes and feelings. Where a child, or parent, uses English as an additional language the services of an interpreter should be sought. This is particularly important when sharing complex health/care information.
We recognise that seeking the views of children that use non-verbal communication can be more challenging for practitioners and have collated some resources that we hope will assist with this - Voice and Lived Experience of a Child
SEND Local Offer in Northumberland: The Local Offer provides information for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and their parents or carers.
If you are concerned about a child or young person with disabilities please contact children’s social care – Report concerns about a child. If you believe a child is at immediate risk of harm call the police on 999.
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