Child Protection Issues Child Protection Issues and Best Practice for Women’s and Best Practice for Women’s

Aid GroupsAid Groups

• 1973: Death of Maria Colwell

• 1985: Death of Jasmin Beckford

• 1987: Cleveland Inquiry

• 1989: The Children Act 1989

• 2000: Working Together to Safeguard Children

• 2000: Waterhouse Report-Lost in Care

• 2001: Children's Commissioner for Wales appointed

• 2002: Carlile Review

• 2002: All Wales Child Protection Procedures

• 2003: In January, Laming Report into the death of Victoria Climbié

• 2003: Sexual Offences Act

• 2004: The Children Act 2004

• 2005: NSF for Children and Young People in Wales

• 2006: Safeguarding Children: Working Together under the Children Act,2004;WAG 2006

• 2008: All Wales Child Protection Procedures

• 2009: 2nd Laming Report-Following death of Baby ‘P’/Peter

Child Protection TimelineChild Protection Timeline

Children’s RightsChildren’s Rights

Source: U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989

• Basic needs are met (Article 6)

• Protected from cruelty and exploitation (Article 19)

• Given opportunities to play an active role in society and to have a say in their own lives

• Right to their own identity (Article 8)

• Parents are in a position to the care properly and to the best of their ability for children (Article 18)

• Vulnerable children, including those who cannot be with their families, receive the best possible care (Article 20)

What does the termWhat does the term

‘‘Safeguarding Children’Safeguarding Children’

mean to you?mean to you?

What do we mean by What do we mean by

Safeguarding Children? Safeguarding Children?

• All agencies working with children, young people and their families take all reasonable measures to ensure that the risks of harm to children’s welfare are minimised;

and

• Where there are concerns about children and young people’s welfare, all agencies take all appropriate actions to address those concerns, working to agreed local policies and procedures in full partnership with local agencies.

Source: Safeguarding Children: A summary of the Joint Chief Inspectors Report on Arrangements to Safeguard Children

2002

Safeguarding = Safeguarding = Prevention + Prevention +

ProtectionProtection

Sharing Information and Sharing Information and Confidentiality (1)Confidentiality (1)

• Child’s needs are paramount and you must share information if you have concerns for the welfare of a child.

• The practitioners primary duty is to act in the child’s best interest.

• When deciding how much information to disclose, the key is to ask yourself how providing the information would assist further inquiries and failing to provide it would hinder investigations.

• You should document thoroughly all decisions and the reasoning behind them, explicitly separating facts from speculation.

Sharing Information and Sharing Information and Confidentiality (2)Confidentiality (2)

• Children’s need for protection does not diminish the importance of gaining their agreement to sharing information when practicable and time should be allowed to do so where the risk is not immediate.

• Consent to disclosure should normally be sought from a competent child and carer, unless doing so would place the child or a sibling at greater risk or hinder enquiries by provoking interference with verbal evidence.

• Where there are reasonable grounds to believe a child is at risk of significant harm the facts should be reported to social services.

Sharing InformationSharing Information

‘The Bichard and Carlile reports both confirm the need to be aware that concerns from a number of sources, which individually may not be of significance, can build up a picture which may suggest a child is suffering or is at risk of suffering significant harm and therefore requires professionals to act to protect them’

Sources:

All Wales Child Protection Procedures 2008

The Bichard Inquiry Report, The Home Office, 2004;

Too Serious a Thing: The Review of Safeguards for Children and Young People Treated and Cared for by the NHS in Wales, Lord Carlile, WAG 2002

THERE IS NOTHING WITHIN THE CALDICOTT REPORT (1997),

THE DATA PROTECTION ACT(1998) OR THE HUMAN RIGHTS

ACT (1998) WHICH SHOULD PREVENT THE JUSTIFIABLE AND

LAWFUL EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION FOR THE PROTECTION

OF CHILDREN OR PREVENTION OF SERIOUS CRIME.

Source: Carlile Report (2002)

The Practical Golden The Practical Golden RuleRule

●The Practical Golden Rule for any Professional must be to share the burden.

• Even the most senior members should not remain unsupported when faced with a difficult issue.

Source: Dimond B (1996) The Legal Aspects of Child Health Care

Be More Aware where there is:

• Mental Illness

• Alcohol Abuse

• Substance Abuse

• Learning Disability

• Domestic Violence

Parental CapacityParental Capacity

Domestic AbuseDomestic Abuse

Definition:‘Any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological,physical,sexual,financial or emotional) between adults who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality.’

Source: Dept.of Health. Responding to domestic abuse: a handbook for health professionals.London:DOH,2005.

Domestic AbuseDomestic Abuse

• 1 in 4 women experience domestic abuse at some time in their lives

• Every week, current or former partners kill two women in the U.K.

• 50% of women reporting domestic abuse in the past year were living with children (Mirelees-Black,1992)

• There is a recognised co-existence of domestic abuse and physical child abuse (Edleson,J.L.,1999)

• Pregnancy is a time when violence often begins or escalates (Holden,G. 2003)

Domestic AbuseDomestic AbuseImpact on Children (1)Impact on Children (1)

Safeguarding Children: Working Together under the Children Act 2004 states that:

• Domestic abuse frequently involves households where there are children and young people and they are the victims of domestic abuse just as much as ,and frequently more than, the adults involved.

• Children will suffer ,directly or indirectly, if they live in households where there is domestic abuse.

• Domestic abuse is likely to have a damaging effect on the health and development of children, and it will often be appropriate for such children to be regarded as children in need.

(Welsh Assembly Government,2006)

Domestic AbuseDomestic AbuseImpact on Children (2)Impact on Children (2)

• Where there is evidence of domestic abuse, the implications for any children in the household should be considered, including the possibility that the children may themselves be subject to violence or other harm.

• Conversely, where it is believed that a child is being abused those involved with the child and family should be alert to the possibility of domestic abuse within the family.

(Welsh Assembly Government,2006)

Challenging attitudes, raising awareness‘Under this objective we aim to challenge

attitudes to prevent violence against women and children happening in the first place. Ultimately we intend to build a society that does not tolerate violence against women. We want to do this by educating our children and young people about healthy relationships and gender equality as well as raising awareness across the whole population. Part of this involves training health and other professionals to recognise when violence is occurring and take appropriate action.

Ref:- ‘The Right to be Safe’ WAG 2010

Providing Support for Victims and Protecting Children

‘Our objective is to help women and children affected by violence to get on with their lives by providing effective advice and support services including refuges and safe accommodation. We recognise that it is every child’s right to live free from abuse and exploitation, as set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). The UNCRC accentuates the importance of protecting and listening to children. We therefore also seek to protect children from physical or psychological harm as a result of violence within the family’.

Ref:- ‘The Right to be Safe’ WAG 2010

Protecting Children‘Since 2004 WAG has used the UNCRC as the basis of

its work for children and young people. Domestic abuse in any family unit that includes children is a child protection issue and should be dealt with using the relevant safeguarding procedures.

Many women who are the victims of violence have children, and ensuring the well being of those children must be a priority for both public services and the victim. We need to ensure that partner agencies are able to identify children who are at risk so that appropriate action can be taken’.

Ref:- ‘The Right to be Safe’ WAG 2010

Improving the Response of Health Service and other Agencies‘This objective aims to ensure the health

service and other agencies continue to minimise the risk to victims by supporting early identification of problems and supporting early intervention’.

Ref:- ‘The Right to be Safe’ WAG 2010

ScenarioIssues to consider:• Confidentiality• Sharing of information• Roles and responsibilities• Working together• How could this have been

prevented• What lessons could be learnt

How can we safeguard How can we safeguard children ?children ?

• Safe environments

• Clear policies and guidelines aimed at keeping children safe

• Training for staff

• Access to advice and guidance

• Willingness to act

• A culture that values children’s rights

Summary and Summary and EvaluationEvaluation

Thank youThank you