5.1 |
If there is reasonable cause to suspect a child is suffering, or is likely to suffer Significant Harm, Children's Social Care should convene a Strategy Discussion. This may take place following a referral or at any other time if concerns about Significant Harm emerge. |
5.2 |
Depending on the nature of the concerns and the urgency of the situation this may be undertaken via an actual meeting and / or through a series of telephone discussions with the police CAIU and other relevant agencies, including the consultant paediatrician in the case of a suspicious injury. |
5.3 |
Strategy Discussions by phone will usually be adequate to plan a straightforward single agency enquiry. Meetings should be held in the case of complex cases and/or to plan joint investigations. |
5.4 |
More than 1 Strategy Discussion and/or Meeting may be required during the Section 47 Enquiry to share information and plan any further enquiries required. A final Strategy Discussion should be held to agree outcomes. |
5.5 |
Where a Children's Social Care single agency enquiry is to be held there should be recorded discussions and/or meetings (in line with local procedures) between the team manager, social worker and other relevant agencies to explicitly plan the enquiry. |
5.6 |
Meetings should be held at a convenient location and time for the key attendees e.g. Children's Social Care office, police station, hospital, GP surgery or school. |
5.7 |
Paediatricians should be invited to all Strategy Discussions that involve physical injuries. |
5.8 |
Strategy Discussions between Children's Social Care, the CAIU and other agencies involved with the child/ren should:
- Agree when the child will be seen alone by the Lead Social Worker (unless inappropriate for the child);
- Clarify nature of allegation or suspicion of abuse and / or neglect;
- Share and evaluate information;
- Allocate tasks if any immediate protective action is required;
- Decide whether a Section 47 Enquiry should be initiated (or continued if already commenced);
- Agree the conduct and timing of any criminal investigation as part of a joint Section 47 Enquiry.
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5.9 |
Where it is decided there are grounds to initiate or continue a Section 47 Enquiry, decisions, in the context of the racial, cultural, religious and linguistic background of the child and her/his family, should be made about:
- The nature of the concerns and scope of the enquiry, including other children at possible risk;
- Further information required and how it should be obtained;
- When, how and who will undertake interviews with the child/ren and if a video interview will be used (consider gender of interviewer, especially in relation to concerns about sexual abuse);
- When and how the parents / carers will be informed of the concerns and the planned action;
- The need for any paediatric or specialist assessment;
- Any further action if consent is refused for interview or medical assessment;
- How to ascertain the child's wishes and feelings and meet her / his best interests in the enquiry, taking account of any additional needs such as that arising from a disability or a need for an interpreter, speech and language therapist;
- The needs of other children in contact with the alleged abuser/s;
- Whether to interview referrer or anyone else;
- The need to observe the state of the family home in cases of suspected neglect;
- Agree what other actions may be needed to protect the child or provide interim services and support, including securing the safe discharge of a child in hospital;
- What information may be shared, with whom and when, taking into account the possibility of placing a child at risk of Significant Harm or jeopardising police investigations;
- Any implications for disciplinary action e.g. use of evidence statements;
- Any legal action required;
- Timescales, agency and individual responsible for agreed actions, including the timing of police investigations and relevant methods of evidence gathering;
- Contingency planning to cover changing circumstances including the need to reconvene the strategy discussion during the enquiry if the circumstances are particularly complex or unknown;
- The mechanism and date for reviewing the completion of agreed actions i.e. further strategy discussions.
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Outcome of Strategy Discussion
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5.10 |
Possible outcomes include:
- A joint or single agency Section 47 Enquiry to continue or be initiated;
- Deferred decision whilst more information obtained;
- No Section 47 Enquiry because the threshold for Section 47 Enquiries has not been reached;
- No Section 47 Enquiry because the incident is of such marginal significance posing no real or potential threat to the welfare and safety of the child and it is not considered to be in the child's best interests to pursue the matter further.
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5.11 |
Where it is decided not to proceed with a Section 47 Enquiry consideration should be given to specifying:
- Further information required and if another strategy discussion should be held;
- Further assessments;
- Plans for future monitoring by agencies;
- Any services to be provided by agencies;
- The need for future intervention to be co-ordinated through the use of an ICS initial / Child's Plan.
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Participants to Strategy Discussion
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5.12 |
The Strategy Discussion is essentially a meeting for professionals sufficiently senior to be able to contribute, although exceptional circumstances may arise where others may usefully contribute. |
5.13 |
The Strategy Discussion should ordinarily be co-ordinated and chaired by the Children's Social Care team/group manager. |
5.14 |
The discussion must generally involve, at a minimum, both Children's Social Care and CAIU with other agencies included as appropriate, in particular the referring agency, the child's nursery / school, health and (where relevant) registered owner of service and registration authority. |
5.15 |
A CAIU manager must be involved in all cases of possible injury or harm to a child. If the manager is unable to be directly involved in the discussion, clear directions should be provided to the participating police officer/s and the reasons for non-attendance recorded. |
5.16 |
Where issues have significant medical implications, or a paediatric examination has taken place or may be necessary, a paediatrician should always be included. |
5.17 |
If the child is or has recently been receiving services from a hospital or child development team, the discussion should involve the responsible medical consultant and, in the case of in-patient treatment, a senior ward nurse. |
5.18 |
The local authority legal adviser's involvement may be appropriate. |
5.19 |
Consideration should be given to the need to include a professional with expertise in particular cases of complex forms of alleged abuse and neglect. Where parents or adults in the household are experiencing problems such as domestic abuse, substance misuse, mental illness, learning difficulties and criminal behaviour/convictions, it will also be important to consider involving the relevant adult services professionals.
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Notes of Discussion
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5.20 |
It is the responsibility of the chair of the Strategy Discussion to ensure that the decisions and agreed actions are fully recorded using the Strategy Discussion Form.
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5.21 |
Discussions held to plan Children's Social Care single agency enquiries should also be fully recorded. |
5.22 |
Each participant should leave the meeting with a copy of the record, or have a copy faxed to them where the discussion was by phone. |
5.23 |
The Record should include:
- Those present and those invited and not present (if a meeting);
- Those involved where the discussion was by phone;
- A summary of the information shared and an evaluation of it;
- All action points, with agreed timescale and identified person responsible for carrying it out;
- Details of how and when progress to be reviewed for each action.
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Timing of Initial Strategy Discussion
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5.24 |
Initial Strategy Discussions should be held within 1 working day. |
5.25 |
In the following circumstances, the child must be seen on the day of referral unless the Strategy Discussion decides (and records) the decision to defer seeing the child:
- Allegations / concerns indicating a serious risk to the child e.g. serious physical injury, injury to a baby or serious neglect;
- Allegations of recent penetrative sexual abuse (to ensure forensic evidence);
- Where the child is frightened to return home.
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5.26 |
Where immediate action was required by either agency prior to a Strategy Discussion, a Strategy Discussion must be held within 1 working day of that action. |
5.27 |
Where the concerns are particularly complicated e.g. complex abuse, a Strategy Discussion must occur on the day of referral, but the (first) face to face meeting may be delayed to within a maximum of 5 working days, unless there is a need to provide immediate protection to a child. |
Timing of Subsequent Strategy Discussions
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5.28 |
All enquiries should have a final discussion to agree outcomes and in general, this should not delay an Initial Child Protection Conference being held within 15 working days of the Strategy Discussion, which initiated the Section 47 Enquiry. Some enquiries will be more complicated and may require several review Strategy Discussions, which should be held at intervals not exceeding 15 working days. |
5.29 |
In all cases, any Initial Child Protection Conference must take place within 15 working days of the Strategy Discussion, which initiated the Section 47 Enquiry.
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5.30 |
Planning discussions for Children's Social Care single agency enquiries should be consistent with these timescales. |