NEW SURREY SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN ARRANGEMENTS - (FROM SEPTEMBER 2019)

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NEW SURREY SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN ARRANGEMENTS - (FROM SEPTEMBER 2019)
NEW SURREY
SAFEGUARDING
CHILDREN
ARRANGEMENTS
(FROM SEPTEMBER 2019)
CONTENTS
Foreword 		                                       3
Background                                        4
The Surrey Context                                5
SSCB Review Headlines                             8
Summary of Key Changes                            9
Vision and Values                                10
Details of the New Arrangements                  11
Independent Scrutiny                             22
User Voice                                       24
Dispute Resolution and Escalation Policy         25
Safeguarding Children Partnership Support Team   26
Information Governance and Data Protection       27
Funding Arrangements                             28
Implementation of the new arrangements           29
Initial Priorities for the Partnership           30

                                                      2
FOREWORD
Surrey’s ambitions for children and young
people are clear. The Community Vision for
the county, developed in 2018 by the county
council and its partners, is for children and
young people to have a great start in life; to
be healthy; to be safe and feel safe; to feel
confident in their futures and, crucially, that
‘no child is left behind’.

This means that all agencies and
organisations must work particularly hard
to help vulnerable children and young
people to achieve better outcomes.

The new safeguarding arrangements
contained in this document are designed
to ensure strong and effective partnership
working in child protection and safeguarding
practice across the county and also to
promote the continuous improvement of
these services. We are determined to
improve outcomes for vulnerable children
in the county and will work together
collaboratively and relentlessly in
order to do so.

Dave Hill CBE              Gavin Stephens         Matthew Tait
Executive Director         Chief Constable        Joint Accountable
Children, Families,        Surrey Police          Officer
Lifelong Learning                                 Surrey Heartlands
and Culture                                       CCGs
                                                                      3
BACKGROUND
Safeguarding and protecting children           This review has led to reforms. In
from serious harm is one of the most           2017, the Children and Social Work
important and challenging responsibilities     Act gave responsibility for the effective
of government and of all agencies in a local   implementation of local safeguarding
area. Central government issues legislation,   children arrangements to three agencies –
regulations and guidance in respect of         the Local Authority; Police and NHS Clinical
safeguarding children and local areas are      Commissioning Groups – to be known as
required to have systems and procedures        the ‘Safeguarding Partners’. It abolished the
in place to comply with these expectations     requirement for local areas to have Local
and to keep local children safe.               Safeguarding Children Boards and, instead,
                                               introduced the greater flexibility encouraged
A national review of these arrangements        in the Wood Review by requiring the
(the Wood Review 2016) found that              Safeguarding Partners to work with others,
the existing legislative and regulatory        known as ‘Relevant Agencies’, to agree and
framework had led to a ‘one size fits          put in place suitable local arrangements for
all’ approach to local safeguarding            the purpose of ‘safeguarding and promoting
arrangements which, in many parts of the       the welfare’ of children.
country, was characterised by insufficient
collaboration between agencies and             In line with the supporting regulation found
weak governance structures, led by Local       in the updated ‘Working Together 2018’,
Safeguarding Children Boards, which were       local areas are required to publish any
not sufficiently effective in developing and   new arrangements, including those for
managing local safeguarding children           Local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews
systems. The review also found that the        (replacing Serious Case Reviews) and for
existing national model of ‘Serious Case       the now required independent scrutiny of
Reviews’ was failing to promote the learning   the effectiveness of local arrangements,
at both national and local levels required     by June 2019 and implement them by
to make the safeguarding system                September 2019.
more effective.

                                                                                               4
THE SURREY CONTEXT
GEOGRAPHICAL COVERAGE                         comparator figures (273.6 per 10,000).        which were repeat offences. There were
These arrangements apply within the           The county had a slightly higher rate of      5,625 reported incidents where children
boundaries of the county of Surrey; Surrey    children subject to Child Protection Plans    and young people were victims of offences.
Police; Borough and District Councils and     (38.3 per 10,000 against 37.6) and a
NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups.            lower rate of looked after children (36.0     SERVICES CONTEXT
                                              per 10,000 against 43.9). There were          Some children’s services in Surrey,
                                              similar rates of care leavers in Surrey       particularly those concerned with
                                              and comparator authorities. 3% of the         safeguarding children, have not been
                                              school population were pupils with Special    good enough. Ofsted’s most recent
                                              Educational Needs and Disabilities, in        inspection of these services, in May
                                              line with comparator data. 9.5 per 10,000     2018, judged that they were inadequate
                                              children missed 30+days of education. In      and a non -executive Commissioner
                                              2018-19, 38.9 per 10,000 children are being   was appointed by central government. A
                                              home educated. Latest census information      programme of rapid improvement is being
                                              shows that 380 per 10,000 children            implemented which is designed both to
                                              were young carers in Surrey against           improve outcomes for children receiving
                                              416 per 10,000 in comparator figures.         services and to provide assurance to the
DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION                                                                     Commissioner that sufficient improvement
Surrey is a relatively affluent county with   In assessments undertaken by social           can be achieved and sustained.
a population of over 1.1 million. Some        care services, mental health issues
350,000 (30%) of the overall population       affecting either parents or young             The Local Authority is transforming
are children and young people under 25yrs     people were identified in 39% of all          the ways in which children’s services
old. The population is predominantly white    cases (no comparator data available).         are delivered with a stronger focus on
(90%), with relatively small numbers from     Substance misuse issues featured in           performance and quality. New ‘front-door’
Asian (5.6%); Black (1.1%); and Mixed         32% of assessments, higher than the           arrangements are in place; early help and
(2.1%) backgrounds. Deprivation levels        comparator figure of 26%. There were          statutory social care services have been
are low, with the county being amongst        116 incidents of domestic violence per        re-organised and new practice models are
the lowest ranked according to income         10,000 population in Surrey, fewer than in    being introduced. These include the
deprivation affecting children measures.      the comparator region (161 per 10,000).       ‘Family Safeguarding’ model through
                                                                                            which multi-disciplinary teams take a
In 2017-18 there were 523.5 referrals to      In 2018-19, there were 2115 recorded          ‘whole family’ approach to protecting
social care services per 10,000 population,   episodes of children and young people         children in their families.
higher than comparator authorities (456.1).   being reported as missing from home.
Rates of children in need in Surrey (269.6    4,934 offences were recorded as committed     These developments require strong
per 10,000) were slightly lower than          by children and young people; 2,710 of        partnerships at both strategic and
                                                                                                                                         5
operational levels and the Local Authority has   • Physical and sexual abuse and the             A County wide safeguarding team
a strong commitment to working better with         neglect of children in their homes            commissioned through collaborative
partners and making safeguarding services          and especially the impact of growing          arrangements will undertake leadership for
more effective and outcomes for children           up in homes where domestic abuse,             safeguarding through delegated authority
and young people more positive.                    substance abuse and/or mental health          although each clinical commissioning group
                                                   issues are prevalent.                         remains accountable for any actions or
Surrey Police has an ambition to make            • The need for greater understanding of         decisions taken on behalf of their agency.
Surrey as safe as it can be for everyone,          what drives children to be missing from
particularly children and young people.            their homes.                                  Services are commissioned from providers
It recognises the complexity of this work        • Gaps in reporting of crime and                of health services, which include acute
and the need for strong collaboration              safeguarding concerns within                  and community services; mental health
by working closely with all partners,              marginalised communities.                     and learning disability services for children
particularly in engaging with the new Surrey                                                     and adults; children’s services; urgent
Safeguarding Children Arrangements. Surrey       The effectiveness of the Police’s approach      care and out of hours services and
Police will seek to integrate services where     to safeguarding, including its partnerships     primary care services. All these agencies
it makes sense to do so using these new          with other agencies, forms a core element       have safeguarding responsibilities for
arrangements as a springboard                    in the evaluation of its services undertaken    which they are accountable and work
for innovation.                                  in inspections by HMICFRS and in joint          collaboratively with children’s social care
                                                 inspectorate activity.                          and other services to this end. NHS provider
Surrey Police will be an equal partner within                                                    organisations operating in Surrey are
the new arrangements and will ensure             Health needs of children and their              designated ‘relevant agencies’ and are
appropriate focus on issues currently            families in Surrey are served by six clinical   part of the Safeguarding Partnership.
impacting on the service including:              commissioning groups working together to
• The complex, contextualised and                safeguard and improve outcomes for children     It is acknowledged that some clinical
   transitional risks which adolescents          through collaborative arrangements:             commissioners and health providers may
   face from their peers, partners and           · Guildford and Waverley                        have responsibility for services outside of
   adults outside the family home,               · Surrey Downs                                  Surrey due to their organisational boundaries
   including serious violence, knife             · Surrey Heath                                  overlapping with other local authority areas.
   crime, gang involvement, drug crime,          · North West Surrey
   criminal and sexual exploitation.             · East Surrey                                   As Surrey health services develop their
• The complex nature of the                      · North East Hampshire and Farnham.             integrated care footprints safeguarding
   online environment and need to                                                                remains of paramount importance
   keep up with the ever changing                                                                within new commissioning and provider
   nature of this problem.                                                                       functions, and is a core area for inspection
                                                                                                 by CQC and in joint inspections.
                                                                                                                                                 6
Surrey has in the region of 1500 Early Years’     important role in safeguarding children and
Settings, Schools and Colleges providing          young people in the county. As such, some
care and education to the county’s children       Third Sector organisations are named as
and young people. These providers play a          ‘relevant agencies’ in these arrangements
key role in safeguarding children expected        and all those working with children, young
as they are to have arrangements in place         people and families may be part of the
to safeguard and promote their welfare            Surrey safeguarding children Partnership.
and to work closely with other agencies
within an area’s broader safeguarding
arrangements. This means individual
institutions are required to have robust
safeguarding policies and procedures in
place within their day to day operations and
also are expected to work collaboratively
with other agencies in line with Surrey’s local
safeguarding policies and procedures.

The effectiveness of their approach to
safeguarding forms a core element of
evaluation within the inspection regime for
early years settings, schools and colleges.
All institutions are designated ‘relevant
agencies’ in these new safeguarding children
arrangements and are key members of
Surrey’s safeguarding children Partnership.

There is a vibrant Third Sector in Surrey
which provides many services accessed by
children, young people and families. These
include family support and youth services and
targeted support for children with disabilities
and their families and for young people with
mental health issues. The sector has a strong
track record in supporting families in need
and vulnerable young people and has an
                                                                                                7
SSCB REVIEW HEADLINES
Developing robust safeguarding
governance and dynamic strategic
leadership which drives practice
improvement, service effectiveness and
improved outcomes for children is an
essential element of Surrey’s improvement
programme. A review of the working of
the current Local Safeguarding Board
was undertaken in December 2018 and a
paper containing recommendations was
presented to the SSCB in January 2019.
The review involved analysis of inspection
reports from 2015, an examination of
Surrey documentation and interviews with
key partner agencies. The subsequent
paper provided a ‘direction of travel’ for
changes to the governance and strategic
leadership of Surrey’s local safeguarding
practice which has formed the basis of
these new published arrangements.

All agencies represented in the review
expressed a strong commitment to the
principle of a safeguarding children
partnership which has a stronger focus
on outcomes for children; knows and
understands the performance and quality
of its services; holds itself accountable
for improving services where needed and
develops a ‘learning culture’ which promotes
reflection and continuous improvement. There
is a clear appetite for using the flexibilities
now given to local areas to develop more
effective governance and dynamic strategic
leadership to achieve these goals.
                                                  8
SUMMARY OF KEY CHANGES
From September 2019, the following       • There will be fewer standing
key changes will be made:                  sub-groups with the adoption
• A new Safeguarding Children              of a commissioning approach
  Partnership will be established and      to quality assurance and
  led, jointly and equally, by Surrey      learning and development.
  County Council, Surrey Police and      • New procedures will be put in
  Guildford and Waverley Clinical          place for the independent scrutiny
  Commissioning Group (on behalf           of the effectiveness of the new
  of all CCGs and NHS providers            arrangements and for the stronger
  in Surrey).                              engagement of young people in
• The three named statutory                the local safeguarding agenda.
  ‘Safeguarding Partners’ will           • A stronger focus on learning
  form a new Executive Group               from practice (both less than
  for the Partnership, joined by           good and good) will be developed
  representatives from the county’s        through a dynamic ‘learning cycle’
  schools and colleges, district and       approach to be led by Surrey’s new
  borough councils, and the Police         Children’s Workforce Academy.
  and Crime Commissioner’s office.
  Representatives of the Third Sector
  will attend the Executive Group
  on an issue by issue basis.
• Surrey’s current Local
  Safeguarding Children Board will
  be replaced by a new Children’s
  Safeguarding Partnership.
• The membership of the Children’s
  Safeguarding Partnership will become
  ‘relevant agencies’ and will be
  extended to more fully represent the
  breadth of interests/stakeholders in
  children’s safeguarding in Surrey.

                                                                                9
VISION AND VALUES
In developing the new arrangements,       The vision is backed by a set of core values:
partners have agreed this vision:         • We have the strongest ambitions
                                            for children and are determined to
The new safeguarding arrangements           work with pace and efficiency to
will make a difference to the lives of      continuously improve our services.
children and young people in Surrey.      • Children and their voices are at
They will ensure that agencies work         centre of everything we do.
better together, learn from local and     • Children flourish best within
national practice and continuously          families and we will always look
improve services to enable children         to work with families to protect
and young people to be safe and feel        and safeguard children.
safe in their families and communities.   • It is equally important to help
                                            children be safe and feel safe in
                                            their communities.
                                          • Safeguarding children is everybody’s
                                            business. All services need to
                                            jointly ‘own’ their safeguarding
                                            responsibilities, work collaboratively
                                            and in integrated ways to achieve
                                            better outcomes for children.
                                          • Mutual support and challenge are
                                            both essential if we are to realise our
                                            vision – we need to be honest about
                                            our challenges and successes.
                                          • Front-line practitioners are key to
                                            our success and we must equip
                                            and enable them to work to the
                                            best of their abilities with children
                                            and families.

                                                                                          10
DETAILS OF THE NEW ARRANGEMENTS
THE STATUTORY
SAFEGUARDING PARTNERS
The Chief Officers of the three statutory
Safeguarding Partners have approved the
new arrangements and are accountable for
their operation. Their nominees for day to
day leadership are:

Surrey County Council
Executive Director Children, Families,
Lifelong Learning and Culture

Surrey Police
Assistant Chief Constable

Guildford and Waverley CCG
County-wide Associate Director for
Safeguarding

                                             11
THE RELEVANT AGENCIES                             Health                                      Third Sector Organisations
It is recognised that the Safeguarding            NHS England                                 Surrey Youth Focus
Partners alone cannot achieve the goals           Surrey Downs Clinical Commissioning Group   Homestart Surrey
of these new arrangements and they need           Surrey Heath Clinical Commissioning Group   Family Voice
to work collaboratively with a broader set        North West Surrey Clinical Commissioning    Surrey Young Carers
of partner agencies and stakeholders in           Group                                       Other Third Sector Organisations eg those
safeguarding and promoting the welfare            East Surrey Clinical Commissioning Group    providing commissioned services
of local children. Many have already been         North East Hampshire and Farnham Clinical
members of the existing SSCB arrangements         Commissioning Group                         Criminal Justice/Family Justice
and remain committed to their involvement.        Children and Family Health Surrey           Office of the Surrey Police and Crime
New partners have also been identified to         Surrey and Sussex Healthcare                Commissioner
enable the engagement and representation          Central Surrey Health                       National Probation Service
of a wider set of interests.                      First Community Health and Care             Kent, Surrey and Sussex CRC
                                                  Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust    HMPs/YOIs
Having been named as Relevant Agencies,           Royal Surrey County Hospital                Cafcass
these organisations are required to act in        Epsom and St Helier’s Hospitals
accordance with the arrangements and              Frimley Park Hospital                       Faith
contribute to their operation in appropriate      Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals            All Diocesan Boards
and commensurate ways. Relevant agencies          South East Coast Ambulance Service
will be expected to operate within the terms                                                  Others
of Working Together 2018 and in compliance        District and Borough Councils               Surrey Fire and Rescue
with local safeguarding policies and              Elmbridge Borough Council                   All Children’s Homes; Adoption and Fostering
procedures. They will be invited to attend and    Epsom and Ewell Borough Council             Agencies
contribute to meetings of the Partnership and     Guildford Borough Council
relevant sub-groups and workstreams.              Reigate and Banstead Borough Council        *Part of the county council, Surrey’s Public
                                                  Runnymede Borough Council                   Health and Adults’ Social Care services will
The Relevant Agencies are set out below:          Spelthorne Borough Council                  also be key partners in these arrangements.
                                                  Surrey Heath Borough Council
Education (inc daycare)                           Waverley Borough Council                    *Any other organisation/agency may in the
All early years settings and schools, including   Woking Borough Council                      future be considered a ‘relevant agency’ and
Academies, Free Schools and Independent           Mole Valley District Council                invited to join the Safeguarding Children
Schools, colleges and other education             Tandridge District Council                  Partnership.
providers in the SSCP area.

                                                                                                                                             12
THE SAFEGUARDING PARTNERSHIP STRUCTURE

                                                             Independent Scrutiny

                                                             Safeguarding Children
                                                               Executive Group

                                                                                                                                User Voice
Learning

                                           Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                           Action Board                              Governance Groups
             Schools and Education                                                                        Health Safeguarding
              Safeguarding Forum                                                                                 Forum

                                                             Safeguarding Children
                                                                  Partnership

                 Third Sector                                                                              District/Boroughs
             Safeguarding Network                                                                         Safeguarding Forum
                                           Business Group
User Voice

                                                                                                                                Learning
                                                   Learning from           Engagement and
                       Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP
                                                   Practice Group        Communications Group

                                                             Independent Scrutiny
                                                                                                                                        13
Safeguarding Children
                           Executive Group
                                                    Safeguarding Children
                                                      Executive Group

                                  Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                  Action Board                              Governance Groups
    Schools and Education                                                                        Health Safeguarding
     Safeguarding Forum                                                                                 Forum

                                                    Safeguarding Children
                                                         Partnership

      CVS Safeguarding                                                                            District/Boroughs
          Network                                                                                Safeguarding Forum
                                  Business Group

                                          Learning from           Engagement and
              Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP
                                          Practice Group        Communications Group

The Safeguarding Children                                                                                              • To work collaboratively to drive and     • To receive reports arising from the
Executive Group                                                                                                          ensure the delivery of the annual          independent scrutiny of the local
The nominated leads for the three statutory                                                                              Safeguarding Children Strategic Plan.      safeguarding arrangements.
Safeguarding Partners will form the County’s                                                                           • To commission and receive reports        • To take actions/problem solve in
new Children’s Safeguarding Executive                                                                                    on a performance dataset/dashboard         respect of performance and quality
Group, along with a representative each                                                                                  reflecting the multi-agency inputs,        issues as they are identified in reports
from Surrey’s schools, district and borough                                                                              outputs and outcomes required to meet      to the group.
councils, and the Office of the Police and                                                                               the objectives in the Strategic Plan.    • To provide regular ‘accountability
Crime Commissioner. The members of this                                                                                • To establish standing and ‘task and        reports’ to the Children’s Safeguarding
group will be the strategic leadership group                                                                             finish’ sub-groups as considered           Partnership and to chief officers of the
and ‘virtual management team’ for the new                                                                                appropriate; agree terms of reference      statutory Safeguarding Partners.
safeguarding arrangements. They will hold                                                                                and desired outcomes and receive         • To co-author an annual report on the
themselves and others to account for fulfilling                                                                          reports on their activity.                 operation of the arrangements and
their safeguarding responsibilities effectively                                                                        • To commission and receive reports on       evidence of their impact on outcomes
and will have a relentless focus on improving                                                                            multi-agency audit/quality assurance,      for children for presentation to the
safeguarding outcomes for Surrey’s children                                                                              and learning and development activity.     Partnership and wider publication.
and young people.                                                                                                      • To commission and receive reports
                                                                                                                         on the status and outcomes of rapid      The Executive Group will meet monthly
The group’s key roles will be:                                                                                           reviews and formal and informal          to fulfil these responsibilities and will be
• To jointly identify, with the wider                                                                                    children’s safeguarding practice         chaired independently. Ad hoc meetings
  Safeguarding Partnership, safeguarding                                                                                 reviews (CSPRs).                         may be called to consider urgent matters.
  priorities for Surrey and to co-                                                                                     • To commission and receive ‘user voice’   Any relevant agency, eg Third Sector
  commission an annual Safeguarding                                                                                      reports and engage with the issues       Organisations, may be invited to attend
  Children Strategic Plan.                                                                                               identified by children and               the group on an ‘issue by issue’ basis.
                                                                                                                         young people.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                 14
Safeguarding Children
                                                                Executive Group

                                            Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                            Action Board                              Governance Groups

Schools and Education                                                                                            Health Safeguarding

                                  Safeguarding Children
 Safeguarding Forum                                                                                                     Forum

  CVS Safeguarding
      Network
                                       Partnership                                                                District/Boroughs
                                                                                                                 Safeguarding Forum

                                            Business Group

                                                    Learning from           Engagement and
                        Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP
                                                    Practice Group        Communications Group

The Safeguarding Children Partnership                                                                                                  • To act as a reference group for the        respect of safeguarding and broader
The statutory Safeguarding Partners                                                                                                      Safeguarding Partners to identify and      children’s services within the county council.
and the named Relevant Agencies                                                                                                          take action on new and emerging
will form the County’s new Children’s                                                                                                    issues in the County in respect            The Council’s legal section will
Safeguarding Partnership.                                                                                                                of children’s safeguarding.                attend meetings of the Partnership
                                                                                                                                       • To ensure effective linkages with          to provide relevant advice.
The Partnership will have the                                                                                                            other relevant partnerships and
following key roles:                                                                                                                     governance structures.
• To jointly identify, with the Safeguarding                                                                                           • To ensure the new arrangements
   Children Executive Group, safeguarding                                                                                                fulfil the vision and values of the
   priorities for Surrey and to co-                                                                                                      partnership in their operation.
   commission and monitor an annual
   Safeguarding Children Strategic Plan.                                                                                               The Partnership will meet on a quarterly
• To receive reports from the Executive                                                                                                basis to consider its business and will
   Group and others in respect of the                                                                                                  be chaired independently. An annual
   delivery of the Strategic Plan.                                                                                                     ‘reflection and action’ event will be held
• To commission ‘vital signs’ reports                                                                                                  with a broader attendance to inform
   on performance and quality of                                                                                                       the refreshing of the Strategic Plan.
   children’s safeguarding services.
• To consider reports on relevant                                                                                                      The statutory Cabinet Member for Children
   learning and development activity.                                                                                                  will be a member of the Partnership, will
• To receive reports from                                                                                                              attend meetings of the Partnership and
   Independent Scrutiny activity.                                                                                                      will also be invited to attend learning
• To commission and receive reports on                                                                                                 from practice groups and events. This
   ‘user voice’ activity and the viewpoints                                                                                            involvement will support the Cabinet
   of children and young people.                                                                                                       Member’s statutory and policy roles in
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     15
Safeguarding Children                                                                                                 Safeguarding Children
                                                           Executive Group                                                                                                       Executive Group

                                       Ofsted Priority                               Other Key                                                               Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                       Action Board                              Governance Groups                                                           Action Board                              Governance Groups
         Schools and Education                                                                        Health Safeguarding            Schools and Education                                                                 Health Safeguarding
          Safeguarding Forum                                                                                 Forum                    Safeguarding Forum                                                                          Forum

                                                         Safeguarding Children                                                                                                 Safeguarding Children
                                                              Partnership                                                                                                           Partnership

           CVS Safeguarding                                                                            District/Boroughs               CVS Safeguarding                                                                     District/Boroughs
               Network                                                                                Safeguarding Forum                   Network                                                                         Safeguarding Forum
                                                                                                                                                             Business Group

     Business Group                                                                                                                                                                                  Engagement and
                                                                                                                                                                                                   Communications Group
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 CDOP

                                                                                                                               Case Review Panel                                              Learning from
                                                                                                                                                                                              Practice Group

                                               Learning from           Engagement and
                   Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP
                                               Practice Group        Communications Group

The Children’s Safeguarding                                                                                                 The Case Review Panel                                                                                                • Ensuring the relevant findings
Partnership Business Group                                                                                                  This group will be made up of designated                                                                               of formal practice reviews are
This group will consist of representatives of                                                                               senior managers of the statutory                                                                                       disseminated appropriately, that
the three statutory Safeguarding Partners                                                                                   Safeguarding Partners. It will meet, virtually                                                                         any management actions needed
and Chairs of standing and task and finish                                                                                  or actually, on an ad-hoc, as needed basis to                                                                          are undertaken promptly and that
sub-groups to support, in the first instance,                                                                               ensure timely decision-making in respect of                                                                            learning arising from these reviews
the transition to the new safeguarding                                                                                      cases which may fulfil the criteria for formal                                                                         informs the activity of the Learning
arrangements. Its subsequent role will be                                                                                   Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews.                                                                                   from Practice Partnership Group.
to ensure the business of the Safeguarding
Partnership and decisions taken are                                                                                         The group will be responsible for:                                                                                   This group will be chaired by the CCG’s
progressed efficiently and effectively.                                                                                     • Setting the criteria for, commissioning                                                                            County-wide Associate Director for
The group will meet monthly and will be                                                                                       and progressing formal Child                                                                                       Safeguarding in the first instance.
chaired in the first instance by the council’s                                                                                Safeguarding Practice Reviews                                                                                      nb: The responsibility for Serious Incident
Director of Quality and Performance.                                                                                          including rapid reviews.                                                                                           Notifications will remain with the local
                                                                                                                            • Leading on the liaison with the                                                                                    authority, although this will usually be
                                                                                                                              National Child Safeguarding Practice                                                                               undertaken following consultation with
                                                                                                                              Review Panel on behalf of the three                                                                                the other Safeguarding Partners.
                                                                                                                              designated Safeguarding Partners.
                                                                                                                            • Ensuring publication of all or parts
                                                                                                                              of a CSPR report as appropriate.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               16
Safeguarding Children                                                                                                                                                  Safeguarding Children
                                                                Executive Group                                                                                                                                                        Executive Group

                                            Ofsted Priority                               Other Key                                                                                                                Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                            Action Board                              Governance Groups                                                                                                            Action Board                              Governance Groups
                    Schools and Education                                                                    Health Safeguarding                                                     Schools and Education                                                                       Health Safeguarding
                     Safeguarding Forum                                                                             Forum                                                             Safeguarding Forum                                                                                Forum

                                                              Safeguarding Children                                                                                                                                                  Safeguarding Children
                                                                   Partnership                                                                                                                                                            Partnership

                      CVS Safeguarding                                                                        District/Boroughs                                                        CVS Safeguarding                                                                           District/Boroughs
                          Network                                                                            Safeguarding Forum                                                            Network                                                                               Safeguarding Forum
                                            Business Group                                                                                                                                                         Business Group

Case Review Panel                                                                                                  CDOP                                                               Case Review Panel                                                                                                CDOP

                                  Learning from                                                      Engagement and                                                                               Learning from             Engagement and
                                  Practice Group                                                                                                                                                                          Communications Group
                                                                                                   Communications Group                                                                           Practice Group

The Learning from Practice Group                                                                                                   • To provide reports to the Executive             The Engagement and
This group will consist of representatives of                                                                                        Group and Partnership on multi and              Communications Group
the three statutory Safeguarding Partners, the                                                                                       inter-agency audit activity and on              This group will consist of representatives
Children’s Workforce Academy and Relevant                                                                                            informal safeguarding practice reviews.         from the three statutory Safeguarding
Agencies by invitation. It will be key to the                                                                                      • To make recommendations to the                  Partners and interested Relevant Agencies.
embedding of a learning culture and ‘cycle’                                                                                          Executive Group and Partnership, and            It will be responsible for an annual
into the new safeguarding arrangements.                                                                                              implement decisions, on changes to              programme of engagement and
                                                                                                                                     multi-agency safeguarding policies              communications with both users
The group’s key roles will be:                                                                                                       and procedures arising from audit and           of safeguarding services and with
• To commission and receive reports on                                                                                               practice reviews.                               practitioners across the safeguarding
  an annual local programme of multi and                                                                                           • To produce and disseminate regular              Partnership workforce.
  inter-agency audit activity.                                                                                                       ‘highlight reports’ on safeguarding
• To set the criteria for, commission                                                                                                practice for practitioners.                     The Partners are committed to implementing
  and progress informal safeguarding                                                                                               • To work with the designated                     the user voice strategy set out in the
  practice reviews which do not meet                                                                                                 safeguarding lead in the Children’s             document below and the group will lead
  the criteria for formal reviews but                                                                                                Workforce Academy to commission                 on engagement and consultation with
  are considered helpful to inform                                                                                                   an annual multi-agency learning and             young people and families using tools
  improvements in practice and services                                                                                              development programme and other ad              including surveys and focus groups. The
  locally (inc reviews highlighting good                                                                                             hoc learning events.                            group will also support the development
  practice).                                                                                                                                                                         of young people’s involvement in quality
• To ensure the learning from audit                                                                                                This group will meet bi-monthly to fulfil these   assurance, commissioning and scrutiny of
  activity and from formal and informal                                                                                            responsibilities. It will be chaired by the       the safeguarding arrangements in Surrey.
  safeguarding practice reviews is                                                                                                 county council’s Assistant Director for Quality   As such, it will be important to include
  disseminated appropriately.                                                                                                      Practice in the first instance.                   skilled user involvement practitioners
                                                                                                                                                                                     in the membership of the group.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              17
Safeguarding Children
                                                                                            Executive Group

                                                                        Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                                                        Action Board                              Governance Groups
                                                Schools and Education                                                                 Health Safeguarding
                                                 Safeguarding Forum                                                                          Forum

                                                                                          Safeguarding Children
                                                                                               Partnership

                                                  CVS Safeguarding                                                                     District/Boroughs
                                                      Network                                                                         Safeguarding Forum
                                                                        Business Group

                                                                        Learning from
                                                 Case Review Panel
                                                                        Practice Group

                                                                                                                                      CDOP
                                                                               Engagement and
                                                                             Communications Group

The Partners are also committed                 The Child Death Overview Panel                                                                              CDOP remains a function that will
to improving communication on                   The statutory Child Death Review                                                                            be overseen by local safeguarding
safeguarding issues across the                  Partners, Guildford and Waverley Clinical                                                                   arrangements in Surrey with the
children’s workforce in the county and          Commissioning Group and Surrey County                                                                       CDOP being a standing group of the
the group will be responsible for the           Council, will continue to convene a Child                                                                   Children’s Safeguarding Partnership. The
production of a regular ‘newsletter’            Death Overview Panel, the purpose of                                                                        multiagency panel which will continue
for staff and for the regular collection        which is to undertake comprehensive and                                                                     into the new partnership will undergo
of practitioner views on the operation          multidisciplinary reviews of child deaths in                                                                a review of membership to ensure
of the safeguarding arrangements.               order to better understand how and why                                                                      compliance with Working Together
                                                local children die. Findings are used to take                                                               (2018). The Surrey CDOP will maintain
The group will meet bi-monthly and will be      action to prevent other deaths and improve                                                                  its relationships with neighbouring
co-chaired by the current CEO of Surrey         the health and safety of our children.                                                                      CDOPs, in order to experience the
Youth Focus and the county council’s                                                                                                                        benefits of learning from a larger cohort.
Assistant Director for Quality Relationships.   Currently CDOP functions through a
                                                multi-agency model, with a multi-agency                                                                     CDOP will continue to be chaired
                                                panel membership which is responsible                                                                       by a public health professional
                                                for reviewing all child deaths in Surrey.                                                                   to provide independence.
                                                In addition to the panel there is a small
                                                core team, who oversee the provision                                                                        The Child Death Overview Panel will meet
                                                of the current CDOP offer including the                                                                     at least quarterly with ad-hoc meetings
                                                provision of a key worker, organisation of                                                                  taking place wherever necessary. The
                                                child death review meetings for unexpected                                                                  CDOP will gather and assess data on the
                                                deaths and early contact with families                                                                      deaths of all children and young people
                                                through a joint agency response.                                                                            from birth (excluding those babies who are
                                                                                                                                                            stillborn) up to the age of 18 years who are
                                                                                                                                                            normally resident in Surrey. This will include
                                                                                                                                                                                                         18
Health Safeguarding
                                                                                                                                                                         Forum
                                                                                                                               Safeguarding Children
                                                                                                                                 Executive Group

                                                                                                             Ofsted Priority                               Other Key
                                                                                                             Action Board                              Governance Groups

                                                                                             Schools and Education
                                                                                              Safeguarding Forum

                                                                                                                                            Safeguarding Children
                                                                                                                                                 Partnership

                                                                                               CVS Safeguarding                                                                   District/Boroughs
                                                                                                   Network                                                                       Safeguarding Forum
                                                                                                                           Business Group

                                                                                                                                   Learning from            Engagement and
                                                                                                       Case Review Panel                                                          CDOP
                                                                                                                                   Practice Group         Communications Group

neonatal deaths, expected and unexpected       consistent approach to child death review     Health Safeguarding Forum
deaths in infants and in older children.       meetings across the county, allowing          This group will consist of representatives
Where a child normally resident in another     the CDOP team to respond immediately          of all Surrey’s CCGs; NHS Providers
area dies within Surrey that death shall be    following a child death and ensuring a        and Designated Doctors and Nurses.
notified to the CDOP in the child’s area of    robust approach to ensure the learning from   It will enable the lead CCG to engage
residence. Similarly, when a child normally    child deaths results in practice change.      Surrey’s other health stakeholders in local
resident in Surrey dies outside of the                                                       safeguarding issues. The group will be the
County, Surrey CDOP should be notified.        The CDOP team will provide a                  setting for the agenda of the Executive
                                               representative to the Learning from           Group and Safeguarding Partnership to
In order that the Surrey CDOP partners         Practice Partnership Group to ensure          be communicated and considered and
meet the requirements to organise and          relevant learning from child deaths is        for decisions affecting the health sector
manage the Child Death Review Meetings         incorporated into the Partnership’s           to be made and implemented. It will also
for both expected and unexpected child         learning and development strategy.            provide an opportunity for the sector to
deaths and to ensure service continuity,                                                     advise the lead CCG of issues in respect
quality and governance of the process, an      Search for the detailed CDOP                  of safeguarding practice requiring the
extended core team will be hosted by one       arrangements at: www.surreyscb.org.uk         attention of the Executive Group.
Surrey CCG on behalf of the partnership.
This core team will include the designated                                                   The group will meet bi-monthly and
doctor, a named nurse for child deaths, a                                                    will be chaired by the Surrey-wide
number of nurse specialists, a public health                                                 Associate Director for Safeguarding.
professional and the CDOP coordinator.
The extended core team will support an
enhanced needs-led service in terms
of a smooth joint agency response,
provision of a more individually tailored
lead professional arrangement, ensuring a
                                                                                                                                                                                                      19
Safeguarding Children                                                                                                      Safeguarding Children
                                                                                                                                                                            Executive Group                                                                                                            Executive Group

 Schools and Education                                                                                                                                  Ofsted Priority                               Other Key                                                                    Ofsted Priority                               Other Key

  Safeguarding Forum
                                                                                                                                                        Action Board                              Governance Groups                                                                Action Board                              Governance Groups
                                                                                                                          Schools and Education                                                                        Health Safeguarding           Schools and Education                                                                        Health Safeguarding
                                                                                                                           Safeguarding Forum                                                                                 Forum                   Safeguarding Forum                                                                                 Forum
                                                                   Safeguarding Children
                                                                                                                                                                          Safeguarding Children                                                                                                      Safeguarding Children
                                                                     Executive Group
                                                                                                                                                                               Partnership                                                                                                                Partnership

                                                                                                                            CVS Safeguarding                                                                                                                                                                                                       District/Boroughs
                                                                                                                                Network                                                                                                                                                                                                           Safeguarding Forum
                                                 Ofsted Priority                               Other Key

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Third Sector
                                                 Action Board                              Governance Groups                                            Business Group                                                                                                                                                        Business Group

                                                                                                                                                                                             Districts & Boroughs
                                                                                                    Health Safeguarding
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Safeguarding
                                                                                                                                                                                             Safeguarding Forum
                                                                                                           Forum

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Network
                                                      Safeguarding Children
                                                           Partnership

          CVS Safeguarding                                                                           District/Boroughs
              Network                                                                               Safeguarding Forum
                                     Business Group

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Learning from           Engagement and
                                                                                                                                                                Learning from           Engagement and                                                         Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP
                                            Learning from            Engagement and                                                 Case Review Panel                                                                 CDOP                                                                 Practice Group        Communications Group
                 Case Review Panel                                                                   CDOP                                                       Practice Group        Communications Group
                                            Practice Group         Communications Group

Schools and Education                                                                                                     Districts and Boroughs                                                                                             Third Sector Safeguarding Network
Safeguarding Forum                                                                                                        Safeguarding Forum                                                                                                 The Partnership is ambitious to extend
This group will be made up of                                                                                             The nominated districts and boroughs                                                                               the engagement with the county’s very
representatives of the county’s schools                                                                                   representative on the Safeguarding                                                                                 diverse community and voluntary sector
and colleges and the county council’s                                                                                     Partnership Executive Group will convene                                                                           in local safeguarding practice and in
education and social care services. Its                                                                                   regular meetings with district and borough                                                                         the work of the Partnership. Community
key purpose will be to provide a forum                                                                                    council colleagues to ensure strong                                                                                and Voluntary sector representatives
for communication and for learning and                                                                                    engagement of these councils in the                                                                                on the Partnership will be asked to
improvement for professional staff in                                                                                     county’s safeguarding agenda. The group                                                                            build on the current communications
respect of the safeguarding of children                                                                                   will be focused on information exchange                                                                            ‘network’ in place to promote this aim.
in education settings. The group will lead                                                                                and on addressing issues where district and
actions and initiatives arising from the                                                                                  borough councils can play important roles
Partnership’s priorities and plans; will                                                                                  in shaping and implementing safeguarding
identify and address issues of concern                                                                                    policies and practice at a local level.
relating to inter-agency working and will
provide an education perspective in the
Partnership’s safeguarding arrangements.

The group will meet at least
termly and will be chaired by the
Assistant Director for Education.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    20
Safeguarding Children
                                                                  Executive Group

     Ofsted Priority                                                                                     Other Key
     Action Board                                                                                    Governance Groups

                 Schools and Education                                                              Health Safeguarding
                  Safeguarding Forum                                                                       Forum

                                                                Safeguarding Children
                                                                     Partnership

                   CVS Safeguarding                                                                  District/Boroughs
                       Network                                                                      Safeguarding Forum
                                               Business Group

                                                      Learning from           Engagement and
                           Case Review Panel                                                       CDOP
                                                      Practice Group        Communications Group

Links with other Strategic Partnerships                                                                      To both promote the maxim that
In addition to the Children’s Safeguarding                                                                   ‘safeguarding is everybody’s business’ and
Partnership, there are a number of other                                                                     also to ensure appropriate collaboration
strategic boards/groups which have                                                                           across strategic level groups, members of
agendas affecting the safeguarding and                                                                       the Children’s Safeguarding Partnership
wellbeing of children and young people.                                                                      Executive Group will seek to meet with
These include:                                                                                               Chairs of groups noted above on a
• Surrey Children and Young People’s                                                                         regular basis. Additionally an annual
   Partnership.                                                                                              conference for lead representatives of
• Surrey Corporate Parenting Board.                                                                          all relevant strategic groups will be held
• Surrey Health and Wellbeing Board.                                                                         to enable information exchange and
• Surrey Adults Safeguarding Board.                                                                          support business planning for all groups.
• Surrey Community Safety Board.
• Surrey Youth Justice Partnership.

                                                                                                                                                          21
INDEPENDENT SCRUTINY
The Safeguarding Partners in Surrey           It is expected that the scrutiny system        CULTURE OF SCRUTINY
welcome the new requirement for               will consider how effectively safeguarding     Scrutiny in Surrey will be positive in its
independent scrutiny of the local             arrangements are working for children,         approach with a focus on reflection and
safeguarding arrangements and value           young people and their families and,           learning. An evidence based approach will be
and understand its key role in providing      importantly, for practitioners. Scrutiny       taken. It will also be assertive and expected
safeguarding assurance to children,           will also seek to challenge & assess           to encourage a culture where challenge
young people and their families, as           how well the statutory Safeguarding            is accepted and seen to be helpful and
well as the support and challenge such        Partners are providing leadership across       constructive by all partners. The Partnership
scrutiny can provide to agencies and          the broader safeguarding system.               will aim to build a culture where everyone
organisations involved in the arrangements.                                                  involved in safeguarding children from front
It is envisaged that those providing the      Scrutiny will take a proactive role in         line practitioners to members of the Executive
scrutiny function will act as ‘critical       accessing and working with the wider           Group and Partnership welcomes challenge
friends’ and that scrutiny becomes a          system and will take account of findings of    and scrutiny and actively participates.
key driver for constructive challenge         the regulatory inspections of the individual
& reflection in pursuit of continuous         Safeguarding Partners (Ofsted; CQC;            In practice this will involve developing
improvement across the partnership.           HMIC); Joint Targeted Area Inspections;        approaches which are reflective, show pride
                                              and elective peer reviews. It will also        in what is achieved and a willingness to
In order to support the resilience of         be informed by the workings of other           change those things that do not always go
young people and their families it is         local scrutiny functions such as those         well. Supporting frontline practitioners in what
essential to ensure that all agencies         delivered by the council’s Overview            can often be a very challenging role and
with an involvement in safeguarding           and Scrutiny Select Committees.                engaging with children young people and
coordinate their efforts effectively and                                                     their families to create a better understanding
make the very best use of the skills          Equally importantly the scrutiny function      of their lived experiences will be important
and resources available. Independent          will take account of the views of children,    principles to underpin the approach. A
and objective scrutiny has a very             young people and their families and            key aim of scrutiny will be to identify and
important role to help ensure multi-          those of practitioners throughout the          spread the very best practice as well as
agency arrangements to safeguard and          County, based on existing and developing       contributing to improvements where needed.
promote the wellbeing of children and         arrangements for engagement.
young people in Surrey are effective.                                                        Whilst due regard will be given to the
                                                                                             process of joint strategic planning, the
                                                                                             main focus of scrutiny will be to assess
                                                                                             the delivery and impact of such plans
                                                                                             to ensure that resources are aligned to
                                                                                             priorities and the needs of young people.

                                                                                                                                            22
SYSTEM OF SCRUTINY                              • Determining the effectiveness of             audit programmes and making
Scrutiny of the county’s safeguarding             arrangements to identify and review          outcomes available for scrutiny.
arrangements will be led by an appointed          serious child safeguarding cases.        •   Sharing findings from any internal
Independent Scrutineer, who will also           • Involvement in the escalation and            reviews undertaken eg relevant Select
chair key meetings of the Partnership and         conflict resolution process.                 Committee reviews.
Executive Groups in the first instance.         • Engaging with and assessing the          •   Sharing learning (and its evidence)
Other scrutineers will be drawn from those        effectiveness of the Surrey Children’s       from case and practice reviews
with experience in child safeguarding, an         Workforce Academy in respect of its          commissioned by the Partnership or
understanding of local need and the capacity      multi-agency safeguarding training and       single agencies when requested.
to recognise effective partnership working.       staff development offer.                 •   Enabling and encouraging front-
Scrutiny and evaluation will be managed         • Ensuring the voice of the child              line practitioners to engage in forum
and delivered separately from the executive       and service users is at the heart of         meetings and giving and receiving
functions of the Partnership.                     all aspects of scrutiny by directly          constructive feedback.
                                                  engaging with children, young people     •   Peer review & challenge, particularly
The Independent Scrutineer will oversee the       and families and also assessing the          from local areas whose safeguarding
development of the scrutiny system and the        effectiveness and impact of single           partnerships are recognised to be good
delivery of an annual scrutiny plan. The role     agency and partnership engagement            and outstanding.
will include:                                     strategies.                              •   Sharing information from local
                                                • Promoting culture change throughout          engagement activity with particular
• Attending and chairing the Executive            the Partnership to embed scrutiny as a       emphasis on ‘the voice of the child’
  Group and Safeguarding Partnership.             constructive process with learning as        and its impact on service delivery.
• Reviewing safeguarding audits and               its outcome.
  performance data, including s11 audits.       • Contribute to and reviewing the          The Executive Group will be responsible for
• Ensuring regular thematic peer reviews.         Partnership’s Annual Report.             ensuring that any recommendations from
• Having a direct line of sight to practice                                                scrutiny are acted upon and will produce
  through an independent programme              The scrutiny system will rely on the       an annual impact assessment as part of
  of multi-agency practitioner forum            designated Safeguarding Partners and       the annual report.
  meetings.                                     Relevant Agencies to make an agreed
• Engaging with the Council’s Cabinet           commitment to:
  Member for Children, Young People
  and Families and with the formal Select       • Making available performance data and
  Committee Process together with                 analysis demonstrating access to, and
  the Corporate Parenting Panel and               the quality and timeliness of services
  assessing their effectiveness in regard         for young people.
  to safeguarding.                              • Engaging in multi and single agency
                                                                                                                                         23
USER VOICE
It is essential that the voices of children,   These are ambitious goals. To this end,
young people and their families are at the     the Partnership will engage with groups
heart of our safeguarding arrangements.        including Surrey’s Youth Parliament, Youth
This means not only that views are             Cabinet, Citizen Panels, schools councils,
routinely sought by professionals but also,    Healthwatch, community groups and
most importantly, that these views help        Surrey’s Children in Care Council to explore
inform and shape our services – that the       ways in which meaningful involvement
user voice has a real impact and makes         can be agreed, achieved and supported.
a difference in what we do. As part of         The Partnership will hold itself and each
the broader user engagement strategy           other to account for effective engagement
services are committed to develop across       with users and a standing sub-group of
all children’s services, the Safeguarding      the Partnership will lead on this work and
Partners are determined to find ways in        provide assurance to the Partnership
which children, young people and their         through regular reporting. The Partnership’s
families can participate in:                   annual report will demonstrate the extent of
                                               user involvement and provide an evaluation
• The setting of safeguarding priorities       of its impact.
  for the county.
• The commissioning of safeguarding
  services.
• The development of new safeguarding
  policies and procedures.
• The evaluation of the quality of
  safeguarding services provided by the
  Partnership.
• The scrutiny of the effectiveness
  of the Partnership’s safeguarding
  arrangements.
• The learning and development
  programme for the Partnership
  workforce.

                                                                                              24
DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND ESCALATION POLICY
Although agencies in Surrey are committed
to collaborating and working together in
integrated ways to protect and safeguard
children and young people, differences
and disagreements are inevitable in
multi-agency working. These need to
be resolved as speedily as possible.

In the normal course of work with children
and families, it is expected that disputes
are resolved through constructive dialogue
between individual practitioners or their
managers in the first instance – any
practitioner or manager may call an urgent
multi-agency meeting to this end. Matters
that cannot be resolved at this stage should
be escalated to more senior managers and,
ultimately, to the Safeguarding Executive
Group. This group will also arbitrate or
mediate on any dispute in respect of
multi-agency policies and procedures.

Any consideration of disputes and
escalations should always have the
wellbeing and interests of children
and young people as the paramount
concern. Regular review of the causes
of disputes and escalations will be
undertaken to inform learning and support
continuous improvement of services.

                                               25
SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN PARTNERSHIP SUPPORT TEAM
The Safeguarding Partnership will be        In addition, capacity based in the council’s
supported by a group of professional        Quality Assurance service and Surrey’s
and business support staff hosted           Children’s Workforce Academy will be
within the county council’s Children,       deployed on an annual basis to co-
Families, Lifelong Learning and Culture     ordinate the delivery of the Partnership’s
Department. Under the management of         multi-agency safeguarding auditing
the Department’s Assistant Director for     programme and the Partnership’s
Quality Relationships and Service Manager   learning and development strategy.
for Policy, Planning and Partnerships,
the jointly funded staffing structure is:
• Partnership Development Manager.
• Board(s) Manager.
• Partnership Development and
   Engagement Officers x 2.
• Administrative/Business Support.

This team will support the development
and strengthening of partnership practice
in safeguarding across the county, co-
ordinating strategic planning, ensuring
the efficient operation of the Executive,
Partnership and sub-groups and providing
capacity to co-ordinate and support
specific workstreams, task and finish
groups and practice reviews. The team
will also have a key role in implementing
the Partnership’s communications
strategy and will lead the production
of the Partnership’s annual report.

                                                                                           26
INFORMATION GOVERNANCE AND DATA PROTECTION
All existing documentation in respect
of the Surrey Safeguarding Children
Board will be transferred and held by
the Surrey Safeguarding Partnership
Support Team from September 2019.

Safeguarding Partners and Relevant
Agencies will be expected to operate
in compliance with information
governance and data protection
legislation and regulation. To this end,
multi-agency information sharing and
consent protocols will be reviewed
and refreshed as necessary.

                                             27
FUNDING ARRANGEMENTS
An annual budget to support Surrey’s
safeguarding arrangements will be
established and managed within the
county council. Current funding
agreements will be maintained for
2019-20 and thereafter reviewed
on an annual basis to ensure
sufficiency and equitability.

The following agencies currently contribute
to the overall budget of £500,000:
• Surrey County Council.
• Surrey Police.
• NHS CCGs and Providers.
• District and Borough Councils.
• Probation Service.
• Cafcass.

In addition to core funding, income from
specific multi-agency safeguarding
training provided is also invested in
the Safeguarding Arrangements.

                                              28
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW ARRANGEMENTS
This document is being published in June
2019 in line with statutory requirements.
The arrangements outlined in the document
will come into effect in September 2019
at which point the county’s current
Safeguarding Children Board and
sub-groups will no longer exist.
A review of the new arrangements
will be undertaken by September 2020.

                                            29
INITIAL PRIORITIES FOR THE PARTNERSHIP
Routine business planning for the              NEGLECT                                        CONTEXTUAL
Partnership will commence for                  The Partnership is committed to raising        SAFEGUARDING ISSUES
implementation from 2020-21. In the            standards of practice and response             The Partnership will increase the focus
meantime, initial priorities for action have   to the neglect of children and young           on contextual safeguarding issues
been identified by the Statutory Partners      people within their families. Neglect is       including serious violence and knife crime
and agreed by the Partnership. These are:      known to be a common feature in child          affecting young people and criminal and
                                               protection work and practice has often         sexual exploitation not least because
THRESHOLDS                                     ‘lagged behind’ research and innovation        these are very real concerns of young
A clear understanding of thresholds for        by others. Our priority will be to equip the   people in Surrey as elsewhere. We will
different levels of intervention which         children’s workforce in Surrey with a clear    seek to work collaboratively with young
is shared across all agencies and              framework for assessment and action            people to increase our understanding
organisations in contact with children and     in cases of neglect, including criminal        of these risks and to devise and
young people is an essential foundation        neglect, and the skills to enable more         develop more effective responses.
stone for effective safeguarding practice.     effective interventions in these cases.
Surrey SCB has recently published ‘Family                                                     EMOTIONAL WELLBEING AND
Resilience Surrey’ available here: www.        DOMESTIC ABUSE                                 CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL
surreyscb.org.uk, outlining thresholds         The Partnership is determined to improve
for access to early help, targeted and                                                        HEALTH SERVICES (CAMHS)
                                               practice in safeguarding children in
specialist support, including the triggers                                                    Good emotional wellbeing and self-
                                               families where domestic abuse takes
for compulsory intervention. The new                                                          esteem are key protective factors and
                                               place. This requires strong multi-
Safeguarding Partnership will prioritise                                                      promote the resilience of children and
                                               agency working and we will review our
the embedding of the guidance across                                                          young people in Surrey. A comprehensive
                                               policy and procedural framework and
children’s services and the children’s                                                        range of CAMHs services are needed
                                               our learning offer to this end. We also
workforce in Surrey. We will work                                                             from early help which may be provided
                                               aim to improve co-commissioning of
proactively to ensure consistent and robust                                                   through schools to clinical diagnostic and
                                               services in respect of domestic abuse
application of thresholds and will address                                                    therapeutic interventions provided by
                                               with other key governance bodies.
issues arising from the implementation                                                        specialist practitioners. The Partnership’s
of the guidance collaboratively.                                                              priorities are both to improve children and
                                                                                              young people’s access to CAMHs services
                                                                                              and to improve the quality of services
                                                                                              provided. A new CAMHs strategy is being
                                                                                              developed and these services will be
                                                                                              recommissioned to achieve these aims.

                                                                                                                                            30
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