Merton Safeguarding Children
Board and CSF - CSC
WE ARE learning from our
Serious Case Review
Conference January 2014
Current context
• Deficit reduction and welfare benefit changes
• Changes for partner agencies: Health, Police,
VCS, schools and academies
• Local population changes
• Increased public expectations on service and
tougher inspection regimes
• Safeguarding maintains high national profile as
does adoption
Lessons from SCRs
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Voice of the child
Think child, think family, think child
Information sharing
Optimism and false positives
Toxic trio – domestic violence, substance
misuse, mental ill health
• Lots of lower level triggers – accumulative
effect
Tia Sharp SCR 2013
Although there were lessons to be learnt and
areas in which services can be improved, there
was no information known to any agency
which would suggest that Tia’s life would end
as it did, or that indeed that she was at any risk
of physical harm.
Recommendations for the Board
• Disseminate the key messages arising from the
SCR ensuring that schools are reminded of the
links between non-attendance and
safeguarding children
• Assist staff in responding to parental misuse
of alcohol and illegal drugs, including
challenging parents who are complacent about
the use of cannabis
Merton Safeguarding Children Board
Recommendations for the Board
• Ensure that the ‘voice of the child’ is heard
across all partner agencies, and that this is
evidenced in working practices and service
developments
• Ensure there are clear arrangements for
working with hostile and resistant families
and for supporting staff appropriately.
Merton Safeguarding Children Board
Recommendations for the Board
• Work with partner agencies to deliver a clear
public message about the harmful medical and
social effect of cannabis use and its potential
for damaging family life
• Review and strengthen arrangements for
recognising the enduring consequences of
domestic abuse and providing assistance to
families affected by this
Merton Safeguarding Children Board
How are we responding
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SCR action plan with regular review
Individual agency IMR and action plans
Lunchtime workshops
Today’s conference
MASH; restructure of children’s social care
and enhanced services and the tools to
support our work
Responding to these changes
• Restructured CSF: CSC & YI, MASH,
Transforming Families and Supporting Families
• Refreshing tools to support: CYPWB Model,
Common & Shared Assessment (CASA), Single
Assessment, referral pathways
• Commissioning of external early intervention
services
Children’s Trust Values
• Keeping the child/young person at the heart of
our work.
• Equality, equity, inclusion and valuing diversity –
judged on our impact on the most vulnerable
• Local accountability and partnership
• Making a difference – continuous improvement
• Promoting a learning culture
• Promoting a culture which listens to, responds to
and which values C&YP
Our local strengths
• Retained a strong partnership ethos and
commitment, despite turbulence – ethos of
co-operation – collaboration – integration
• Good services; improving services – a strong
focus on continuous improvement
• Actively using evidence of what works
• Learning from SCRs, IMRs, good and best
practice and each other
Today’s conference
• Neglect and adolescents – Prof. Mike Stein – York
University
• Hidden victims of sexual abuse – cross generational
abuse – Rob Tucker, Independent Child Care
Consultant
• The impact of parental substance misuse on children
and young people – Dr Hedy Cleaver – Emeritus
Prof. Royal Holloway college University of London
• Cries unheard – Outside Edge “Theatre in the Round”