Safeguarding Children across Culture and Faith

1. Safeguarding Children across Culture and Faith The Way Forward

2. Every Child Matters: The Foundation • be healthy • stay safe • enjoy and achieve • make a positive contribution • achieve economic well-being Every Child Matters: The Way Forward • Consolidation of the five outcomes through working together • Children are ‘consumers’ of all services! Are our services ‘child-centred’...?

3. UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) Every child has the right to: • a childhood, protected from harm • be educated • be healthy • be treated fairly • be heard What needs to change? How can we bring about best practice?

4. Basket of Indicators of Disadvantage for Children(Child Health Promotion Programme) • Neither parent in the family in work; lack of qualifications, lack of skills, training, low educational attainment • At least one parent has a long standing illness, disability or infirmity, or parental mental health problems • Family lives in poor quality or overcrowded housing • Family has a low income (below 60% of the median) • Family cannot afford a number of food or clothing items • Family living in social housing • Families where the mother's main language is not English • Families with a young mother 16-19 or 20-24 • Families from Black or Minority Ethnic (BME) group • Single parent Are we conducting comprehensive assessments; to identify culture and faith and impact on parenting?

5. Parent Vulnerability: Impact on Child • Drug and alcohol abuse • Family violence (past and present) including abuse • Homelessness, poverty and unemplyment • Non-engagement with health professionals • Physical and mental health issues • Young and lone parents • Learning difficulties • Disabled and sick May need early intervention and more support – when assessing under the Common Assessment Framework (CAF)

6. Vulnerable Children • Black and minority ethnic (BME) children; including traveller children • Asylum-seeking children • Looked after children • Privately fostered children • Trafficked children • Child ‘Witches’ / possessed children Are our services ‘child-centred’...? May need early intervention and more support – when assessing under the Common Assessment Framework (CAF)

7. Vulnerability: Serious Case Reviews • 66% issues of domestic violence • 60% emergency department attendance • 55% mental health problems • 36% of parents moved frequently; living in temporary housing (mobility) • 34% did not have a GP Sources: London Safeguarding Children Board (2007); Mobile Children and Families Report; London Child Protection Procedures. DfES 2006 Working Together to Safeguard Children Agencies and professionals need to identify the issues that make a child vulnerable; the more there are then the greater the risk

8. Best Practice • Leadershipinteragency response via LSCB • Well trained and well supported staffrecruitment, management, training, supervision • Policies and guidance must be implemented clarity, good pathways • Inter-agency responsework together, interagency teams, joined up approach • Shared informationpractices, materials, remove ‘competition’ • Practical response/interventionscommon-sense approach, best interests of the child • Serious case reviews; commitment to truly learn lessonspositive/adverse, inclusive, constructive, child first and foremost

9. Lord Laming delivered 58 new recommendations in his second report Interactive Dialogue Session • What are the key achievements in safeguarding, 10 years on…? • What does a child-led service mean to you? • How will you implement best/good practice within your agency? • What are the key barriers to implementing child protection policies and procedures?

10. Thank you for your participation and enlightening contributions to this session... Mor Dioum | Director Stephanie Yorath | Programme Director Tel: 020 8571 4121 Email: info@victoria-climbie.org.ukWeb: www.victoria-climbie.org.uk VCF The link organisation between statutory agencies and the community