15.1 - About the North Yorkshire LSCB
15.2 - North Yorkshire LSCB Performance Model
15.3 - Complaints, Comments and Commendations
15.4 - Resolution of professional disagreements
15.1 About the LSCB
Purpose of the LSCB
The LSCB is the key statutory mechanism for agreeing how the relevant organisations in each local area will co-operate to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in the local area, and for ensuring the effectiveness of what they do.
The objectives of the LSCB are to:
- Co-ordinate what is done by each person or body represented on the Board for the purposes of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in the area;
- Ensure the effectiveness of what is done by each person or body for that purpose.
Scope of the role
There are three broad areas of activity for the LSCB;
Preventative work to ensure children are growing up in circumstances consistent with safe and effective care through;
- Mechanisms to identify abuse and neglect wherever they occur;
- Work to increase the understanding that safeguarding is everybody's responsibility;
- Work to ensure organisations working or in contact with children operate recruitment and human resource practices that safeguard children.
- Monitor the effectiveness of organisations implementing their duties under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004.
- Ensure children and young people know who to contact when they have concerns about their own or others' safety and welfare;
- Ensure that adults (including those who are harming children) know who they can contact if they have a concern about a child or young person;
Proactive work that targets particular groups;
- Developing/evaluating thresholds and procedures for work with children and families 'in need' where the child is suffering or at risk of suffering significant harm;
- Work to safeguard and promote the welfare of groups of children who are potentially more vulnerable than the general population including:
- Children living away from home
- Children who have run away from home
- Children in custody
- Disabled Children
Responsive work to protect children who are suffering or at risk of suffering harm including;
Children abused and neglected within families, including those harmed:
- In the context of domestic violence;
- As a consequence of the impact of substance misuse;
- Children abused outside families by adults known to them;
- Children abused and neglected by professional carers, within institutional settings, or anywhere else where children are cared for away from home;
- Children abused by strangers;
- Children abused by other young people;
- Young perpetrators of abuse;
- Children abused through internet porn; and
- Children abused through prostitution.
LSCB functions
The core functions of an LSCB are set out in 'The Local Safeguarding Children Boards Regulation 2006, Statutory Instrument 2006/90'
Policies and procedures function
Developing policies and procedures for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in the area including:
- Action to be taken where there are concerns about a child's safety or welfare, including thresholds for intervention;
- Training of persons who work with children or in services affecting the safety and welfare of children;
- Recruitment and supervision of those who work with children;
- Investigation of allegations concerning persons working with children;
- The safety and welfare of children who are privately fostered;
- Co-operation with neighbouring children's services authorities and their Board Partners;
- Communicating to persons and bodies in the area of the authority the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, raising their awareness of how this can best be done, and encouraging them to do so;
- Participating in the local planning and commissioning of children's services to ensure that they take safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children into account;
- Collecting and analysing information about the deaths of all children in the area in order to identify lessons to keep children safe;
- Any matters of concern regarding the safety and welfare of children including any case giving rise to the need for a serious case review;
- Any general public health or safety concern arising from child deaths;
- Ensuring procedures are in place so that there is a coordinated response by LSCB partners and relevant others to an unexpected child death;
- Undertaking serious case reviews where abuse or neglect of a child is known or suspected and either a child has died, or a child has been seriously harmed and there is cause for concern to the way in which the authority, their Board Partners or other relevant persons have worked to safeguard the child.
Chairperson of the LSCB
The North Yorkshire LSCB is chaired by an independent person.
Membership of the LSCB
Statutory Members of the LSCB are the local authority and its Board Partners who are required to co-operate with the local authority in the establishment and operation of the board and have shared responsibility for the effective discharge of the Board's functions.
The Board Partners as set out in Section 13 (3) of the Children Act 2004.
Other members of groups who may be involved
The LSCB involves a range of other members through its work.
Role of members
Statutory members of the LSCB are named people in order to ensure consistency and continuity. They have a strategic role within their own organisation and are therefore able to:
- Speak for their organisation with authority;
- Commit their organisation on policy and practice matters;
- Hold their organisation to account.
Only the Independent Chairperson of the LSCB can extend an invitation to join the Board. There are job descriptions for Board members which can be found on the LSCB website with the LSCB Constitution.
Role of the lead members
The Lead Member for Children's Services within North Yorkshire County Council has a particular focus on how the local authority is fulfilling its responsibilities to safeguard and promote the welfare of local children. The Lead Member will hold the Director of the Children and Young People's Service to account for the work of the LSCB. The Lead member is also, a member of the LSCB
Accountability
Operational Work
Whilst the LSCB has a role in co-ordinating and ensuring the effectiveness of local individuals' and organisations' work to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, it is not accountable for their operational work.
Each Board partner retains their own existing lines of accountability for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children by their services. The LSCB does not have a power to direct other organisations.
Monitoring
The LSCB's work to ensure the effectiveness of work to safeguard and promote the welfare of children by member organisations is by peer review through:
- Self-evaluation;
- Performance indicators;
- Joint audit.
Where it is felt that a Board partner is not performing effectively and the LSCB is not satisfied that adequate action is to be taken;
The LSCB Chair or designated LSCB officer will explain the concerns to individuals and organisations that need to be aware of the failing and who may be able to take action e.g.
- To the most senior individual(s) in the partner organisation;
- To the relevant inspectorate and, if necessary;
- To the relevant government department.
Inspection
The local inspection framework has an important role to play in reinforcing the ongoing monitoring work of the LSCB through:
- Ofsted Inspection of Safeguarding and Looked After Children.
- Individual services' quality regimes;
- Comprehensive Performance Assessment.
- Care Quality Commission
- Her Majesty's Inspectorates of:
- Constabulary
- Prisons
- Probation
The effectiveness of the LSCB will form part of the judgement of the Inspectorates, especially through the Ofsted regime of unannounced and announced inspections of Safeguarding and Looked After Children.. It will be for the Local Authority to lead in taking action if the effectiveness of the LSCB is found wanting.
15.2 The North Yorkshire LSCB Performance Model
Essentially, performance management is about good management. It helps to prioritise what gets done and ensures that there are sufficient resources to do it. It helps motivate and manage staff, providing value for money. It acts to identify poor performance at an early stage and promotes learning from past experience. Most importantly, it allows organisations to improve future performance.
The NYSCB performance management model is based on "hard" systems and on people working together to make sure the right things happen. Systems, processes and data are inseparable from the "soft" aspects such as culture, leadership and learning. One simply does not work without the other.
The generic components of the Performance Model
The NYSCB model contains generic components that are familiar to all its member organisations. These include:
- Business Planning (with targets);
- Benchmarking and an integrated data set;
- Quarterly monitoring;
- Quality segment;
- Resource alignment;
- Risk management;
- Governance arrangements.
15.2.1 Business Planning
The annual planning cycle for the NYSCB will be from 1 April to 31 March.
The Business Plan is the key tool for progressing and developing the LSCB's business. This plan brings together actions from different sources to:
- Deliver core functions of the LSCB;
- Quality assure current CYPP;
- Influence the next CYPP (horizon scanning).
The Business Plan then sets out the broad and multi faceted objectives/actions for the LSCB over three years. It can include new developments and remove those signed off by the LSCB. The Business Plan underpins the work plans of the many different sub/task groups and forums. These groups provide the detail of how and when outcomes will be achieved in the Business Plan. The Business Plan and individual Work Plans should then be viewed as a whole.
Objectives set out for the NYSCB need to be incorporated into the planning cycles of the key member organisations. The new structures (sub/task groups and forums) have incorporated this into their terms of references with key member agencies selecting appropriate representation on each of the groups. Some of the groups have spelt out the expectation that representatives will take back actions to their organisations e.g., the procedures sub group members must influence the development of their single agency procedures in light of any multi agency policies decided on.
15.2.2 Benchmarking - identify the expected activity level
A basic component of tracking performance is to identify what level of activity should be expected.
Statistical neighbours are a helpful source of benchmarking activity - these government statistics attempt to identify like for like. Statistical neighbours used in the model are:
- East Riding of Yorkshire
- West Berkshire
- Warwickshire
- Staffordshire
- Cheshire
- Essex
- Worcestershire
- Warrington
- Rutland
- Hampshire
The model requires the benchmarking of data from an integrated data set (based on the London LSCB model) with each agency submitting timely statistics on a quarterly basis to the Performance and Outcomes Team at County Hall.
15.2.3 Quarterly Monitoring
Reporting progress against the Business Plan will be at the end of June, September, December and March of each year. The Performance Sub Group will schedule meetings to make the most of the quarterly data reported and then report to the Executive Group/ LSCB Board Meetings in a timely way.
Additionally quarterly reports will also be directed through the Performance Sub Group to the Locality Forums for members to have their local data at each of their quarterly meetings. Feedback from the localities will then be fed into the model.
15.2.4 The Quality Segment
There are three main areas where the LSCB will gather information about the quality of multi agency working in child protection and safeguarding.
Background intelligence - this includes:
- Analysis of complaints/comments and commendations reported about safeguarding activity;
- Participation and user feedback gleaned through the Communication Sub Group and also written into individual work strategies, e.g, E Safety Strategy.
Commissioned intelligence - this includes:
- Multi agency audits in response to issues raised through the LSCB or Executive Group
- Regular audits of LSCB processes, especially of procedures and policies. All procedures should now have clear standards and criteria against which they will be audited.
- Update of the Section 11 Audit
- Evaluations of new multi agency developments or of safeguarding strategies, and
- Research, either original as in the work plan of the Communications Sub Group or based on national best practice.
It is important that quality assurance work is commissioned carefully and meets a clear performance need. The LSCB will prepare guidance about conducting audit and set standards for those undertaken from best practice in social research.
The LSCB will also provide training in audit for those undertaking audit either as part of a commissioned multi agency audit team or for a specific locality forum.
Single Agency Audits - Whilst responsibility for assuring quality and identifying areas for audit rests with the individual agency, the LSCB should be informed of safeguarding audits and receive a copy of the outcome along with the actions arising.
Other quality processes: SCR, SCCI, CDOP and Managing Allegations
It is a statutory requirement that the LSCB leads with a number of other quality processes. These include:
- Serious Case Reviews
- Serious Child Care Incidents
- Child Death Review Processes
- Managing allegations of harm to children against staff and volunteers
Information about the effectiveness of safeguarding activity in all of these processes will be fed back through their action plans into the Performance Sub Group for incorporating into the performance cycle/plans as well as taken to the LSCB and Executive Group.
15.2.5 The Quantitative Segment - The Integrated Data Set
Outcomes can rarely be measured in terms of a single performance indicator and a group is often needed to collectively provide a picture of performance.
An integrated data set has been agreed to build on the data already reported on from Children's Social Care about child protection activity in the county. The data set remains focused on the LSCB aims and objectives is balanced to cover all areas of work and robust to withstand organisational change. It is also cost effective. This data set brings together information as diverse as bullying, child safety, homelessness, licensing, runaways and gun and knife crime.
Agencies involved have agreed to submit timely statistics on a largely quarterly basis to the LSCB through the CYPS Performance and Outcomes Team at County Hall. The LSCB has set up a SLA with CYPS for this information with the ambition to eventually be able to compare much of the data against that of statistical neighbours.
15.2.6 Resource Alignment
There needs to be sufficient resources dedicated to fulfilling the functions of safeguarding children in the county. The performance management model will support prioritisation of tasks to be made at an informed, multi agency level.
15.2.7 Risk Management
The NYCC corporate risk management model and software package (Risgen) is used by the LSCB to assess and grade risks within the Business Plan. The package creates a risk log annually and this is reviewed regularly throughout the year by the LSCB Manager with the NYCC corporate risk managers. Reports are provided for the Board and Executive Group.
15.2.8 Governance Arrangements
Service Level Agreements to support this model are required for legal services, management information, complaints and for independent chairs for child protection conferences.
Scrutiny of the LSCB's own functioning is required at least on an annual basis. The DCSF Challenge and Improvement Tool will be used in the first instance with an external facilitator to moderate.
15.3 The LSCB Complaints Procedure
Introduction
This section outlines the actions to take to resolve complaints concerning any of the NYSCB functions or responsibilities. It considers:
- Complaints made about a Child Protection Conference;
- Complaints made about all other NYSCB functions or responsibilities;
- Concerns raised by professionals about effective multi agency work in specific child protection cases
Each member agency of the NYSCB has a complaints procedure. These procedures should be followed when concerns relate to an aspect of service for the individual agency, for example where the complaint is about staff conduct, the provision of a service or an agency procedure or policy.
Where a complaint is multi faceted, involving action from a number of different complaints procedures, the Complaints Manager, Children's Social Care will coordinate the response/s to be made to the complainant.
15.3.1 The Complaints Process
This procedure is designed to meet the requirements of LASSL (2001) 02. It ensures that complaints dealt with through the NYSCB are managed fairly, efficiently and in such a way as to provide justice and fair practice.
There are three stages to the NYSCB process:
About a Child Protection Conference |
About all other NYSCB functions or responsibilities |
|
To make the complaint |
Complaint made directly to the Conference Chair (IRO)or to the Complaints Manager, Children's Social Care |
Complaint made to the Complaints Manager, Children's Social Care |
Stage One |
Resolution by the IRO |
Resolution by the NYSCB Manager |
Stage Two |
Resolution by the NYSCB Manager |
Resolution through independent investigation |
Stage Three |
Resolution through the Complaint Review Panel |
Resolution through the Complaint Review Panel |
If the complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of these stages, they may take the case to the Local Government Ombudsman. |
||
Who may make a complaint?
A complaint can be made by the child or young person, parent or carer in respect of one or more of the following aspects of the Child Protection Conference:
- The process of the conference;
- The outcome, in terms of a Child Protection Plan being made for a child and/or the category decided;
- The decision not to make or remove a Child Protection Plan;
- Any person excluded from the Conference by the IRO.
A complaint can be made by the child or young person, parent or carer in respect of an NYSCB function, for example, a policy or procedure. A complaint may also be made by an adult who is the subject of an investigation under Section 10, Allegations against Staff Procedure.
The NYSCB has discretion in deciding whether to consider a complaint where to do so would prejudice court proceedings, tribunals, disciplinary or criminal proceedings.
How to make a complaint
A leaflet has been produced explaining the NYSCB complaints process. All parents, carers, children and young people invited to a Child Protection Conference will receive this leaflet in advance of the meeting. Their right to make a complaint will also be explained by the Conference Chairperson (IRO) when they initially meet.
Copies of the leaflet are available from the NYSCB Administrator and are on the NYSCB website.
The NYSCB has arranged with the CSC Complaints Manager that he/she will receive all complaints relating to the work of the NYSCB as outlined above. Contact details of the Complaints Manager can be found in Appendix 2, Contact Details.
Where complaints are about a Child Protection Conference the first point for complaint may also be the IRO who chaired the meeting or the IRO Manager where the complaint is about the IRO.
15.3.2 Stage One - Local Resolution
On receiving a complaint about a Child Protection Conference, the Conference Chairperson should notify the Children's Social Care Complaints Manager and NYSCB Manager immediately. The IRO should clarify the complaint with the complainant and meet with them to establish the desired outcome. The IRO will endeavour to reach a satisfactory resolution.
An exception to this is when a complaint is being made specifically about the IRO. In these circumstances the IRO Manager will clarify the complaint, meet with the complainant and endeavour to reach a satisfactory resolution.
For other NYSCB complaints, the NYSCB manager will meet with the complainant, clarify the nature of the complaint and the resolution desired and attempt to resolve the complaint.
An exception to this is when a complaint is being made specifically about the NYSCB Manager. In these cases the Children's Social Care Complaints Manager would request that the NYSCB line manager deals with the complaint.
At Stage One both the IRO and the NYSCB Manager will seek to deal with the complaint informally within 20 working days.
The outcome of the Stage One will be sent in writing to the complainant with copies to the Children's Social Care Complaints Manager and the NYSCB Manager (for conference complaints).
The Social Care Complaints Manager will then make contact with the complainant to see whether they are satisfied with the response or whether they now wish to continue to the next stage of the complaints procedure.
15.3.4 Stage Two - Resolution
For complaints about a Child Protection Conference
Where the complainant indicates that they wish to pursue the complaint to Stage Two, the Social Care Complaints Manager will contact the NYSCB Manager to lead with the response.
The NYSCB Manager will then investigate the complaint, either making enquiries themselves or asking an officer not involved in the case to undertake an investigation on behalf of the NYSCB. The NYSCB Manager will endeavour to complete Stage Two within one month of Stage One.
The complainant will be notified in writing of the outcome by the NYSCB Manager, the reasons for any decisions and will be given a copy of the investigation report.
For other NYSCB complaints
Where the complainant indicates that they wish to pursue the complaint to Stage Two, the Children's Social Care Complaints Manager, in consultation with the Chair of the NYSCB will then appoint an independent person to investigate the complaint. Again, the independent person will endeavour to complete Stage Two within one month of Stage One.
In all complaints the Children's Social Care Complaints Manager will again make contact with the complainant to see whether they are satisfied with the response and if not whether they wish to continue to the next stage of the complaints procedure.
15.3.5 Stage Three - The Complaint Review Panel
A Complaint Review Panel will be convened at the complainant's request where they are not satisfied with the outcome of Stage Two of this procedure. This panel must be convened within 28 days of the request.
The Panel will comprise:
Complaints about a Child Protection Conference |
Complaints about other NYSCB business |
|
Panel Members |
Three members of the NYSCB, representing different agencies. |
Three members of the NYSCB, representing different agencies. |
Observer/s |
General Manager, Quality and |
NYSCB Manager |
Adviser |
Social Care Complaints Manager |
Social Care Complaints Manager |
NYSCB Team will convene the panel: The panel chair to be decided by the panel members. |
||
The Panel will consider reports from Stage One and Two of the process. It will consider relevant conference minutes if appropriate and other reports to consider whether the relevant inter-agency protocols and procedures have been observed correctly, and whether the decision or action/inaction that is being complained about follows reasonably from the proper observation of the relevant protocols and procedures.
Recommendations arising from the Complaints Review Panel will be agreed within 24 hours and a written copy will be given to the Chairperson of the NYSCB within five working days. The Social Care Complaints Manager will be responsible for ensuring timescales are met.
The Chairperson of the NYSCB will reply to the complainant within 28 days of the Complaint Review Panel, setting out the response and any action that will be taken as a result.
The Social Care Complaints Manager will advise the complainant that the Complaint Review Panel concludes the NYSCB procedure, and that any further concerns should be directed to the Local Government Ombudsman. The complainant should be informed that the role of the ombudsmen is to consider issues of process and that it is outside their remit to adjudicate on matters of professional practice.
If, following this process, the complaint about a Child Protection Conference is upheld, the Panel may refer any recommendation regarding child protection plans to a reconvened child protection conference. This should be held as quickly as possible under the authority of a different Chairperson. The reconvened conference will consider, taking fully into account any recommendation made, whether a child protection plan is required for the child/ren and, if so, the relevant category.
15.3.6 Comments Procedure
Comments about the LSCB or any of its functions can be made in a number of ways:
- The LSCB website has the facility to contact the LSCB team and comments will be responded to by the LSCB Policy Officer;
- The Leaflet: Complaints, Comments and Commendations explains the process and may be used to make comment;
- The Independent Chairperson of the LSCB may be contacted by letter at County Hall, Racecourse Lane, Northallerton, DL7 8AE.
15.3.7 Commendation Procedure
Where information is received about good safeguarding practice on the part of an individual staff member or volunteer or a group of staff, the LSCB Manager will write to commend those involved. A copy of the letter will be sent to the Board representative for the agency involved. The LSCB Manager will always consider whether it is appropriate to share the learning points through the NYSCB newsletter or on the website.
The LSCB Manager should be contacted for those wishing to make a commendation.
15.4 Resolution of professional concerns within NYSCB functions for children and young people's cases
Problem resolution is an integral part of professional co-operation and joint working to safeguard children. It is often a sign of developing thinking within a dynamic process and can indicate a lack of clarity in approach or procedure.
The purpose of this procedure is to ensure that a robust mechanism exists to resolve professional concerns and disputes before they have significant impact on the delivery of child protection services. Disagreements can arise in a number of areas, but are most likely arise over thresholds, roles and responsibilities, the need for action and communication.
It is important:
- To avoid professional disputes that put children at risk or obscure the focus on the child;
- To resolve difficulties (within and) between agencies quickly and openly;
- To identify problem areas together where there is a lack of clarity and to promote resolution via amendment of protocols and procedures.
In the management of child protection cases:
Professionals should try to resolve differences through discussion, and/or meeting within a timescale that is acceptable to both of them. If not resolved their disagreement must then be addressed by more senior personnel within the respective agencies.
If agreement cannot be reached following discussions between managers (who should normally seek advice from the lead officer for child protection) the issue must be referred without delay through the line management to the equivalent of General Manager/Detective Inspector/LEA Child Protection Advisor/Designated Nurse or Doctor or other designated professional.
Record of discussions must be maintained by all agencies involved.
In Child Protection Conferences:
Where dissent is expressed in a Child Protection Conference and the conference is unable to achieve consensus about the Child Protection Plan, the IRO will make the decision, recording clearly the dissenting views.
The agency or individual who dissents from the IRO's decision must determine whether they wish to further challenge the result.
If the dissenting professional believes that the decision reached by the Chairperson places a child at risk of significant harm, it is expected that they will contact the General Manager, Quality and Review immediately.
The General Manager, Quality and Review will look into how the decision was arrived at within the Conference and attempt to resolve the disagreement.
If professional disagreements remain unresolved, the matter must be referred to the Head of Service for each agency involved. All such disagreements and concerns must also be notified to the NYSCB Manager who will monitor progress and outcomes.
Designed and developed by 
