Table of Contents
1
275
Child Protection Guidance 2021
Cover
1
Contents
2
Ministerial Foreword
7
Introduction
8
Purpose
8
Principles underpinning this Guidance
8
Engagement with children in child protection
9
Engagement with families in child protection
9
Structure and content: what has changed?
12
Part 1: The Context for Child Protection
13
Key Definitions and Concepts
14
Definitions of ‘child’
14
Definitions of parents and carers
16
What is child abuse and child neglect?
18
What is child protection?
20
What is harm and significant harm in a child protection context?
21
What is a named person, lead professional and child’s plan?
24
What is the child protection register?
26
Workforce
31
Child’s experience
28
Information Sharing: Inter-Agency Principles
33
Records management
36
Legislation relating to Child Protection
39
Duties to protect
39
Part 2A: Roles and responsibilities for child protection
44
Collective Responsibilities for Child Protection
45
Leadership in child protection: Chief Officer’s Groups and Child Protection Committees
45
Self-evaluation and inspection
47
Learning and development
48
Support for practitioners: supervision
49
Single-Agency Responsibilities for Child Protection
50
Local authority education services
51
Early learning and childcare
52
Grant Aided Special Schools (GASS)
52
Independent schools
52
Police Service of Scotland (‘Police Scotland’)
53
British Transport Police (BTP)
55
Health services
55
Chief/Consultant/Lead Nurse for child protection
56
Lead Doctor for child protection
57
Child Protection Advisor (CPA)
57
Paediatricians with a Special Interest in Child Protection (PwSICP)
57
Paediatricians
58
Antenatal and maternity care
59
Midwives
59
Health Visitor
59
Family Nurse
59
School Nurse
60
General Practitioners
60
Emergency health care services
60
Emergency Departments
60
GP Out of Hours Services
61
Scottish Ambulance Service
61
NHS 24
61
Community pharmacy services
62
Dental care practitioners
62
Mental health services
62
Addiction services
62
Adult healthcare providers
63
Other health services
63
Local authority children and families social work
63
Social work justice services
65
Adult health and social care services
65
Learning disability services
65
Third Sector
65
Young carers services
66
National Carer Organisations
66
Children’s hearings system
67
Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Services
69
Carers looking after children away from home
70
Social housing
70
Private landlords
70
Community safety services
70
Scottish Prison Service
71
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS)
71
Faith organisations
71
The defence community
72
Culture and leisure services
72
Sport organisations and clubs
72
Wider Planning Links
73
Public protection
74
MAPPA
76
Community Justice Partnerships
76
Violence Against Women Partnerships
77
Alcohol and Drug Partnerships
77
For all services and practitioners
78
Part 2B: Approach to Multi-Agency Assessment in Child Protection
79
Introduction
80
Using GIRFEC components in assessment
81
Strength-based approaches
84
Contextual safeguarding
85
Capacity to change
86
A learning culture in child protection
87
Part 3: Identifying and Responding to Concerns about Children
92
Relationship with previous sections
93
Initiating child protection procedures
94
Professional judgement about risk of significant harm
95
Practice points relevant at any time
96
Inter-agency referral discussions (IRD)
97
Joint Investigative Interviews (JII)
102
Health assessment and medical examination
105
Emergency legal measures to protect children at risk of significant harm
109
Interim Safety Plan
114
Involving children and families in child protection processes
115
Learning from adapted practice during the COVID-19 pandemic
117
Child protection assessment and planning
118
Child Protection Planning Meetings
122
Assessment and planning: prompts to reflection
128
Chronologies
129
Child giving evidence in criminal and civil proceedings
131
General principles
134
Criminal injuries compensation
135
Child Protection Process
136-137
Part 4: Specific Support Needs and Concerns
138
Introduction
139
Poverty
139
When services find it hard to engage
140
Protection of disabled children
141
Parents with learning disabilities
144
Impact of mental health or health problems on children
145
Children and young people experiencing mental health problems
146
Suicide and self-harm affecting children
148
Responding to neglect and emotional abuse
149
Domestic abuse
153
Children and families affected by alcohol and drug use
158
Physical abuse, equal protection, and restraint
160
When obesity is a cause for escalating concerns about risk of harm
163
Child sexual abuse
164
Child sexual exploitation
170
Indecent images and internet-enabled sexual offending by adults
174
Children and young people who have displayed harmful sexual behaviour
175
Child protection in the digital environment/online safety
179
Under-age sexual activity
181
Pre-birth assessment and support
183
Children who are looked after away from home
185
Reunification or ‘return home’
188
Preventing the repeated removal of children
189
Children and young people who are missing
189
Protecting unaccompanied asylum-seeking and trafficked children
193
Child trafficking and child criminal exploitation
196
Protection in transitional phases
200
Bullying
201
Hate crime
202
Serious harmful behaviour shown by children above and below the age of criminal responsibility
203
Vulnerability to being drawn into terrorism
205
Complex investigations
205
Female genital mutilation
207
Honour-based abuse and forced marriage
210
Fabricated or induced illness
212
Sudden unexpected death in infants and children
213
Community
215
Cultural and faith communities
215
Children and families in the defence community
217
Child protection in the context of disasters and public emergencies
218
Historical (non-recent) reports of abuse
219
Child protection themes
222
Appendices
223
Appendix A: Glossary of terms
223
Appendix B: Acronyms
226
Appendix C: Legislation – list of other relevant legislation
228
Appendix D: Timescales for stages in child protection processes
230
Appendix E: United Nations Convention On the Rights Of The Child
231
Appendix F: Resources and references
233
References: Introduction and Part 1
233
References: Part 2A
235
References: Part 2B
237
References: Part 3
239
References: Part 4
240
Appendix G: Armed Forces child protection contacts
271
Appendix H: Reporting a child concern to child protection services
273
Appendix I: Practice insights introduction
274
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjA4NTgz