Week One: Safeguarding Children in
England – An Introductory Overview of
Best Practice in Safeguarding and Child
Protection
Understanding Vulnerability – Introductory Ideas
Most vulnerable are children under one.
Specific vulnerabilities include:
- All their care needs need to be met by the carer
- Parenting a baby can be stressful and tiring
- Younger children are not routinely seen by others outside of the
family
- They cannot tell the carer what they want.
How Many Children Are in Need?
A legally defined group (under the Children Act 1989.)
They are assessed as needing help/protection as a result of risks to
their development or health.
This includes:
- Children on child protection plans
- Children on child in need plans
- Care leavers
- Disabled children
- Children looked after by the local authorities.
Children in need include:
- Young people aged eighteen or over continuing to receive care,
accommodation or support from children’s services
- Unborn children
, Characteristics of Children in Need – 2022/2023
403,090 children were classed as in need.
50,780 are on protection plans.
Headline measure are:
- Children in need
- Children on protection plans
- Referrals
- Completed assessments.
Most headline measures are down compared with 2022.
Number of children in need up compared to 2020, mostly predating
COVID.
Number on protection plans, referrals and completed assessments
lower than 2020.
Males overrepresented – 54% were male, compared to the overall
child population of 54% as of 2023.
69% were white.
31% were from all other ethnic groups.
Children in need population is aging – ten and over are the majority.
13.3% were children aged eighteen and above who were continuing
to receive support.
1.7% were children yet to be born.
Social workers determine child’s primary need – only one can be
listed.
Abuse/neglect accounted for over 50% of primary need.
Absent parenting rose 14% between 2022 and 2023.
Section 47 Enquiry and Initial Child Protection
Conference
If there’s reasonable suspicion of the child suffering or the likelihood
of them suffering an assessment under Section 47 can be carried
out.
England – An Introductory Overview of
Best Practice in Safeguarding and Child
Protection
Understanding Vulnerability – Introductory Ideas
Most vulnerable are children under one.
Specific vulnerabilities include:
- All their care needs need to be met by the carer
- Parenting a baby can be stressful and tiring
- Younger children are not routinely seen by others outside of the
family
- They cannot tell the carer what they want.
How Many Children Are in Need?
A legally defined group (under the Children Act 1989.)
They are assessed as needing help/protection as a result of risks to
their development or health.
This includes:
- Children on child protection plans
- Children on child in need plans
- Care leavers
- Disabled children
- Children looked after by the local authorities.
Children in need include:
- Young people aged eighteen or over continuing to receive care,
accommodation or support from children’s services
- Unborn children
, Characteristics of Children in Need – 2022/2023
403,090 children were classed as in need.
50,780 are on protection plans.
Headline measure are:
- Children in need
- Children on protection plans
- Referrals
- Completed assessments.
Most headline measures are down compared with 2022.
Number of children in need up compared to 2020, mostly predating
COVID.
Number on protection plans, referrals and completed assessments
lower than 2020.
Males overrepresented – 54% were male, compared to the overall
child population of 54% as of 2023.
69% were white.
31% were from all other ethnic groups.
Children in need population is aging – ten and over are the majority.
13.3% were children aged eighteen and above who were continuing
to receive support.
1.7% were children yet to be born.
Social workers determine child’s primary need – only one can be
listed.
Abuse/neglect accounted for over 50% of primary need.
Absent parenting rose 14% between 2022 and 2023.
Section 47 Enquiry and Initial Child Protection
Conference
If there’s reasonable suspicion of the child suffering or the likelihood
of them suffering an assessment under Section 47 can be carried
out.
