In our August blog last year (A new term… same old problems) we anticipated how the start of the new school year in September could impact upon Local Authorities. Our expectation was that the autumn and winter terms would bring about further challenges for Local Authorities with a marked rise in the number of referrals (and families needing assessment and support) and there being a nationally reduced workforce of Social Workers capable of responding to this.
The DFE’s annual children in need statistics for 2022/2023 are not due for publication until October this year. However, there are grounds to believe that our expectations were, sadly, accurate given: –
- the 2021-2022 statistics published in October 2022 identified a generally upward trend in referrals to Local Authorities particularly from schools between 2014 (85,630) and March 2022 (129,090);
- designated safeguarding leads at school are reporting alarming pressures (November 2022);
- Ofsted’s description of Social Worker recruitment and retention as being the biggest challenge the sector faces (December 2022); and
- the worsening cost-of-living crisis and the corresponding increase pressures upon families.
Safeguarding at school
Teachers are the eyes and ears of the child protection system. They are uniquely placed to identify safeguarding concerns due to the regularity with which they see children during term time and can, for example, observe the physical evidence or behaviours suggestive of neglect or abuse. They might also develop relationships of trust with children (becoming a confidante) and hear of allegations of abuse whether direct from the child or indirectly through his/her peers.
The DFE’s 2022 statutory guidance (Keeping children safe in education) states that “School and college staff are particularly important, as they are in a position to identify concerns early, provide help for children, promote children’s welfare and prevent concerns from escalating”.
The guidance also states that it is “essential that everybody working in a school or college understands their safeguarding responsibilities”. Those responsibilities are set out in that guidance, in the DFE’s 2018 Working together to safeguard children statutory guidance and in several pieces of legislation.
Schools’ safeguarding responsibilities
Such responsibilities include ensuring that:-
- there are appropriate policies and procedures in place in order for appropriate action to be taken in a timely manner to safeguard and promote children’s welfare,
- an appropriate senior member of staff is appointed as designated safeguarding lead,
- the school contributes to multi-agency working,
- arrangements are in place that set out clearly the processes and principles for sharing information,
- all staff undergo safeguarding and child protection training,
- children are taught about how to keep themselves and others safe.
Given those responsibilities and the identified lessons learnt for schools from serious case reviews 2014 to 2017 (failing to act on/refer the early signs of abuse and neglect, poor record keeping, failing to listen to the views of the child, failing to re-assess concerns when situations do not improve, not sharing information quickly enough with the right people and a lack of challenge to those who appear not to be taking action) it comes as little surprise that school referrals to Children’s Services have steadily risen in the years since.
Schools’ safeguarding in practice
As the cost-of-living crisis deepens, teachers have seen its effects first hand – children living without electricity, wearing dirty clothes or clothes that are too small, missing meals and washing with cold water (or not at all). The emotional toll that this has taken on children has also been remarked upon with children being aware of their families not being able to afford basic items, missing out on school trips and Christmas and birthdays being downsized.
Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 defines children as being in need if they are “unlikely to achieve or maintain, or to have the opportunity of achieving or maintaining, a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision of services by a local authority”. It is therefore reasonable to assume that with teachers having the greatest opportunity to observe children’s presentation and hear their accounts of home life, there will be a corresponding increase in referrals identifying children who are potentially in need to Early Help providers/Local Authorities.
There are also likely to be many children for whom the cost-of-living crisis doesn’t just mean that their very basic needs are not being met. For some children, the crisis could be responsible for placing them at risk of significant harm. Christmas can be a challenging time for families even in optimum circumstances. There are increased pressures and expectations on parents to deliver the ideal occasion, related anxiety/fear of disappointing, escalated tensions and conflict coupled with seasonal excesses. These can create environments which breed abuse, aggravate underlying mental health conditions and maladjusted coping strategies with a corresponding risk of significant emotional and physical harm to children. The cost-of-living crisis is likely to only compound those risks.
With many incidences of abuse going unreported to the police, teachers can often be the first professional agency to identify the signs of abuse from what they hear and see… and from what they don’t see (if children are unusually absent from school). This is also likely to account for the increasing numbers of referrals to Local Authorities.
The impact on Local Authorities
With the seasonal trend exacerbated by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, there are likely to be increasing numbers of referrals, particularly from schools, identifying children either in need or at risk of significant harm to Local Authorities this term. Many Local Authorities are already struggling to promptly assess and meet their families’ needs. For those Authorities, we are here to help…
How Advanced CCA can help
Our national panel of Independent Social Workers now exceeds 140 – we have the capacity to support you.
Each Independent Social Worker offers unique expertise, skillsets and experience of undertaking assessments at all stages of intervention – from first referral (including single and child in need assessments); at child protection, within PLO or proceedings (including parenting/risk assessments) to those conducted towards the end of care.
Our panel of Parenting Practitioners now exceeds 40 delivers support services to address assessed areas of need (whether through parenting skills or domestic abuse programmes or contact supervision) to manage risk and minimise the prospect of escalation.
The new school term looks like it will be a further period of challenge for all safeguarding professionals but we’re here to help and support you.
