Safeguarding


Abused school pupils threaten council with legal action 25/01/2022 Former pupils of a council-run school are considering legal action against Lincolnshire County Council after two former staff members were convicted of abuse.
Shortcomings revealed in second child murder case 14/12/2021 A second court case in a month has revealed serious shortcomings in how local agencies responded to allegations of abuse shortly before a child’s murder.
National review launched in wake of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes murder 06/12/2021 A national review and local inspection will take place following the murder of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes has been announced by the Government.
Keeping the safety net 09/09/2021 Local authority leadership is invaluable to Transitional Safeguarding and councils are ideally placed to enable complexity-attuned commissioning, says Dez Holmes.
Children abused for decades under care of Lambeth Council, inquiry finds 27/07/2021 Hundreds of children were subjected to decades of cruelty and sexual abuse while in the care of Lambeth Council, a damning inquiry has found.
Sexual harassment ‘normalised’ for children, Ofsted warns 10/06/2021 Sexual harassment, including online sexual abuse, has become ‘normalised’ for children and young people, Ofsted has found.
Newborn baby care orders on the rise, research finds 04/06/2021 The majority of mothers facing urgent care proceedings are given less than a week’s formal notice that their newborn baby might be removed, new research has warned today.
Crack down on abuse of modern slavery safeguards 22/03/2021 Local authorities will receive training to help frontline staff identify genuine victims of modern slavery.
Councils warn of 'harrowing' rise in serious child harm cases during pandemic 05/02/2021 The number of serious child-related incidents reported by councils has risen by more than a quarter during the pandemic, new figures show.
New strategy 'a golden opportunity' to tackle child sexual abuse 22/01/2021 A new strategy to protect children from all forms of child sexual abuse has been published by the Government today.
Council pays mother £8,000 after failing to protect her from violent son 19/01/2021 Three young children were left without any protection from their violent older brother after Somerset County Council failed to help their family, Ombudsman finds.
'Data desert' on vulnerable children and county lines, report warns 03/12/2020 Local authorities and police forces are failing to identify the number of vulnerable children being exploited by criminal gangs, a new report has warned.
Pandemic made vulnerable children 'invisible' report warns 01/12/2020 Vulnerable children became 'invisible' during the pandemic, Ofsted's chief inspector warned today.
Council apologises over failings at Morleigh Group care homes 03/11/2020 Cornwall Council has apologised after a report highlighted failures at the former Morleigh Group care home provider.
Half of professionals feel childhood obesity is a child protection issue 03/09/2020 Nearly half of health and social workers believe child obesity should be considered a child protection issue, according to a new study.
Framework for referring child victims of trafficking 'not working' warns commissioner 12/08/2020 The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) for identifying child victims of trafficking is 'not working', the anti-slavery commissioner has warned.
Shared Lives in health 22/07/2020 Personalised care must be high on the agenda as we look to create a stronger, kinder and more connected society, writes Alex Fox OBE.
Coronavirus is jeopardising child welfare 16/07/2020 Chris Lloyd-Smith examines how the coronavirus is endangering child welfare, posing a challenge to local authority childcare and protection services.
Paediatricians urge PM to make school reopenings ‘a priority’ 18/06/2020 Over 1,500 paediatricians have signed an open letter to the Prime Minister urging him to make the reopening of schools a priority.
Social workers to be placed in schools to spot children at risk 22/05/2020 The Government has committed £6.5m to place social workers in schools to help spot the signs of child abuse and neglect.
Ensuring continuity of care in a time of crisis 22/05/2020 Julie Tyas discusses how tech is becoming the eyes and ears of social workers during the pandemic.
Survey highlights child abuse could go unreported during lockdown 18/05/2020 Child abuse could go unreported during lockdown as a quarter of adults do not know where to go for help, a survey has found.
Charities call for 'vital' early intervention funding to safeguard children 18/05/2020 Funding cuts to children's services have left councils unable to cope with the current crisis, charities have warned today.
Warnings that vulnerable children 'hidden from sight' during lockdown 27/04/2020 New local area profiles will help councils identify how many vulnerable children are in their area.
Extra funding to protect vulnerable children during Covid-19 27/04/2020 Projects that protect vulnerable children will share more than £12m to help keep them safe during the coronavirus outbreak.
NHS Digital extends sharing of child protection information 14/04/2020 Health visitors and school nurses will have access to data about vulnerable children three years ahead of schedule in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
‘We’re not in it for the money’ 14/04/2020 Emma Lewis, a member of the Victims and Survivors Panel at the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, explores what redress really means for survivors.
Report highlights complex nature of safeguarding in residential schools 03/04/2020 New research has revealed the unique challenges staff in residential schools face to protect children from sexual abuse.
CQC issues COVID-19 guidance on DBS checks 03/04/2020 The Care Quality Commission(CQC) has issued interim guidance on the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and other recruitment checks in response to coronavirus.
Domestic abuse puts children at more risk of exploitation, review warns 01/04/2020 There is an overlap between children’s experience of domestic abuse and their offending behaviour, a review has concluded today.
Calls to mobilise an 'army of volunteers' to protect children during lockdown 01/04/2020 The Children’s Commissioner for England has warned an ‘army’ of volunteers are needed to protect vulnerable children while schools are closed.
Court finds woman has capacity to decide about contact with husband 26/03/2020 The High Court today ruled that a woman with a relatively rare form of dementia has the capacity to make decisions for herself when it comes to her husband.
Social workers ‘urgently’ need hand sanitizer, survey reveals 25/03/2020 Social workers have called on the Government to provide them with safety equipment in order to minimize the risk of contracting and spreading the coronavirus.
New programme launched to support fight against ‘witchcraft allegations’ 20/03/2020 The centre dedicated to fighting female genital mutilation (FGM) has launched a first-of-its-kind e-learning programme to address the startling rise of witchcraft allegations against children.
Council chiefs welcome appointment of Ofcom as ‘online harms regulator’ 13/02/2020 Local authority leaders have welcomed the announcement that the telecoms and broadcasting regulator will be responsible for regulating online platforms.
Norfolk conducts major review to improve safeguarding practices 22/01/2020 A new task force will be set up in Norfolk to improve safeguarding across the county.
Family hardship drives 53% increase in children referred for ‘urgent support’ 05/11/2019 A rise in family ‘conflict and hardship’ against a background of cuts to council budgets is behind the heightened pressure on child protection services, local authority leaders have revealed.
Social alarms: time’s running out for local authorities to go digital 01/11/2019 Wendy Darling warns around 900,000 telecare users in the UK could be affected as telephone providers will stop installing landlines after 2020.
Council makes improvements following death of rough sleeper 24/10/2019 Worcester City Council has implemented all ten recommendations made in an independent review into the death of a rough sleeper in the city.
Brexit threatens fight against modern slavery 18/10/2019 The commissioner appointed to tackle modern slavery has called for a stronger focus on prevention and warned that Brexit could undermine efforts to stop slavery.
Council adopts fingerprint-based drug testing 15/10/2019 Peterborough City Council has brought in fingerprint-based drug testing as part of its family safeguarding social care initiative.
Safeguarding shake-up 24/09/2019 With local safeguarding children boards being abolished, Neil Merrick finds out what new arrangements councils are setting up in their local areas.
Tackling youth gambling 11/09/2019 Ian Butler explains why local government needs a range of interventions and resources to combat gambling for young people.
Care home closed amid allegations of ‘child cruelty’ 02/08/2019 A care home in the north Bristol area for children with special needs has been closed down amid allegations of child cruelty.
Agencies ‘let down’ Down’s Syndrome woman with scabies 26/07/2019 A safeguarding report has concluded that local agencies in Hackney ‘could have worked better together’ after the death of a woman with Down's Syndrome.
Primary school children targeted for ‘county lines’ drug trafficking 05/07/2019 The response from statutory agencies to ‘county lines’ drug dealing is ‘too often haphazard’, a charity warns as new report reveals children as young as seven are being exploited by criminal gangs.
Javid commits to resettling 5,000 refugees next year 18/06/2019 Sajid Javid has announced that the UK will resettle 5,000 more refugees under a new, expanded resettlement scheme that will come into force next year.
Call for leader to quit after 'repeated failures' 05/06/2019 Shadow local government secretary Andrew Gwynne has called for Northamptonshire CC leader, Matt Golby, to quit after ‘repeated failures’ in the council’s children’s services.
Nearly 600 people arrested to tackle county lines drug gangs 21/05/2019 Nearly 600 people have been arrested in a single week for their suspected involvement in drug dealing across county lines.
London Councils welcome drug dealers being jailed in ‘landmark’ slavery case 15/05/2019 Three ‘county lines’ drug dealers have been sent to prison in a landmark case using the Modern Slavery Act.
Housing policy putting young women at risk, study warns 14/05/2019 Young women are being forced into unsafe housing due to the government’s housing benefit policy, a new study has concluded.
Government launches £2m programme to tackle child exploitation 09/05/2019 The Department for Education has launched a new programme designed to provide specialist support for children at risk of criminal or sexual exploitation.
Forty people investigated over child abuse in Rotherham 09/05/2019 Forty people have been arrested or interviewed over child sexual abuse in Rotherham in the past two months.
Councils receive extra £30m to care for asylum seeking children 09/05/2019 The amount of funding councils receive to look after unaccompanied asylum seeking children is set to rise by £30m.
Thousands of children being taught in illegal schools 12/04/2019 Up to 6,000 children are being educated in illegal schools across England putting their safety and education at risk, a watchdog has warned.
Protections for people who lack mental capacity must be 'robust', MPs say 02/04/2019 A new definition of what constitutes 'liberty' will be included in the Mental Capacity Act to help protect vulnerable people, the Government has announced.
Council criticised for not carrying out ‘proper assessments’ in deprivation of liberty cases 01/04/2019 Council argues legislation dealing with when it is legitimate to deprive someone of liberty is not 'fit for purpose’ after being criticised by ombudsman.
Children ‘not being protected’ by Stoke-on-Trent Council 19/03/2019 Children’s social care services are ‘inadequate’ at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, according to the findings of a new Ofsted inspection.
Children left vulnerable to abuse due to focus on Brexit, report warns 12/03/2019 Councils are failing to protect children from abuse in England due to ‘systematic’ safeguarding failures, a new report has warned.
Councils ‘failing’ children exploited by gangs, report reveals 28/02/2019 The same mistakes that led to child sexual exploitation failings are being repeated with gangs, the children’s commissioner has warned.
Nine men convicted of child sexual exploitation 27/02/2019 Bradford council has insisted that safeguarding young people is its ‘top priority’ after nine men were convicted of child sexual exploitation.
Whitehall’s ‘hostile environment’ puts children in danger, charity says 19/02/2019 The Government’s commitment to creating a ‘hostile environment’ for migrants outweighs their commitment to children’s rights, a charity has warned.
Council denies ‘litany of failures’ in Shamima Begum case 19/02/2019 The lawyer representing the family of Shamima Begum has accused the borough of Tower Hamlets of a ‘litany of failures’ leading up to the teenager's decision to join ISIS.
Government failing to treat children as victims of domestic abuse, warns charity 11/01/2019 Nearly a quarter of a million children should be classed as victims of domestic abuse, the NSPCC has said today.
One in four trafficked children reported missing from care 21/12/2018 Nearly a quarter of trafficked children were reported as going missing from care in 2017, a new study has revealed.
Child cruelty and neglect crimes double in past five years 04/12/2018 The number of child cruelty and neglect cases recorded by police have doubled over the last five years, a children’s charity has warned.
‘Substantial shortcomings’ found in local safeguarding guidance 29/11/2018 Freedom of information requests have uncovered ‘substantial shortcomings’ when it comes to the use of safeguarding guidance by county councils.
Inspectors praise Peterborough’s ‘thriving’ children’s services 07/08/2018 Inspectors have praised Peterborough City Council for creating the conditions for the city’s children’s services ‘to thrive’.
Law simplifying safeguarding measures to save councils £200m 03/07/2018 A new law designed to streamline the system which safeguards vulnerable people in care is set to save local authorities an estimated £200m a year.
‘Racially motivated’ murder could have been avoided, safeguarding review says 22/06/2018 The murder of an asylum seeker while living in supported living accommodation in Bristol could have been avoided, a safeguarding adult review has concluded.
Councils ‘struggling’ with increase in children on protection plans 20/06/2018 More than 180 children are placed on child protection plans every day to keep them safe from harm, local government leaders say.
Minister warns councils must adopt child protection system as 'priority' 07/06/2018 Councils and NHS organisations which have not yet adopted a system for sharing information on vulnerable children have been told they must do so as a priority.
Councils take key Prevent strategy role 30/05/2018 Councils have been handed administrative control of the controversial Prevent counter-terror strategy, The MJ has learned.
Investigation launched into serious failures at specialist school 06/04/2018 An investigation has been launched into a charity for the blind following ‘serious concerns’ over the safeguarding of vulnerable children and young people.
Islington appoints first ‘Women and Girls Champion’ in the UK 08/03/2018 Islington Council has announced it will appoint a ‘Women and Girls Champion’, the first appointment of its kind in the UK.
Taxi licences granted to drivers with criminal convictions, campaigners warn 30/01/2018 Taxi and private hire vehicle licences are being granted to drivers with criminal convictions because there are no national minimum standards to enforce sufficient safety checks, campaigners say.
Nearly 1,000 children's centres not inspected for five years 22/01/2018 The Government has been accused of dragging its feet over inspections of children's centres, which have been frozen since 2015.
Bristol council to investigate failures after racist murder 16/01/2018 Councillors in Bristol have agreed to launch an investigation into how the council failed to support Bijan Ebrahimi who was murdered in a racist attack.
Councils dealing with 500 child protection investigations every day 12/12/2017 The number of child protection investigations being started by councils has risen at an ‘alarming’ rate of more than 500 a day, according to new figures.
Welsh council under review after toddler murdered by adoptive father 07/11/2017 A review into whether the Vale of Glamorgan Council could have intervened to save toddler Elsie has been launched after her adoptive father was found guilty of her murder.
Child sexual exploitation case reveals ‘missed opportunities’ to intervene 03/11/2017 A serious case review into the sexual exploitation of teenage girls in Somerset has found ‘missed opportunities’ for earlier intervention by the council.
Council ‘failed’ to protect children from dangerous sibling 04/10/2017 Northumberland County Council failed to protect vulnerable young children at risk of harm, the local government ombudsman has ruled.
Councils urge Whitehall to avert ‘tragedy’ in youth offending facilities 22/09/2017 Councils have called on the Government to protect young offenders as inspectors say conditions in youth offending facilities make future tragedy ‘inevitable’.
Anti-radicalisation programme accused of Islamophobia 30/08/2017 The Government has criticised a report into its controversial anti-radicalisation programme for spreading what it describes as ‘falsehoods’ and ‘myths’.
Taxi laws ‘outdated’ and pose safeguarding risks, council chiefs say 25/08/2017 Council chiefs have called on the Government to reform ‘existing outdated’ taxi laws in order to strengthen safeguarding measures.
Vulnerable people being 'failed' by deprivation of liberty law 13/03/2017 Thousands of vulnerable people are being detained in care without sufficient checks, a new report has warned today.
Councils criticise amendment calling for safeguarding and welfare capacity register 07/03/2017 Council chiefs have criticised a new amendment to the Children and Social Work Bill which requires local authorities to maintain and report a local safeguarding and welfare capacity register.
Academies need ‘transparent’ safeguarding arrangements to prevent child abuse 02/02/2017 A West Berkshire serious case review has reported there is a need for ‘clear and transparent’ governance arrangements of safeguarding, particularly in academies, to protect children from abuse.
Worcestershire criticised for 'serious failures’ in children’s services 25/01/2017 Worcestershire County Council has apologised after inspectors found ‘widespread and serious failures’ in its children’s services.
Aiding an unprotected species 19/01/2017 The pressures facing local authority statutory officers are now greater than ever. Simon Goacher argues that tinkering with protection rules in recent years has undermined these vital positions.
Government ‘complacent’ over child protection issues warn MPs 16/12/2016 The Government has been accused of being too slow to improve child protection services, a report from MPs has warned today.
Health visitors warn budget cuts are putting safeguarding at risk 07/12/2016 Health visitors are struggling with unsafe workloads and concerns over safeguarding due to cuts in local authority health budgets, a new survey has warned today.
Whitehall’s ‘dangerous scheme’ puts children at risk, say campaigners 05/12/2016 The Government is pursuing a ‘dangerous scheme’ to force child protection opt outs into the Children and Social Work Bill, says human rights group.
Child protection services judged 'unsatisfactory' by watchdog 12/10/2016 Six years of reforms to child protection services have failed to make significant improvements, a damning report from the National Audit Office has said.
Review highlights 'governance' failures in South Ribble 20/09/2016 There were ‘major corporate governance failures’ in the way South Ribble Borough Council handled a safeguarding review.
School safeguarding leads ‘necessary’ to deal with harmful sexual behaviour 20/09/2016 Each school should have a named safeguarding lead who can assess concerns about the sexual behaviour of a child or young person, new guidelines say.

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