Article: Safeguarding for professionals
This area of the site is aimed at professionals working directly
with children and their families in Barnsley.
It has been designed to give practitioners and
professionals from all statutory, voluntary and community
organisations access to important safeguarding information,
guidance and resources to support a multi-agency approach
to promoting better outcomes for children and young people and
protecting them from harm and neglect.
From these pages you can access information about:
We've also included direct links to sections of the
Barnsley Council website which are key elements of multi-agency
working. Just select the appropriate icon below.
NEW
The revised process for contacting Children's Social Care
is now live. Copies of the Request
for Service form and
guidance notes are attached here. You can
request further copies of the form and guidance from the Assessment
service on 01226 772423 or 438831.
Anyone wishing to make a Request for Service or to seek a
formal consultation should now use this new form. You will
also be able to seek consultation via the telephone and continue to
use the telephone to request a Child Protection response.
We will need to work together to embed this new way of
working but you should not hesitate to contact Children's
Social Care during the period following the launch. The duty
social worker will continue to support colleagues in understanding
and using the form and guidance.
Please circulate these documents within your agency.
You may also print off versions for staff who may not have
easy access to email and it is still possible to fax or post
the forms as indicated in the guidance.
If partner agencies would like a social care colleague to
attend any staff groups to discuss the form and how it works
please contact Kay Fletcher on 01226 775884.
Safeguarding Children with Disabilites or complex
health needs
The Council and Partners are strongly committed to actively
promoting the welfare of children and young people with disabilites
or complex health needs. A dedicated Sub-Group of the
Safeguarding Board has been established, originally to progress
an Action Plan to strengthen service provsion,
but now focussing on identifying what is needed to provide an
outstanding service for this group of children and young
people. This work is under regular review by the
Safeguarding Board.
As part of this work there is a need to raise awareness of the
duty under Section 85 of the Children Act 1989 which requires Local
Authorities and Health Authorities to notify children's social care
of any child they accommodate or intend to accommodate in an
educational or health setting for a period of three months or
more. Children's social care must then take "such steps as
are reasonably practicable" to ensure the child's welfare is
adequately safeguarded and promoted.
If you'd like to know more about any aspect of
safeguarding, or would like to see specific information
or content added to this section, please call 01226 775859 or email
[email protected].
Barnsley Safeguarding Children Board Policies and
Procedures are available
here