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Manual Version: June 2010

Contents

1. Display and Browser Options
2. Structure of these Procedures
3. Amendments
4. How to Find a Chapter
5. Terminology
6. Keywords
7. Compliance
8. Contact us
9. Copyright
10. Printing and Retaining Copies

1. Display and Browser Options

People with a visual impairment may have difficulty accessing this Manual.

To change the size of the text/layout - please use these accessibility buttons

which are on menu bar on the left side of every screen. Click a larger button to increase your text size, the very largest being high visibility mode.

2. Structure of these Procedures

This manual contains the revised Child Protection Procedures for the Berkshire Local Safeguarding Boards and is divided into chapters with the same headings as the 2006 Procedures Manual.

There are small differences to the previous layout. One is that the underlying values and principles that apply throughout these procedures are located in one chapter called 'Values', which users are required to familiarise themselves with before proceeding to the main body of the Procedures. This chapter is available from the left hand side of the screen.

In addition, at the end of these procedures, there is a section entitled ‘Documents for Consultation’ which will contain draft procedures on which feedback is sought. There is a simple change process diagram, and instructions on how and to whom to send changes will appear within the drafts.  

3. Amendments

Where revisions have been made, these are indicated in the contents page and a brief summary is in this Quick Guide as well as at the top of the relevant chapter in blue. Revisions are also highlighted in blue in the text. The changes made as a result of Working Together to safeguard Children 2010 are also shown in italics.

Where revisions are made, these will continue to be shown on the contents page for 8 months.

These procedures will be regularly updated; the next update is planned for October 2010.

A planning meeting will be held for the next update  on 10 September 2010.

Those who wish to request changes to the procedures should click on 'Contact Us' in the menu on the left hand side of the screen and this will link them to a Policy and Procedure Update Form, which they should complete and send to the email address given.

Nominated managers in each agency will be responsible for seeking and collating proposals for amendments and development of the procedures.

Any urgent amendments which arise between updates and cannot await the next scheduled edition will, following formal agreement by the joint LSCB's Policy and Procedures Sub-Group, be circulated by e-mail to nominated managers in each participating agency as well as to LSCB chairs.

4. How to Find a Chapter

As in the 2006 Procedures Manual, procedures and guidance are located in individual 'chapters' which are available from a 'traditional' Contents List - accessible via the button on the left hand side of the screen.

If you are not sure which chapter to look in, try 'Search' which will help you identify specific chapters and will search throughout the text.

5.Terminology

We believe it is crucial to use consistent terminology, which we agree with individual customers, for example:

Child	to refer to anyone under 18 years old
Child protection adviser	to refer to the officer/s in Children’s Social Care who offer/s off line advice and/or provide/s chairing of child protection conferences (sometimes called the independent reviewing officer)
Children’s Services (Education)	to refer to the functional division within Children’s Services providing and coordinating educational services for children and young people
Children’s Social Care	to refer to the functional division within Children’s Services Authorities / Children’s Services providing support, protection and care services to children and families (Working Together to Safeguard Children 2006 uses this term rather than Children’s Services (Social Care))
Designated safeguarding manager	to refer to the person responsible for the conference chairs, provision of specialist advice and protection planning
Duty social worker	to describe the departmental point of contact with respect to new referrals, closed or unallocated cases or cover provided for the unavailability of a named member of staff
First line manager	to describe the team manager responsible for a team of social workers or her/his assistant, or practice manager / supervisor
Identified officer	to refer to the individual within local authority and police responsible for the management of allegations against people working with children
Service manager	to refer to the second line manager to whom a first line manager reports (sometimes called operational manager)
Social worker	to describe the practitioner with case responsibility (for children subject to a Child Protection Plan this will usually be a registered social worker)
Supervising social worker	(sometimes called link or family placement worker or fostering officer) to describe the practitioner working with foster carers

6. Keywords

These procedures are accessed by practitioners from varying agencies, who may find terms that they are not familiar with. Therefore, a large glossary (Keywords) of terms such as Significant Harm (Try it: click on the highlighted text). We call them 'Keywords'. Once clicked, the definitions will appear in a new window or tab, depending on your browser. You can leave it open for reference, or close it using the "close" button at the bottom.

Many Keywords are highlighted in the body of procedures, but you can search for the Keyword you need: Go to the Keywords Glossary on the Contents Page and then choose the relevant letter of the alphabet.

7.Compliance

7.1 Regulatory Compliance

Every effort has been taken to ensure regulatory compliance. If you discover any errors or mistakes, please alert your manager or contact us.

7.2 W3C Compliance

This manual meets the double A Standards of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), for example, it can be accessed by people with high levels of visual impairment. To find out more, click on 'Display Options' on the left hand side of the screen.

8.Contact us

If you have any comments or suggestions to make about this manual please contact us by using the button on the left hand side of the screen, from anywhere within the procedures.

9.Copyright

The content of this website can be accessed, printed and downloaded in an unaltered form, on a temporary basis, for personal study or reference purposes. However any content printed or downloaded may not be sold, licensed, transferred, copied or reproduced in whole or in part in any manner or in or on any media to any person without the prior written consent of Tri-X-Childcare Ltd and the six Berkshire Local Safeguarding Children Boards.

10. Printing and Retaining Copies

Each chapter includes a option so users will be able to print a chapter by clicking on the print icon shown (found at top right of the chapter). In relation to diagrams and flow charts which open in a separate window the print icon is usually at the bottom of the page.

However, as a general rule, practitioners should be discouraged from printing and retaining paper copies of individual chapters.

Printing of individual chapters should be limited to occasions when they are required for example for taking to a Court hearing or a meeting. In these circumstances, the paper copies should be recycled after the Court hearing or meeting. In any event, paper copies are only valid for 72 hours from the date of printing and the responsibility is on the practitioner to make sure that any printed copies are destroyed after this period has expired.

When chapters are printed from the procedures, the copy will be watermarked with the extent of its validity and a footnote will indicate the date of printing and the website address for the electronic version. The correct current version of the Procedures will always be the electronic version of the chapter shown on the website.

For the first time the up-to-date Berkshire Child Protection Procedures are only available electronically.  All those working with children who lack access to a computer at home or work will need to be aware of public sites where they can gain access to the procedures (e.g. libraries).  There will be few occasions when immediate access to the procedures is required.  To address these occasions all activities / organisations that do not have on-site access to the procedures will need to have available on-site:

• Telephone contact details of a manager or contact able to help / advise in a situation where access to the child protection procedures is required.
• Contact telephone numbers for the relevant Social Care Referral and Assessment Team see Appendix 3, Contact Details for Referrals and/or the Emergency Duty Team - see Appendix 4, Referrals Outside Normal Office House.
• All those supervising children will need to be familiar with (or have a copy of) "What to do if you're worried a child is being abused".

End