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| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Safe Use of the Internet, Social Media and Photographs | This chapter has been refreshed and additional links added in Further Information. |
| Female Genital Mutilation | A new section has been added on Other Harmful Practices. The Health and Care Act 2022 has made it illegal to carry out, offer or aid and abet virginity testing or hymenoplasty in any part of the UK. It has also been made illegal for UK nationals and residents to do these things outside the UK. Information has also been added on Breast Flattening which is an offence as set out in CPS So-Called Honour-Based Abuse Legal Guidance. |
| Leadership and Management | Section 2.2, Appointment of Manager has been updated in line with updated Ofsted Guidance - Social Care Common Inspection Framework: Children's Homes. |
| Staffing and Safe Recruitment | New subsections 2.8, Prospective Staff Spending Time in the Home and 2.9, Carrying Out Interviews have been added in line with updated Ofsted guidance. A link has been added to information on DBS Digital Identity Verification Guidance. |
| Next update: November 2024 |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Health and Emotional Well-being Assessments and Plans | Information has been added into Section 3, Health Care Plans in relation to allergies. Section 1, Health Issues for Children Looked After in a Residential Setting has been updated in line with local procedure. |
| Provision and Preparation of Meals | Information has been added into Section 1, Responsibility and Risk Assessments, in relation to allergies. The chapter was also refreshed in line with local procedure. |
| First Aid, Home Remedies and Medication | Section 2, Allergies has been added to this chapter. |
| Allegations Against Staff and Volunteers | This chapter has been amended in line with revised Keeping Children Safe in Education. New Section 2, The Difference Between an Allegation of Harm and a Concern has been added. Section 6, Allegations Strategy Discussion / Meeting has been refreshed with local information and a new section, Section 7, Key Aspects of the Multi-Agency LADO Allegation Management Process has been added in line with local procedure. |
| Staffing and Safe Recruitment | This chapter has been amended in line with revised statutory guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education. Information has been added to note that Keeping Children Safe in Education provides that copies of a curriculum vitae should only be accepted alongside an application form as a curriculum vitae on its own may not provide adequate information. Information has also been added in relation to online searches. |
| New Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Supporting Children and Young People with Disabilities | This chapter has been added to the manual. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Case Recording | This chapter has been updated in relation to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. |
| Positive Relationships and Behaviour Management | This chapter has been updated to incorporate Ofsted feedback. Information has been added into Section 2, Positive Behaviour Support, Section 6, Risk Assessment and Section 9, Recording and Reporting. |
| Use of Restraint and Physical Intervention | This chapter has been updated to incorporate Ofsted feedback. Added into Section 4, Staff Training ‘This training will be refreshed on an annual basis’. Added into Section 12, Recording and Management Review, information on holding a restorative conversation with the child following physical intervention or restraint. |
| Missing Children | This chapter has been updated to incorporate Ofsted feedback. Information has been added into Section 6, Action to be Taken if a Child is Missing, in relation to Philomena Protocols. |
| Self Harm and Suicidal Behaviour | This chapter has been amended to include a link to Self-harm: Assessment, Management and Preventing Recurrence NICE Guidance in the Further Information section. |
| Staffing and Safe Recruitment | This chapter has been updated in line with Guidance: Children’s Homes – Recruiting Staff (Ofsted). |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Providing Personalised Care | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Case Recording | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Contact with Parents/Carers/Siblings and Others | Section 3, Supervised Contact has been updated to reflect a finding by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman that the supervisor's observations of the contact must be clearly recorded in the child's record and shared with the parents within 3 months of the visit. |
| Safe Use of the Internet, Social Media and Photographs | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Advocacy, Independent Visitors and Independent Reviewing Officers | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Education | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Leisure and Activities | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Health and Wellbeing, Health Notifications and Access to Services | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Positive Relationships and Behaviour Management | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Use of Restraint and Physical Intervention | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Searching Children/Bedrooms | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Safeguarding Children and Young People and Referring Safeguarding Concerns | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Allegations Against Staff and Volunteers | KCSIE highlights the importance of sharing and responding to any concerns, about the behaviour of an adult who works with children, no matter how small. This chapter has been revised to also consider low level concerns, with a new section added in relation to the differences between an ‘allegation’ and a concern. |
| Surveillance and Monitoring | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Staff Supervision and Appraisal | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Whistleblowing or Raising Concerns at Work | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Placements and Admissions | This chapter has been amended to note the importance of a child’s belonging’s being transferred in appropriate luggage and to add a link to the NYAS ‘My Things Matter’ Report – support and respect care-experienced children and their belongings when they move. (See Section 3, Planning). |
| Care and Placement Planning | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Looked After Reviews and Disruption Meetings | This chapter has been refreshed. |
| Moving to Another Placement | This chapter has been amended to add a link to the NYAS ‘My Things Matter’ Report – support and respect care-experienced children and their belongings when they move. (See Section 2, Arrangements for Transfer or Discharge). |
| New Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Consultation and Participation | This chapter has been added. |
| Equality and Diversity | This chapter has been added. |
| Health and Safety | This chapter has been added. |
| Risk Assessment and Planning | This chapter has been added. |
| Female Genital Mutilation | This chapter has been added. |
| Leadership and Management | This chapter has been added. |
| Staffing and Safe Recruitment | This chapter has been added. |
| Recording and Reporting of Incidents | This chapter has been added. |
| Removed Chapters | |
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| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Staying in Touch, Safe Use of the Internet, Social Media and Taking Photographs | A link to Childnet toolkit to support parents and carers with internet use has been added. |
| Education | This chapter has been amended to reflect Keeping Children Safe in Education Statutory Guidance and the outcome of Ofsted’s thematic report, Review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges (June 2021). Please see Section 5, Safeguarding in Schools. New Section 2.1, Placing the Child and Section 2.2, The Role of the Virtual Head (VSH) have been added and additional material has enhanced Section 2.3, Personal Education Plans (PEPs). Section 5, Safeguarding in Schools has been updated to reflect the importance of sharing allegations or concerns about an adult’s behaviour as set out in Keeping Children Safe in Education (2021). |
| Use of Restraint | A link has been added to Ofsted guidance Positive environments Where Children Can Flourish. |
| Countering Bullying and Peer Abuse | This chapter has been amended to reflect Keeping Children Safe in Education Statutory Guidance, the outcome of Ofsted’s thematic report, Review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges (June 2021) and the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. See Section 2, Definition of Bullying and Peer Abuse and Section 3, Responding to Bullying. |
| Missing Children | This chapter has been updated. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Residential Child Care – Key Principles | This chapter has been given a general refresh. |
| Staying in Touch, Safe Use of the Internet, Social Media and Taking Photographs | A link has been added in Further Information to the NSPCC Report Remove Tool and the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) Digital Passport. |
| Staff Qualifications and Employment Checks | A note has been added regarding the checks which employers must carry out to ensure that any person applying to work in the home has the right to work in the UK. See Section 3, Safe Recruitment and Employment Checks. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Recognising Abuse and Neglect | This guidance has been updated to reflect changes from the revised Working Together to Safeguard Children. |
| Referring Safeguarding Concerns | This section of the procedures manual has been updated to reflect changes contained in the revised Working Together to Safeguard Children. |
| Allegations Against Staff and Volunteers | A fourth bullet point has been added into Section1, Introduction to reflect the revised guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children. The new bullet point means this procedure now also covers situations where an individual has behaved or may have behaved in a way that indicates they may not be suitable to work with children. This is to capture concerns around transferable risk; for example where a person who works in the home is involved in a domestic abuse incident and this may have implications for their suitability to work with children. |
| New Chapters and Features | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) and County Lines | This new guidance provides information on Child Criminal Exploitation, including county lines. It describes the signs and indicators that children are being exploited, and offers guidance for staff in Children's Homes on how they can respond to keep children safe from harm linked to criminal exploitation. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Allegations Against Staff and Volunteers | This guidance has been reviewed and updated throughout. |
| Notification of Serious Events | This procedure has been updated to reflect the latest Ofsted guidance for social care providers on the types of incident which they consider to be serious, and which therefore will require notification to the regulatory authority. |
| Staff Qualifications and Employment Checks | This guidance has been reviewed and updated throughout. |
| New Chapters and Features | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Surveillance and Monitoring | This new chapter provides guidance on the use of surveillance and monitoring equipment in Children's Homes. It is based on information published by Ofsted. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Notification of Serious Events | This procedure which explains which agencies and individuals should be notified when a serious event occurs in relation to a child living in a Children’s Home, has been updated to reflect revised guidance issued by Ofsted in August 2019. The revised guidance sought to clarify what is meant by a ‘serious event’ with the aim of reducing the overall number of notifications made to Ofsted, and in particular reducing the number of repeat notifications made as a result of submitting additional / updated information. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Notification of Serious Events | This procedure has been reviewed throughout and extensively updated as required to reflect the latest advice from Ofsted in relation to the notification of serious events. |
| Moving to Another Placement | This guidance has been reviewed throughout and updated as required. Section 2, Arrangements for Transfer or Discharge has been updated to include a note on the actions placing authorities are required to undertake if a young person is moving from the home into an unregulated placement. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Education | This guidance has been updated to reflect amendments introduced by the Children and Social Work Act 2017 and related statutory guidance. These changes relate to the status of ‘Previously Looked After Children’; a Previously Looked After Child is one who is no longer looked after in England and Wales because they are the subject of an Adoption, Special Guardianship or Child Arrangements Order which includes arrangements relating to with whom the child is to live, or when the child is to live with any person, or has been adopted from ‘state care’ outside England and Wales. A new Section 5, Safeguarding in School shas also been added. |
| Recognising Abuse and Neglect | Section 6, Sexual Abuse and Section 8, Bullying (including Online/Cyberbullying) have been eviewed and completely updated. |
| Care and Placement Plans Guidance | This guidance has been reviewed throughout and updated as required. Information in relation to Pathway Plans was updated to reflect that care leavers can request support from local authorities up to the age of 25 years. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Residential Child Care – Key Principles | Section 3, Achieving the Key Principles has been updated to reflect the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018, and explains that children looked after in Children’s Homes should be helped to understand the types of personal information which is kept in their case records, what it is used for, who it will be shared with and how long it will be kept for. The child’s right to access their case record should also be explained to them. |
| Children’s Guide | This guidance has been updated to reflect publication of the General Data Protection Regulations and Data Protection Act 2018 and recommends that Children’s Guides contain information for children and young people on the data / records which the home keeps on them, as well as explaining the right of children and young people to access their case file. |
| Information Sharing and Confidentiality | This guidance has been reviewed throughout and updated as required to reflect the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018 and revised DfE Guidance on Information Sharing for Safeguarding Practitioners. |
| Case Recording | This guidance has been reviewed and updated to reflect publication of the General Data Protection Regulations and Data Protection Act 2018. |
| Contact with Parents/Carers/Siblings and Others | Section 2, Different Types of Contact has been updated to reflect the ways children and young people can use mobile communication including social media to keep in touch with family and friends. |
| Access to Records | This guidance has been reviewed and updated to reflect publication of the General Data Protection Regulations and Data Protection Act 2018. |
| Health and Emotional Well-being Assessments and Plans | Section 2, Health and Emotional Well-being Assessments has been updated to include information on the circumstances in which young people can consent to their own health and emotional well being assessments and treatment. |
| Smoking and Alcohol | This section has been updated to include additional information on e-cigarettes / vapes. |
| Preparation for Leaving Care | This chapter has been updated throughout to reflect the Children and Social Work Act 2017 and 3 new statutory guidance documents which require local authorities to offer Personal Adviser support to all care leavers up to the age of 25, to publish their Local Offer for care leavers and to have regard to seven 'corporate parenting principles'. |
| Updated Chapters | |
| Chapter Name | Details |
| Safeguarding Children and Young People from Sexual Exploitation | Section 1, Introduction has been revised throughout to include additional information on the nature of child sexual exploitation and its impact on young people. Section 2, Indicators of Possible Sexual Exploitation has also been updated included to reflect the complexity of child sexual exploitation, including situations where young people are both perpetrators and victims of abuse. |
| Identifying and Supporting Children and Young People Vulnerable to Violent Extremism including Radicalisation | Section 1, Introduction / Definitions has been updated to include additional information for staff on what is meant by the term extremism, an explanation of the processes by which young people can be exposed to the messages of extremist groups has also been added. |
| Self Harm and Suicidal Behaviour | Section 2, Planning and Prevention has been updated to provide additional guidance for staff on how to respond to young people in our care who are feeling suicidal or who are self harming. A note has also been added to stress the importance of offering appropriate support to staff members and other young people living in the home when incidents of self harm have taken place. |
| Looked After Reviews | This guidance has been reviewed throughout and updated to include additional detail on the circumstances in which Children’s Independent Safeguarding and Reviewing Officers (CISROs) should look to bring forward a child’s Looked After Review. See Section 2, Frequency of Looked After Reviews for full details. |
