Issue - meetings

This report sets out the safeguarding assurance arrangements the Local Authority has in place. It aims to provide assurance to the Health and Wellbeing Select Committee that children and adults with care and support needs are effectively safeguarded.

The Head of Safeguarding & Quality Assurance introduced this report to the Select Committee. She informed them that from 1st April 2017 Virgin Care will be responsible for managing safeguarding concerns regarding adults with care and support needs; however, AWP will continue to manage concerns relating to individuals with mental ill health in the same way they do currently.

She added that the Local Authority team are responsible for chairing the Safeguarding Adult meetings and AWP and Virgin Care will administer and coordinate the cases.

She stated that safeguarding is embedded in all services that are within the scope of Your Care Your Way.  The overarching contract with Virgin Care has a specific safeguarding schedule which includes health and social care safeguarding requirements.. There is also a specific specification about Statutory Adult Social Care functions and this includes details about safeguarding.

She said that agencies which are part of the dynamic purchasing system the safeguarding schedule will also apply. This provides the Local Authority, BaNES NHS CCG, LSCB and LSAB assurance that safeguarding responsibilities are clearly and consistently articulated for all agencies commissioned under Your Care Your Way.

She explained that the LSCB and LSAB Annual Reports and business plan are shared with Scrutiny Panels and the Health and Wellbeing Board. She added that within the Annual Reports all partner agencies complete an account of how they are performing with the Board indicators and what their agencies are doing to ensure the safeguarding of children and or adults.

She informed them that the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) provides the Boards with further assurance that children and adults at risk are not being missed. It does this by gathering information from a number of agencies about cases the Local Authority and Sirona care and health have a concern about but on the information first received are not confident the threshold for safeguarding intervention has been reached. By taking an enhanced look through gathering information from more sources a more effective decision can be made as to how to proceed and whether safeguarding is in fact required.

Councillor Lin Patterson asked who has responsibility for safeguarding within Academies.

The Head of Safeguarding & Quality Assurance replied that this would be done by the Academies themselves as the Local Authority has no right to attend. She added that they are required to complete a Section 175 Self-Assessment which the Governors have to sign off. She said that if staff have concerns they can report it to the LADO (Local Authority Designated Officer). She said that the Child Protection Forums are well attended by the majority of schools and academies.

 The Select Committee RESOLVED to note the safeguarding assurance arrangements the Local Authority has in place.