Solihull Local Safeguarding Children Board

The work of the LSCB is carried out through the main board and the following sub-groups:

• Training sub group
• Child Death Overview Process
• Practice & Procedures sub group
• Chairpersons sub group

Membership

Membership under review

The LSCB  produced a Business Plan for 2011/12 which set out the work of the LSCB and its sub groups. 

Solihull Safeguarding Children Board

Solihull Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) has been created under the Children Act 2004. It is the statutory body responsible for protecting children at risk of significant harm, and contributing to the safeguarding and promoting the welfare of every child and young person.

The responsibilities of the Board are more extensive than their predecessor Area Child Protection Committees (ACPCs), and it is intended to have a more authoritative role in ensuring that agencies serving children collaborate effectively in children's interests.

The Chair of the Board is Mark Rogers and the responsibilities of the Chairperson are clearly defined in a job description. 

The LSCB has the lead responsibility for meeting one of the Government's key objectives for children as set out in the guidance under the Children Act 2004; that of staying safe. This includes prevention of significant harm or the risk of significant harm, as well as the wider remit of ensuring that every child's welfare is safeguarded. In doing so, it contributes to the other four key outcomes for children, which are:

• Being Healthy
• Enjoying and Achieving
• Making a positive contribution
• Achieving economic well-being

Values of Solihull LSCB

The following shared values guide the work of the LSCB and are promoted by all Board Members.

1. All children and young people have a right to be safe from abuse and neglect.
2. All our work is underpinned by the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
3. Children and young people's well-being and safety will be at the heart of all our work.
4. All children and young people are unique and all our work will consider and address issues of diversity and vulnerability.
5. Agencies and their staff have a shared responsibility to work together and safeguard children and young people and promote their welfare.
6. Prevention strategies will be an important aspect of our work to safeguard children and young people.
7. The active involvement of children, young people and their families will be incorporated in our work.

Core functions of Solihull LSCB:

Solihull LSCB will perform a number of core functions which can be seen as either preventative, proactive or reactive in respect of children and young people up to the age of 18 years who are residing permanently or temporarily in the Borough.

Whilst the LSCB has a broad interest in all children and young people, a significant amount of the work of the LSCB will focus on those children and young people who are at risk of significant harm or experiencing significant harm.

Preventative core functions

Preventive activity is that which affects all children and young people and aims to identify and prevent maltreatment, or impairment of health or development, and ensuring children and young people are growing up in circumstances consistent with safe and effective care. 

 Solihull LSCB will undertake the following preventive work: -

• Develop safe recruitment guidance/standards and human resources practices to assist those who employ individuals who work with children and young people to safeguard children and young people.
• Commission multi-agency training to enable those who work with children/ young people to identify abuse and neglect.
• Work to involve and inform the professional and wider community of what they can do to safeguard and promote the welfare of children/young people and who to contact if they have a concern about a child or young person.
• Work ensure children and young people know who they can contact when they have concerns about their own or others safety and welfare.
• Develop a set of standards for organisations that work with children to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of what is done by each local agency individually and collectively to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people in the area through audit and evaluation including those key people and organisations that have a duty under section 11 of the Children Act 2004 or section 157 or 175 of the Education Act 2002 .
• Analyse information about every child death to ensure lessons are learnt.

Proactive core functions

Proactive work aims to target particular groups of children and young people, namely those who are considered to have additional vulnerabilities.  Solihull LSCB will undertake the following proactive work: -

• Promote a level of agreement and understanding across agencies about operational definitions and thresholds for intervention.
• Develop and evaluate thresholds and procedures for responding to the needs of children and young people’s including those who are identified as ‘in need’ under the Children Act 1989 but where the child is not suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.
• Raise awareness of the vulnerabilities of and influence service provision to specific groups of children/young people in the professional and wider community .
• Ensure local planning and commissioning of children’s services takes safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people into account.
• Act as a ‘Responsible Authority’ under the Licensing Act 2003 with regard to the Licensing Objective ‘protection of children from harm’.
• As required, work with other LSCB’s address issues that span the boundaries of local areas. e.g. establishing procedures to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people who move between Local Authority areas.

Responsive core functions

Responsive work targets, children and young people who are suffering or at risk of suffering harm and includes work to protect these children and young people. Solihull LSCB will undertake the following responsive work: -

• Develop and disseminate inter-agency policy and procedures to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people who are suffering or are at risk of suffering maltreatment and monitor the implementation and effectiveness of such procedures.
• Commission multi-agency training to enable those who work with children/young people to respond effectively to children and young people who are suffering or are at risk of suffering maltreatment.

For more information on Local Safeguarding Children Boards please click here

Solihull LSCB Challenge and Improvement Tool and Business Plans

The then DCSF produced a tool in response to a need identified by LSCBs. Its use is entirely voluntary. The Tool focuses on effective governance as a starting point for establishing strong relationships, clear accountability and transparency of operation and purpose. Solihull LSCB completed the Challenge and Improvement Tool as part of its work programme for 2009/10  and a copy of the completed tool can be to the right of this section.  The information gathered by completing the Challenge and Improvement Tool was used to inform business planning for 2010/11.  The Business Plans for 2009/10 and 2010/11 are to the right of this page.  In 2010/11, extracts of Local Government Improvement and Development (LGID)/London Safeguarding Children Board document: Improving local safeguarding outcomes: Developing a strategic quality assurance framework to safeguard children were completed to support the LSCB evaluate it's own effectiveness as a partnership.

Solihull LSCB meeting summary

After each Solihull LSCB meeting a summary will be produced and available online.  Please see the attachments to the top right of this page.

Contact us

To provide feedback or if you have a query about the content of this page, please use the following details:

Solihull Local Safeguarding Children Board
The Bluebell Centre
West Mall
Chelmsley Wood
B37 5TN
Telephone: 0121 788 4325
Fax: 0121 788 4414
Email: lscb@solihull.gov.uk