WAKEFIELD SINGLE ASSESSMENT AND SAFETY …wakefieldchildcare.proceduresonline.com/files/single_assess_plan.pdfWAKEFIELD SINGLE ASSESSMENT AND SAFETY PLAN PRACTICE GUIDANCE September

WAKEFIELD SINGLE ASSESSMENT AND

SAFETY PLAN PRACTICE GUIDANCE

September 2017

Safety is defined as ‘strengths demonstrated

as protection over time’.

(Boffa and Podesta, 2004)

Single Assessment and Plan Practice Guidance

2

CONTENTS

Introduction

3

Model of Assessment

3

Information about family composition and others connected to the case

3

How to complete a genogram

4-5

Chronology of significant events Troubled Families criteria Visits Information Gathered Views & feelings of the child and the parents’ goals and views How to elicit the best information regarding a concern

5 5-6 6 6 6 7-8

Writing your harm/worry statement and safety goal

9

Scaling questions

10-11

What needs to happen – Next Steps Best questions

12 12

Family Safety Plan

12-14

Reviewing the case

14

Gather information, analyse, plan

15

Partnership working

15

Review Decision & Management Decision

15

Information sharing and consent

15

Single Assessment & Safety Plan template

16-24


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INTRODUCTION Wakefield Council is committed to using resources towards greater prevention and early intervention. Our aim is to reduce the demand for specialist services by preventing children growing up and experiencing complex family issues such as domestic abuse, mental illness, substance misuse, crime, anti-social behaviour and poor aspirations for their future. We aim to identify children and families with high risk factors and low protective factors and provide support at the earliest opportunity with an effective and more personalised service. It is Wakefield Council’s vision that all services will use the Signs of Safety approach to keep every child safe by 2018. Signs of Safety will be the building blocks of how we practice and meaningfully engage with families. MODEL OF ASSESSMENT We have adopted the single assessment and plan as a holistic model of assessment. This model is consistent with the Framework of Assessment as set out in Working Together 2015. The framework principles and parameters of good assessment (WT 2015, page 21) are used throughout the Signs of Safety approach as the mechanism for the assessment of need for children, young people and families. The process is consistent with Working Together procedures in Wakefield and supports a common language and understanding across professionals, partner agencies and families. It places the need to listen to children, young people and families at the heart of every assessment. The Single Assessment is a tool which supports professionals to identify clearly what they are worried about in terms of the child(ren’s) development needs, family and environmental factors and parenting capacity. It is directly linked to the statutory assessment and uses the same language and model regardless of level of concern. INFORMATION ABOUT THE FAMILY COMPOSITION & OTHERS CONNECTED TO THE CASE Page 1 of the Single Assessment Initial Meeting with the Family This section relates to the family dynamics, e.g. who lives in the home?

Child/Young Person’s Details

Practitioner(s) Name – all social workers/early help worker who have recorded information in this assessment.

Reason for the Assessment and consent– this is based on the referral. The MASH team will include details of their checks in this section.

Page 2

Type of assessment

Early Help Plan/WeCAF - Details if there has been a previous plan in place

Strategy Discussion, Section 47 – details if relevant Page 3/4/5 – Family Composition

Name/ID – other children in the family who may need to be considered under this assessment. Are they subject to a plan?

Assessment of disability or communication needs – actions taken

Persons connected to the family – this will support early identification of naturally connected people who may form a safety network

Page 6

Professional Involvement – details of other professionals involved in the safety plan


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HOW TO COMPLETE A GENOGRAM (FAMILY TREE) When completing a genogram we need to consider the wider family network including those individual who are friends and neighbours who are supporting the family unit. This could include;

non-resident parents

step siblings

new partners

grandparents

friends

aunts and uncles

anyone who support or visit the household Ensure that you gain as much information about them as possible, this may include them having parental responsibility for a child/young person. If you gain a better understanding at this early stage in developing the genogram (Family Tree) you will be able to use this knowledge to support the identification of a Safety Network. BASIC GENOGRAM SYMBOLS

Two people who are married are connected by lines that go down and across, with the husband on the left and the wife on the right.

Couples that are not married are depicted with a dotted line.

Children are drawn left to right, going from the oldest to the youngest.


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Symbols Denoting Substance Misuse and/or Mental Health Problems

Symbols Denoting Interactional Patterns between People

Page 6 of the Single Assessment

Chronology of significant events – factual details relevant to why the case is open right now – this will help to identify trends over time. As the child’s journey progresses the Review Conference Report and Core Group Meeting Record will only require new events to be added over the life of the case.

Troubled Families Criteria The Troubled Families national programme is an important part of the local authority’s support framework for families. In order for us to identify those families who may need more intensive support we will need to consider the criteria below as part of the assessment process:

Please record if the family meet more than one of the 6 troubled families criteria below: If the child or young person is involved in crime or anti-social behaviour

If the adult or young person is out of work, at risk of worklessness, or at risk of financial exclusion

If the adult, child, or young person has a health problem or a range of health problems

If the child or young person; is not attending school regularly, has been excluded, is home educated or attends alternative provision

Child is assessed as needing early help, a Child in Need, subject to a Child Protection Plan, Looked After, reported as missing, at risk of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) or Harmful Sexualised Behaviour (HSB), or a young carer

If a person in the family is experiencing or perpetrating domestic violence/abuse


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The inclusion of families into the programme will be based upon a cluster of the six headline areas of concern above of which families must meet at least two areas. The Troubled Families Programme is focussed on families with multiple high cost problems and will continue to include families affected by poor school attendance, youth crime, anti-social behaviour and unemployment. The criteria identified must be used as to inform your assessment and be factored in to your worry/harm statement, success/safety goals and safety planning.

Visits – please record the number of assessment visits by date and state if the child has seen/seen alone. Information Gathered – Page 8/9 This section will capture checks and discussions with other agencies, this may be started by the MASH team and additional information may be added by the allocated social worker. You must record the name of the professional providing the information and the date they provided it and your name. If an assessment is started and during the information gathering section it has been identified that there is no evidence to support the referral/allegation all analysis and decisions should be recorded in this section. VIEWS & FEELINGS OF THE CHILD AND WHAT ARE THE PARENTS’ GOALS & VIEWS Page 9 Bring forward the child’s perspective through the Three Houses and/or other direct work tools and ensure these are shared with the Family’s Safety Network meeting. Don’t under-estimate the impact of parents’ seeing/hearing the child’s own 3 houses describing their experience of everyday life in the family home as this can create a significant breakthrough where the adults put aside their own shame, blame and differences and will more readily work together for the children. The child’s voice should be captured throughout the assessment; in the danger statement, safety goal and safety planning.

It is important to capture the use of parents’ own words in relation to how well they are engaging with safety planning for their child(ren) and how well they feel they can commit/contribute to the roles and responsibilities as set out in the safety plan. Although there is space to capture the parents’ views in this section it is important to thread their views throughout the assessment. The safety network views can help to manage ‘denial’ issues when families and professionals at times have different views about the worry, which can escalate to a disagreement and impact on maintaining relationships and working the case. Using best questions ask different members of the safety network their views to gain multiple perspectives can help to make head way in challenging situations. SIGNS OF SAFETY MAPPING & ANALYSIS Map the case using the Signs of Safety Framework; include analysis on Child Development Needs, Parenting Capacity and Family & Environmental Factors. Ensure that you include any of the areas identified against the Troubled Families criteria. If a decision is made that a referral/allegation on investigation is unfounded minimal information would be captured in the mapping section.


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HOW TO ELICIT THE BEST INFORMATION REGARDING A CONCERN Page 10 – If known to social care record past harm from the chronology which is relevant to the case. Work on the basis of first, worst and last proven incidents of actual harm. The best question format supports practitioners in asking the best question when working with a family. In order to understand the situation/issue fully we have provided you with a best questions format, this format will support your completion of page 1. See Best Question Format Below:

WHAT ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT? WHAT IS WORKING WELL?

HARM / WORRY – What are we worried about and what is the impact on

the child

SAFETY – Tested and Proven behaviour which has reduced the worry

and kept the child safe – Time when the child was protected in the past

even when the risk was present, this will help to inform the Family

Safety Plan. (This may include actions of people other than the parents)

Best Questions Best Questions

o What is the past harm which has

taken place? When was the first

time, worst time or last time that

actual harm was evident?

o What has been the behaviour that

has caused this?

o What has been the known impact of

this?

o Has there been any harm - What is

the worst effect of the harm so far?

o How often has this happened?

o Have there been any triggers/red

flags which led to this harm?

o What do Health and Education

Professionals say- what is their

evidence to support this?

o What does the child say as part

of the 3 houses work?

o What does it look like from the

child’s perspective

o Who or what is keeping this child

safe right now?

o How do you know they are safe?

o Has there been a time when a

child was going to… (issues

linked to worry)… but stopped?

o Has there been a time when

mum/dad have successfully

managed the worry?


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WHAT ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT? WHAT IS WORKING WELL?

COMPLICATING FACTORS – what is making the problem harder to

deal with, what are the behaviours which significantly add to the

danger

STRENGTHS - Dig deep to identify the strengths in the family that you

can build on – what are the best things about the parents and their care

of the children

Best Questions Best Questions

o What has happened, what did

the referrer/SW/early help worker

see/hear to make them have a

worry about this child? How do

they know this?

o What are the behaviours that

pose a risk to this child? How do

you know?

o Is there anything in this child’s or

family’s life that is making this

situation harder to deal with?

NB for case closure: these questions

must be asked because if they still

exist with no strengths or safety it is

highly unlikely that this case can

safely step down or be closed.

o When did worry/ issues start to

become a concern

o Was there anything that

triggered this

o What is making this situation

hard? What would others say?

o What is it that concerns you?

(what does that look like, what

do you think might happen?

o Do you have any concerns in

respect of worries for the

siblings?

o What has been done to address

the worry? How did this help?

o Has there been a time when

things were a bit better? What was

different then? How was this

achieved?

o Who are the people that support

this child / family? If so please

provide details (information should

be mapped on the

genogram/family tree)

o Are you aware of anybody who is

able to offer immediate support to

this child/family? (information

should be mapped on the

genogram/family tree)

o Who has been helping the child

to address the concerns?

o Tell me about the best ways that

parents have managed this?

o How worried are the parents

about this issue

o What’s the best advice that mum

would give to another parent if

they were in a similar situation?

Can they recognise and reflect

on the worries?

o What are the best ways that

mum/dad are trying to/ have

address the concerns?

o What are the best ways they are

managing the other children?

(i.e. if the worry is child specific


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WRITING YOUR WORRY/DANGER STATEMENT & SAFETY GOAL Page 10-12 A Danger/Worry Statement clearly states in understandable, simple language, descriptions of danger/ worry. These are the most critical statements to get and can be developed from your “What are we worried about” “What’s working well” columns. Without danger statements written in language that everyone, both professional and family can understand, we are unable to clearly articulate in simple language the worries we have about the child/ren. Focus this questioning around using the best questions format - i.e.: Who is worried, what are they worried about and why……… ‘What are you most worried may happen to the children in the future if nothing changes?’ For example: ‘i.e. The Family Support Worker and the Social Workers are worried that Child 1(use names) and Child 2 will get really scared and may be hurt again, like the time Child 1 was pushed away and fell down the stairs, if Dad and Mum continue to use drugs so much that they can’t look after the children and give them the everyday care they need like having enough food in the house for the children and clean uniforms for school. To connect the worker’s sense of the danger to family members’ worries ask questions like:

‘What would the parents/children/extended family members say they are most worried will happen to the child(ren) in the future if nothing changes?’

‘What would they say you are worried about?’ When you have the content pretty much done, you often need to re-work and re-write it again to make it make sense. At this stage ask yourself is this danger/ worry statement in language that the family members can understand? Each danger statement must be linked to each safety goal (these are the bookends of the case). THE FAMILY SAFETY GOAL The Family Safety Goal is the agency’s ‘bottom-line’ statements that must be addressed for the case to be closed and for there to be no more worries. The safety goal should focus on the more general ‘what’ needs to be seen not the specifics of ‘how’. This should be written in simple and clear language that all family members can understand. The Safety Goal represents the 10 on your safety scale; you need to be very clear on what this looks like as a measure which you are aiming to achieve with the family. Each Family Safety Goal to be linked to the identified danger statement


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SCALING QUESTIONS: Throughout the assessment there are three steps: Gathering information, analysing information and reaching a judgement. The Safety/Worry scale in the Single Assessment and Plan, seeks to help professionals think through all the information they have gathered and make a judgement based on the worries specifically outlined in the Danger/Worry Statement.

Safety/Worry Scale 0 10

The child is certain to get harmed or harmed again / we are worried there is no safety for the child

The child is safe / we do not have any worries

Please scale how concerned you are about the child (directly related to the danger/worry statement(s)). Consider the child’s and parents’ perspectives.

Please provide your reasons for what brings you up to this point on the scale: In relation to the danger/worry statement, record the team around the family’s concerns/improvements and scaling? Everyone asked the scaling question should provide answers and they should be written as follows, ‘dad, Tom says he is keeping away from the people he knows use drugs…..’

On a scale of 0 – 10, where 0 means the situation for these children is so bad you feel that there are safeguarding risks as the child/ren is not safe or 10 where you have no concerns for this child/ren, where would you rate the situation right now?’ We can also use scaling questions with families and children, exploring the strengths, and worries of a case. i.e. Ask scaling questions around issues identified in the Danger/Worry Statement ‘On a scale of zero to ten, where would you rate your relationship with your mum’s boyfriend, (your mother, your child etc.) Where 10 is you can talk openly with them about problems you may have and what is good in your life and you can talk together about the positive aspect of your life and get encouragement, or zero is you have no relationship with that person at all and they won’t even talk to you, where would you rate your relationship with them?’


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Scaling Questions can also be used in supervision with your line managers – On a scale of zero to ten, where would you rate your relationship with this father (mother, child etc.) Where 10 is you can talk openly with them about the worries and what is working well in their life and you can talk together about what can be done about the worries, or zero is you have no working relationship with that person at all and they won’t even engage with you, where would you rate your relationship with them?’ ‘Where would they rate their working relationship with you?’ Remember: a good working relationship is key to a good outcome! No working relationship, no change! So spend time on this area. It is important that when scaling we are able to clearly state our reasons for scaling, related to the danger statement. This is a safety scale and you need to weigh up the existing safety and strengths v the past harm and complicating factors.


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WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN - NEXT STEPS Page 13 – Future Safety – What is the immediate Safety Plan to keep the child(ren) safe in the short term? Once the safety goals are established its time to talk next steps: What steps are you going to put in place to keep the child safe, what needs to happen in the short term (future safety)? This section replaces the need to complete a Written Agreement with the family.

‘So if that is the safety goal, what do you think is the smallest next step in moving toward, getting that to happen all the time?

‘You rated the situation 3 out of 10 on the safety scale, what needs to happen next to move things up to a 4?’

‘What would mum/dad/child/aunty/child’s advocate/health visitor or doctor say the next step was?’

These goals then inform case direction and provide clear information to the parents about what they need to do to keep the child(ren) safe and help you to complete the Safety Plan. BEST QUESTIONS Use best questions to help you to find out more information. Best questions are used to help you to balance and explore worries with what’s working well; this will produce a shared assessment and encourage families to take responsibility to build solutions. When professionals can ground their work in an inquiry using best questions rather than take an expert stance this will help to prioritise family member’s thinking about the opportunities and struggles their relationships and connections pose for each other. It is then more likely that they will be able to play an active role in thinking through and addressing the child protection concerns. SAFETY PLAN - CHILD CENTRED, FAMILY OWNED Page 13-17 Record the type of Plan. If ‘Other’ has been selected record that the plan will be taken forward by the family. Set out the steps they need to follow in the immediate Safety Plan section and if required in the full Safety Plan. Effective Planning with the Family Developing an effective family plan using the Signs of Safety approach is designed to create a proactive, structured and monitored process that provides parents, children extended family members involved in services with a genuine opportunity, to demonstrate that they can provide care for their children in ways that improve their family’s situation. Professionals often believe they have a family safety plan in place when what they actually have is a list of services family members must attend. It is a mantra of the Signs of Safety approach that a service plan is NOT a Family Safety Plan. A safety plan is a specific set of agreements and arrangements that describe how the family will go about and live its


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everyday life that shows everyone, the professionals, the family’s own safety network and the children that the worries outlined in the danger statement will be managed. Preparation In social care services when we consider planning for a family it usually consists of the professionals assigning various services to address the issue. However, when family safety planning we need to ensure that family is at the heart of identifying what action they need to take to improve the family situation and be proactive in leading on this. This is not to say that the family would not need additional services to support them but it is essential that professionals work with and help families to find solutions to their problem rather than immediately offering services without considering the families capacity to manage the situation within itself. Social workers will need to be clear on the timeline for the plan to be achieved when the family engage, you must see a consistent behavioural change and that they meet the agreed safety goals. The trajectory is a professional judgement which will be subject to change as the case develops but provides the family with clear timescales to work towards as much as possible so that they can see small steps being achieved. This trajectory must be over sufficient time to demonstrate sustainable child safety and ensure that children are less likely to be re-referred. Bottom Lines The Family Safety Goal is the agency’s ‘bottom-line’ statements that must be addressed for the case to be able to be closed and there be no more worries. This should be written in simple and clear language that all family members can understand as they are not negotiable. They usually are:

Informed safety network of connected people developed

Develop a words and pictures explanation for the child(ren)

Parents and safety network members come up with the safety plan which show how the bottom lines, rules of the plan and danger statement will be met

Safety Plan for the child(ren)

Plus an local authority bottom lines (keep these to a minimum) Evolving Rule of the Family Safety Plan The family safety plan must have evolving rules/actions that address particular stressors, triggers, red flags or worries; they are built from existing safety. They must be clear on who does what and how when danger is present so that the safety goals are met to keep the child safe, it might include:

How a couple will deal with conflict to avoid violence.

How a parent will deal with depression, or high level anxiety or other mental distress/illness and still make sure the children are well cared for whatever their mental state.

How a young parent will meet her needs to have fun and ‘party’ and also make sure the children are well cared for when doing so.

How parents will deal with the issue of drug or alcohol use. Whether the plan will be a sobriety plan or a plan where if the parents ‘use’ others are involved to make sure the children are okay or a plan where the parents can manage their use so they can still provide good care of the children.

How the parents will deal with particular stressors such as anniversaries of previous traumatic events such as the death of a previous child, dealing with critical extended family members, dealing with stressful times of day etc.


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How parents will deal safely with the children when they display the worst of their behaviour (this is particularly important if children have behavioural problems, mental health problems, developmental delays that create management challenges).

Services that the parents or family members have asked to (or must) attend. How the network is going to support that attendance.

This section replaces the need to complete a Written Agreement with the family. The Family Safety Network The Safety Network is a group of people identified through the development of the genogram (family tree) by the parents who can assist them in caring for the children and support implementing the family safety plan. If a child is to be safe there should be at least 3 people in a safety network who are not professionals working with the family. Where a family network is required these people must also be fully informed about the concerns and their role within that, this includes what they will do if they see a problem. Developing a family safety plan can be done in a multi-agency meeting or by holding a Family Network Meeting. If the family identify people who support them then it is always best to hold a family network meeting so that everyone is clear on who is doing what and when. STEPS IN THE PLAN Straightforward, Understandable Description of the Concerns Beginning the Safety Plan depends on professionals being able to articulate the worry they see for the children in clear, simple language that the parents (even if they don’t agree) can understand and will work on with the professionals. Clear, commonly understood danger statements are essential since they outline issues that the family safety plan must address. The steps must support the family and their network to achieve the overarching safety goals. The family need to set out the dates when the steps will be achieved, who will help them (when, how) and with the support of the social worker and any relevant services. Social workers need to be clear on the expected behaviours that parents need to demonstrate over time to keep their child(ren) safe. Progress towards achieving the steps will be captured in the plan and dated in Core Groups or Child in Need Meetings. Contingency Plans Social workers will need to be clear on what parents and the safety network members need to do if the plan breaks down and what constitutes an emergency. REVIEWING CASES IN CORE GROUPS OR CHILD IN NEED MEETINGS When the new Core Group or CiN Meeting Record is launch all relevant details from the single assessment will be pulled through. Social Workers will need to update the meeting record to reflect new information shared, discussed and agreed in the meeting. The family safety plan is now in place and the family safety network is clear about what their roles and responsibilities are within that plan. It is important to identify who will do what and when. Social workers need to be clear who is supporting the family and who is supporting the child(ren) as this might not be the same person. If the member is supporting the child be clear on what they do, how often they visit the child, how they check on the child’s safety and how they help out. The role of professionals needs to be clear on how they will support the parents and safety network members and how they will monitor the safety plan so that it is effective and agreed


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actions are achieved, whilst also being clear about their responsibility to report any concerns or incidents which directly impacts on the child(ren’s) safety. The family need to be clear when the family safety plan is being regularly reviewed to ensure it is working; in core group, child in need meetings and supervision. Follow up dates and times of meetings should all be agreed and recorded in the plan during all meetings with everyone present. When reviewing the case we should always consider the original danger statement and safety goal, these are our book ends of the case and guides to see progression, we need to consider whether the family safety plan is being effective and whether we are moving away from the original worries and towards the safety goal. You must be clear on the impact that the safety plan is having on the child(ren) and record the behavioural changes you are seeing in the parents/family. It is essential that all of those (including the whole family network) re-scale using the safety/worry scale at this point. Tools which may help the parent and child include:

A Safety Journal to record and monitor progress made by the family and safety network which is reviewed at meetings to see progress and understand any difficulties which the family may have

Child’s safety object, chosen by the child and used to communicate when they are feeling worried – you need to be clear on how it will be used, if a test run is needed to see if the safety object works, checks on how adults in the child’s life notice that the object has changed and talks to the child about their worries.

GATHER INFORMATION, ANALYSE, PLAN Is the family safety plan effective, do more meetings with the safety network need to be held to gather information and develop a safety plan for the longer-term? Is the safety goal being achieved? Does the case need to ‘step up’ or ‘step down’ from this threshold? PARTNERSHIP WORKING (repeat at regular intervals)

Talk with partners and share information –

Partners scale the worries as outlined in the danger statement/safety goal in relation to the trajectory of the case.

Partners complete the Multi-agency Contribution to Meeting’s Report which clearly outlines their agencies danger/worry statement, safety goal and provides an update at the meeting on their agency’s contribution to supporting the child(ren), parents and safety network members

REVIEW DECISION (repeat at regular intervals)

Worker & supervisor review judgement, threshold and planned action

Group mapping and review in group supervision may be appropriate when the case is unclear, the trajectory is uncertain, or it is unusually complex

Review effectiveness of the safety plan and if parental behaviour is changing and safety is declining on the safety scale

Be ‘risk savvy’ in your analysis when considering the balance between - what are you worried about? and what’s working well?

Review effectiveness of the safety plan if the case is ‘stuck’ or has ‘drift’

Use the direct work with children to measure the impact of the safety plan on their everyday lived experience


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MANAGEMENT DECISION Team Managers to provide comments on the completed assessment and set out their key decisions on the case. Management oversight should be clear, concise, signed and dated. Section 47 decisions will be recorded in this section. Managers will need to monitor that the separate documents for Strategy Discussions and S47 have been opened to capature performance data. INFORMATION SHARING AND CONSENT Ensure that the child/young person/adult understands the process and knows who the information on this assessment will be shared with. Have them sign the assessment to agree that they understand and give their consent to share information with Wakefield Social Care teams, partner agencies and their safety network members who are recorded on the safety plan and other relevant services who may be able to help on a need to know basis. Explain that all information will be processed strictly in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and other relevant legislation.

Single Assessment & Safety Plan

Child/Young Person’s Details:

Child’s Name: Ethnicity:

ID No.: First Language:

DOB: Address:

EDD: Telephone No.:

Gender:

Client Alias (if exists):

Details

Practitioner's Name involved in this Assessment

Interpreter required?

Yes No

Reason(s) for Assessment (if this is an update what is the reason for the update e.g. conference, review, LAC update assessment)

Has consent for checks been given by person(s) with parental responsibility?

Yes No

If NO, please provide details


«cw_assessment.cw_title» «cw_assessment.cw_documentid» Client ID : «contact.cw_clientid», NHS No. : «contact.cw_nhsno»

Page 18 of 30

Type of Assessment

Pre-birth

Child In Need

Child Protection

LAC

Is there an Early Help Plan/WeCAF in place?

Yes No

If Yes, please provide details

Is a Strategy Meeting/Discussion Required?

(If Yes, please remember to add SoS Strategy Discussion Dates Form) Yes No

Strategy Discussion Date

Record of the Strategy Discussion, Attendance, Information Shared & Decision



Page 19 of 30

Is a Section 47 Investigation Required?

(If Yes, please remember to record the outcome on the separate S47 Enquiry Form) Yes No

Please provide full details of the S47 Enquiry/Investigation

Family Composition

Family Composition (people living in the household) (Provide full name of each child / young person / family member (inc parents/carers)

Name DOB/EDD Relationship (Indicate who has PR)

CareDirector ID

M/F Ethnicity Religion Disability First language

Subject to a plan

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

F

M

Yes No

Yes No

Family Composition (additional entries if required)



Page 20 of 30

Disability or Communication Needs

(Where a child/parent has a disability or where they have specific communication needs, what actions have been taken to address this?)

Family Tree (Genogram) include all people who are important to this family

(who live in the family home and naturally connected people, record the location of the genogram and date uploaded to Care Director)

Persons connected to the family

(including family and non-resident parents who don’t live in the home, friends, neighbours etc.)

Full Name Relationship (Indicate who has PR)

Supporting Who? Contact Details (inc address/email etc.)

Consulted in assessment?

Part of Safety Network

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Persons connected to the family (additional entries if required)

Professional Involvement

Full Name Job Title Supporting Who? Contact Details (inc address/email etc.)

Consulted in assessment?

Part of Safety Network

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No



Page 21 of 30

Yes No Yes No

Professional Involvement (additional entries if required)

Chronology / Visits

Chronology of Significant Events

Please record if the family meet more than one of the 6 Troubled Families criteria below:

If the child or young person is involved in crime or anti-social behaviour If the child or young person; is not attending school regularly, has been excluded, is home educated or attends Alternative Provision

If the adult or young person is out of work, at risk of worklessness, or at risk of financial exclusion

Child is assessed as needing early help, a Child in Need, subject to a Child Protection Plan, Looked After, reported as missing, at risk of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) or Harmful Sexualised Behaviour (HSB), or a young carer

If the adult, child, or young person has a health problem or a range of health problems If a person in the family is experiencing or perpetrating domestic violence/abuse

Visits

Date Name of Person with PR Name(s) of Other People Present

Child Seen Child Seen Alone

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No

Yes No Yes No



Page 22 of 30

Visits (additional entries if required)

Information Gathered

Include checks and discussion with other agencies, name of professional, date contacted. HEALTH

Child’s individual development needs

EDUCATION

Child’s individual development needs (school/nursery – special educational needs, level of attendance, attainment, presentation, pre-school attendance) involved parties – School Nurse, class teacher, Headteacher

CHILD/YOUNG PERSON’S OTHER DEVELOPMENT NEEDS

Describe the child/young person’s individual development and any outstanding needs in each area: Emotional and behavioural development, identity, family & social relationships, social presentation, self-care skills



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PARENTING CAPACITY

Parents/carers ability to respond appropriately to the needs of the child/young person. Basic care, ensuring safety, emotional warmth, stimulation, guidance and boundaries, stability

FAMILY & ENVIORNMENTAL FACTORS

Family and environmental factors which may impact on the child/young person and on the capacity of the parents/carers to provide care. Family history and functioning, wider family, housing, employment, income, family’s social integration, community resources

What are the Child's Views and Feelings?

What are the Parents’ Goals & Views?

What do the Parent's say? (in their own words)



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Signs of Safety Mapping & Analysis

Refer to the Assessment Framework and include analysis on; Child Development Needs, Parenting Capacity and Family & Environmental Factors. What are we worried about?

Past Harm: What past harm (factual) has the child suffered and the impact of this relevant to why we are working with the family now?

Complicating Factors: What is making this case harder to deal with, behaviours in the family which may pose a risk to the child/young person, patterns and themes identified?

What’s working well?

Existing Safety: Is there evidence that the child has been kept safe when the danger has been present? Has a problem happened but been dealt with in a way which did not result in harm?

Existing Strengths: What is working well for the family? What are the best things about the parents and their care of the child(ren)? Who supports and helps the parents and children?

Danger Statement/Safety Goal 1

Danger Statement : Who is worried, what has happened to the child that Wakefield Children’s Social Care are worried about and why are they worried in the short-long term if nothing changes (what does research tell us)

Safety Goal : What would Wakefield Children’s Social Care need to see to be confident that the child is safe and well so that they can close the case? Recognise strengths so that you can build on this (safety goals should focus on the more general ‘what’ needs to be seen not the specifics of ‘how’)

Safety Scale (1) On a scale of zero to ten; where 0 is the worry is present and the child will be hurt or harmed and 10 is everyone, including Wakefield Children’s Social Care, is confident the child will be well cared for and safe even when things get difficult in the family. Where would you, the child, the parents, family network members and other professionals rate the impact on the child?

Analysis (1) - What are the things (danger v safety) you see happening (be very specific) that brings you up to this point on the scale? (Add responses to the information under existing safety and existing strengths above if it directly connects to the worry statement)



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Safety Plan

Child Centred, Family Owned - What do the parents, safety network and practitioners intend to do to ensure that the safety goals are met to keep the child safe. Safety Plan for: If Other, please specify

What is the immediate Safety Plan to keep the child(ren) safe in the short term?

Date of Plan

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Date expected to complete the plan

(this trajectory must be over sufficient time to demonstrate sustainable child safety, this timeline may change if the safety steps are not met).

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Bottom Lines (local authority non-negotiables, these should be kept to a minimum)

Rules of the Safety Plan



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This is built from existing safety, it needs to address triggers and stressors, red flags and who does what when danger is present.

Safety Network - who are the members?

(Names and roles/responsibilities agreed to keep the child(ren) safe, including what they will do if they see a problem).

Next Steps

What steps need to happen to keep the child safe (to meet the safety goals)?

Dates for the Steps to achieve the Plan (Trajectory)

Who will do this? If they are not available who will pick this up?

What will be different (Focus on behaviours)? Progress updates and dates.



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Next Steps (additional entries if required)

Contingency Plans (in an emergency who does what)

Social Worker’s Signature

Date

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Management Decision

S47 Enquiry Decision

1. Concerns not substantiated

2. Concerns are substantiated, but the child/young person is not judged to be at continuing risk of significant harm

3. Concerns are substantiated, and the child/young person is judged to be at continuing risk of significant harm. A Child Protection Conference is required



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Management Decisions & Comments

Authorising Manager’s Signature

Date

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Parent Signature

I understand that information discussed with me in this assessment will be securely stored and used for the purpose of providing services to me and my children. I am aware that the information recorded can be shared with relevant services and my safety network agreed in this plan who may be able to help me and my child(ren).

Date

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Parent Signature

I understand that information discussed with me in this assessment will be securely stored and used for the purpose of providing services to me and my children. I am aware that the information recorded can be shared with relevant services and my safety network agreed in this plan who may be able to help me and my child(ren).

Date

D D M M Y Y Y Y

Documents

WAKEFIELD SINGLE ASSESSMENT AND SAFETY …wakefieldchildcare.proceduresonline.com/files/single_assess_plan.pdfWAKEFIELD SINGLE ASSESSMENT AND SAFETY PLAN PRACTICE GUIDANCE September