LOCAL SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN BOARD

OXFORDSHIRE SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN BOARD

INDEPENDENT CHAIR

JOB DESCRIPTION

  1. Main purpose of the role

1.1.To safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people in Oxfordshireby ensuring that the LSCB effectively fulfills its statutory functions as setout in Section 14 Children Act 2004, Regulation 5 of the Local Safeguarding Children BoardsRegulations 2006, Working Together 2015 and any arising statutory or legalrequirement. This is likely to be subject to change due to the imminent revisions to Working Together. Regulation 5 includes three principle areas:

1a)Developing policies and procedures for safeguarding and promoting the welfare ofchildren living in Oxfordshire, including policies and procedures in relation to:

i)The action to be taken where there are concerns about a child’s safety orwelfare, including thresholds for intervention;

ii)Training of persons who work with children or in services affecting the safetyand welfare of children;

iii)Recruitment and supervision of persons who work with children;

iv)Investigation of allegations concerning persons who work with children;

v)Safety and welfare of children who are privately fostered;

vi)Cooperation with neighbouring children’s services authorities and their Boardpartners;

b)Communicating to persons and bodies in the area of the authority the need tosafeguard and promote the welfare of children, raising their awareness of how thiscan best be done and encouraging them to do so;

c)Monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of what is done by the authority and theirBoard partners individually and collectively to safeguard and promote the welfare ofchildren and advising them on ways to improve;

d)Participating in the planning of services for children in the area of the authority; andundertaking reviews of serious cases and advising the authority and their Boardpartners on lessons to be learned.

(2) which relates to the LSCB Serious Case Reviews function and regulation 6 which relates to the LSCB Child Death functions are covered in Chapter 4 of Working Together 2015.

(3) provides that an LSCB may also engage in any other activity that facilitates, or is conducive to, the achievement of its objectives.

  1. Accountability
  1. Main duties and responsibilities
  2. To work closely with all LSCB partners and particularly with the Director of Children’sServices in Oxfordshire County Council.The Director has the responsibility within the local authority, under section 18 of theChildren Act 2004, for improving outcomes for children, local authority children’s social carefunctions and local cooperation arrangements for children’s services (Working Together toSafeguard Children 2015).
  3. To chair LSCB Board meetings and any additional LSCB meetings convened as a responseto specific and exceptional circumstances.
  4. To provide a strong leadership role to the Board and to ensure an independent, objective andauthoritative identity. To provide challenge where needed and to hold Board members andthe LSCB Sub-groups to account.
  5. To ensure that key issues and national developments are brought to the attention of andconsidered by the Local Safeguarding Children Board.
  6. To make a final decision as to whether or not notified cases meet the criteria for a seriouscase review, with recommendations from the Case Review and Governance (CRAG) subgroup Chair.
  7. To facilitate discussions on the Board budget and contributions from the partner agencies. Toensure that the allocated resources, financial and human are utilised to meet the LSCB’sobjectives and any shortfalls are brought to the attention of the funding agencies.
  8. Working closely with other LSCBs to maximise communication and learning across the region, whilst maintaining focus on improving outcomes forchildren and young people within Oxfordshire.
  9. Facilitate strong links and where appropriate joint arrangements between Oxfordshire and neighbouring LSCBs within the Thames Valley area.
  10. That the LSCB has influence by ensuring that the safeguarding performance by all agenciesis rigorously reviewed and monitored within the LSCB and that this leads to tangibleimprovements in the quality of service that children and young people receive.
  11. To publish an annual report on the effectiveness of child safeguarding and promoting thewelfare of children in the Local Authorities. The report will be submitted to the ChiefExecutives of the local authority, Leader of the Council, the local Police and CrimeCommissioner and the Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board. Added to that will be thebusiness plan with an agreed programme of work which is followed up and evidenced by wayof an annual report.
  12. To ensure, through the board and with others, that the voices of children, young people andtheir families are well presented in the work of the LSCB.
  13. To liaise with the Children’s Trust and the Health andWellbeing Boards and promote constructive challenge and support for the purpose ofimproving safeguarding arrangements for children and young people.
  14. To be compliant with the requirements from the National Serious Case Review Panel.
  15. To promote strong and effective working relationships between agencies and individualmembers of the LSCB.
  16. To represent the LSCB at national and regional meetings including the Regional and NationalAssociations of Independent Chairs and in public statements as appropriate.
  17. To provide leadership to the local LSCB seminars/conferences.
  18. To ensure the board is compliant with the key criteria and judgements for relevant Ofsted inspectionframeworks and to make themselves available during inspection periods as required.
  19. To ensure that the LSCB has regular and effective monitoring of front line practice.
  20. To ensure that the work of the LSCB is managed in line with the principles of promotingequality and respecting diversity for all children and young people.
  21. To communicate with the media on behalf of the LSCB, acting as figurehead for the LSCB.
  22. To work closely with the LSCB Business Manager and Business Unit for the Board tomanage the workload of the Board.
  1. Terms and Conditions
  2. It is the responsibility of the County Council’s Chief Executive to appoint or removethe LSCB Chair with the agreement of a panel including LSCB partners and lay members.The Chief Executive, drawing on other LSCB partners and, where appropriate, the LeadMember will hold the Chair to account for the effective working of the LSCB.
  3. This position is paid on a contracted Independent Consultancy basis, at a daily rateof circa £600 per day to include travel expenses; fees will be reviewed on an annual basis by the Directors of Children’sServices in partnership with other LSCB members.
  4. It is estimated that a minimum of 48 working days per annum will be required to fulfil theLSCB’s requirements, including time allocated to prepare for meetings, scrutinising draftminutes and other reports produced for LSCB meetings. A maximum of 120 working days per annum may be required to meet the demands of the workload.
  5. The fee will include travel and subsistence expenses incurred by the contractor.
  6. In addition to chairing the LSCB, the Chair may need to be available to attend other meetingsas appropriate and requested by the Board. The Chair will also ensure LSCB meeting dates for meetings they are chairing are not altered within 9 weeks of the meeting date, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
  7. It is anticipated that this post will be reviewed annually, through an appraisal process andformally reviewed after two years to ensure continued independence.
OXFORDSHIRE SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN BOARD / PERSON SPECIFICATION
Job title / Directorate / Location
Independent Chair for Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board / Children, Education and Families / To be determined
Note to applicants

Whilst all criterions below are important, those under the Essential heading are the key requirements. You should pay particular attention to these areas and provide evidence of meeting them. Failure to do so may mean that you will not be invited for interview.

(*See grid overleaf)

Essential criteria / Necessary requirements – skills, knowledge, experience etc. / * M.O.A.
The successful candidate should be of sufficient standing and experience to command the respect and support of member agencies. They should demonstrate drive, enthusiasm and tenacity. / A,I
Qualified to degree level and hold a recognised professional qualification in any discipline represented on OSCB or equivalent standard of police training. /

A

3. / At least 5 years’ experience of working at a senior, strategic level within a statutory, voluntary or independent organisation in the context of child protection. / A
4. / At least 5 years’ experience of chairing multi-agency meetings. / A, I
5. / Up to date knowledge of the national policy framework and legislation regulations in relation to children, including child protection and the wider facets of safeguarding. / A,I
6. / Sufficient experience of the issues and challenges in multi-agency working in the public or voluntary sector at a senior level / A,I
7. / Knowledge of the responsibilities of an LSCB. / A,I
8. / A commitment to high standards of confidentiality both in relation to individual practice issues and cross organisational matters / A,I
9. / Experience of resolving any disputes and complaints between agencies. / A,I
10. / Experience of motivating and stimulating discussion in meetings in order to drive forward the strategic agenda, ensuring all partners have the opportunity to participate. / A,I
11. / Experience of chairing complex partnership meetings, demonstrating an ability to summarise discussion, in order to clarify, achieve resolution and decision making as well as to facilitate the production of minutes. / A,I
12 / Effective communication, scrutiny, analytical and problem solving skills, especially in handling diverse perspectives which can arise in inter-agency partnerships. / A,I
13 / Quality assurance, strategic thinking and policy application. / A,I
14 / Organisational and planning skills and clear decision making. / A,I
15 / The ability to develop and maintain a positive public and professional profile, particularly with regard to presentations and statements on behalf of the OSCB. / A
16 / Ability to communicate effectively with the media and the public. / A, I
17 / An appropriate level of IT and literacy skills (inclusive of excellent verbal and written skills). / A
18 / An ability to recognise discrimination in its many forms and be willing to promote equal opportunities policies within the operation of the OSCB. / A
19 / Ability to manage change and work to deadlines. / A,I
20 / Ability to and provide a lead on interagency co-operation in safeguarding work. / A
21 / Ability to monitor and evaluate information. / A,I
22 / Experience of developing robust performance management across a complex organisational structure. / A,I

Desirable criteria

/ Necessary requirements – skills, knowledge, experience etc. / M.O.A.

1

/ Experience of managing the media / A,I

The meetings will usually be in held in Oxfordshire. The candidate will need to be able to travel, access a variety of locations and work flexibly to meet service needs?

Method of assessment (* M.O.A.)

A = Application form, I= Interview