Local Authority Designated Officer

Local Authority Designated Officer

Annual Report 2016/17

INTRODUCTION

The Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) is responsible for the management and oversight of all investigations into allegations against those working with and who volunteer with childrenand is responsible for preparing the annual report to the Barking & Dagenham Local Safeguarding Children Board and establishing processes to disseminate learning throughout the children’s partnership.

In Barking and Dagenham, the LADO responsibility isinvested in Teresa DeVito, Group Manager for Safeguarding, Quality and Reviews and the operational function of the LADO role is delegated to:

• Lorraine Giles, Safeguarding Manager, for all non-Education allegations, and;
• Mike Cullern, Safeguarding Lead for Education, for all allegations against Education professionals

During the period of this report, the service has had capacity issues due to leave and a vacant post.

Nationally, all agencies and settings that provide services or staff working with children are required (under statutory guidance – Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2015), to have clear procedures for responding to allegations against staff, whether they are paid or voluntary. Within education services, additional guidance ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education 2016’ outlines specific requirements considered when managing allegations against staff working in education settings. The requirements of the LADO process are set out in the London Safeguarding Procedures and are followed by all London boroughs.

The management of allegations should be seen in the wider context of safer employment practices, which has three essential elements:

• Safer recruitment and selection practices
• Safer working practices
• Management of allegations or concerns

This report will primarily focus on the third element but this activity should be seen in the wider context of Barking and Dagenham LSCB’s work in respect of safer recruitment and employment and guidance to support safer working practices across the children’s workforce and within the private and voluntary sectors.

When an allegation is made against a member of the children’s workforce, the safety of the children with whom the professional comes into contact is the priority. Employers however, have an additional duty of care towards their staff and therefore the complexities involved in responding to such allegations require balance and careful judgement to ensure risk and support are measured at both levels. The LADO supports this process through advice on thresholds at the stage of notification; mediation with colleagues in other agencies, providing a proportionate response to investigations; guidance on individual risk management including careful consideration of whether suspension of the staff member might be necessary; and support in the analysis of information and evidence gained as investigations progress, to ensure risks are responded to and appropriately concluded.

LADO work is not restricted to allegations against adults whilst working in a professional capacity with children. If there are concerns that a professional has harmed their own children or other children in the community, it may be necessary and proportionate to undertake enquiries and share information with the employer, HR, police, social care, and other relevant parties to form a judgement as to whether they are suitable to continue to work with children. There are also times when people may be currently out of work, but continue to pose a risk of harm, because of their recent past employment with children, which has given them credibility with families.

This report provides detail of allegation activity notified within Barking & Dagenham during the period April 1st, 2016 to March 31st, 2017. The report will also seek to identify trends and issues affecting the children’s workforce relating to the management of allegations. It is written to provide statistical data for the LSCB and partner agencies on the number, nature of investigation processes and outcomes of allegations which are considered to meet threshold at point of referral.

Only about a quarter of the referrals reach threshold, however many of them require just as much careful attention, as they refer to the safety and welfare of children. Examples of referrals which do not reach threshold however require follow up and robust responses are referrals from Ofsted about concerns within schools, referrals for children where extreme bullying has been experienced, serious health and safety incidents in regulated provisions, LADO referrals which after investigation have to be referred on to another local authority, historical allegations within which we are unable to identify the professional etc. These matters can impact on the safety of children and the reputation of the Safeguarding Board and Council.

Working Together to Safeguard Children has been revised and published in March 2015 and the criteria for LADO intervention are applied when an individual has:

• Behaved in a way that has harmed or may have harmed a child
• Possibly committed a criminal offence against or related to a child
• Behaved towards a child that indicated he/she would pose a risk of harm if they work regularly or closely with children

1. Statistical Analysis of Overall LADO Data

The number of calls to the LADO service for consultation and allegation management support remains high. Between April 2016 and end March 2017, the LADO’s recorded 170 allegations against the children’s workforce (including volunteers) in Barking & Dagenham. This represents a 11%decreaseon the previous year (190). These mainly relate to staff conduct issues which, on consultation, are designated as below the allegation threshold or unlikely to result in a S47 investigation and are passed back to employers to manage as practice or competence issues. They may also constitute historical matters where staff are no longer working within the children’s workforce, or could relate to matters of policy guidance.

The categorisation of a piece of work as a ‘consultation’ is deceptive and may suggest lesser input from the LADO. Many consultations require considerable follow-up from the LADO beyond the initial caller contact.

Numbers of notifications/consultations - 137

Numbers of Allegation which met threshold – 33

1. Timescales

Working Together 2015 sets out the expectations that 80% of LADO cases should be resolved within one month of referral, 90% within three months, and all but the most exceptional cases, completed within one year. These timescales are not being achieved for several reasons, but the length of police investigations is key to achieving timely resolution.

In Barking and Dagenham, there are 2 referrals from the years2015 - 2016 outstanding due to ongoing police investigations. One of those has been affected by the pace of the victim in relation to a historical matter.

At the time of writing this report, of the referrals which met threshold, in the year ending March 20173cases haveexceeded the3-month target for completion. One was a police investigation into a foster carer, which has now resulted in no further action and we are awaiting the outcome of the investigation from the fostering agency. Another is being investigated by the police and is currently ongoing. The third was awaiting a disciplinary investigation which was delayed because the member of staff was absent from work.There are currently 12 open cases from the last year.

1. LADO Allegationsby Professional

The statistical distribution of allegations in the year indicates that professionals employed in education services including early years, account for 39% of the totalLADO referrals (not consultations). Combined, social workers, foster carers, residential workers and youth workers, account for 36%. The remaining 24% are divided by religious professionals, football coaches and others.

It is unsurprising that the staff most likely to have allegations made against them will be those working with children directly and for significant periods of the day and often when the children have experienced difficulties. For these staff, the need to understand and work within the basic rules of professional safe working practice is crucial to protect both children and staff. It is also important that all staff working with children know that they will be subject to certain procedures (without prejudice) should an allegation be made against them, in the interest of keeping children safe. The LSCB provides regular Managing Allegations training throughout the year to support the development and upkeep of safe practice in responding to Allegations against professionals.

1. Allegations by Category

The LADO referrals are categorised in line with DfE data collation descriptors. This is a crude tool for complex dynamics and is only an indicator of potential harm. At the point where an allegation is made, motivation for the action may not have been established.

Physical abuse is the largest proportion of alleged abuse due to the nature of interaction required between teaching staff / early year’s practitioners and children. There may be a need for the use of restraint on a child who is deemed to be placing themselves or others at risk due to their exhibiting behaviour. During the incident, the child may make an allegation which is either malicious, or the child may have been unintentionally hurt in the course of being restrained. It is for this reason that schools ensure that staff are fully trained and there are clear guidelines if it is deemed that the use of restraint is required.

1. Outcomes of allegations

The Department for Education has defined outcomes within four definitions – Substantiated, Unsubstantiated,False, and Malicious. Since April 2016, the ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ Guidance has directed the removal of the category of Unfounded for allegations within education settings. The LADO is required by guidance to collate information on allegation outcomes within these definitions.

Substantiatedmeans sufficient evidence - proven or admitted; Unsubstantiated means not proven, therefore neither guiltnor innocence can be inferred (there are situations where we believe something concerning has happened or there is a risk, but it can’t be independently corroborated); False means sufficient evidence to disprove and Malicious is sufficient evidence to disprove and considered a deliberate act to deceive.

We must be mindful when considering these statistics that any adults deliberately intent on harming children are extremely unlikely to do so in front of witnesses, that a child’s word against an adult’s is unlikely to be accepted as evidence at a criminal level and that many children do not have a voice either due to their young age or communication difficulties, and these are our most vulnerable children.

Of the LADO referrals 2016-2017 12 are ongoing enquiries, 18 were Unsubstantiated; 3 were Substantiated; none were found to be False or Malicious.

Unsubstantiated cases can represent a dilemma for LADO’s and employers as it has not been possible to conclude definitively and there remains an element of doubt as to whether the incident occurred or not, and by definition, a question as to whether there could be an on-going risk. Although the LADO records these cases, the DfE is clear that for teaching staff, unsubstantiated, false, and malicious allegations cannot be declared for reference purposes.

The LADO records have proved helpful in some circumstances where several unsubstantiated allegations have formed a pattern of concern for individual staff over a period of time (even when they have moved settings) and evidence has then become known which supports a later allegation. In such situations, the LADO will ensure relevant sharing of information and will support referrals to the DBS with chronologies of historical concern.

There were two staff known to have been referred to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for consideration of on-going professional suitability.One from Early Years and one from education. This process is mandatory in situations where staff have been either dismissed or resigned because of allegations concluding risk to children.

6.Statistical Breakdown Year 2016-17

For both the LADOreferrals and the consultations an increasing pattern of referrals can be seen over the four quarters. The reason for this is not known, but anecdotal evidence from LADO’s from neighbouring and other London authorities indicates a similar trend.

The referrals are split evenly between gender for the LADO referrals. It is not possible to accurately analyse the gender split in the consultations, because a name is not always provided as part of the consultation process.

7. Managing Allegations of Staff in Unregulated Provision

Referrals related to concerns regarding persons working / volunteering within additional education facilities or acting as a private tutor are a concern. Some private teachers are not regulated or safely recruited. There is concern that there is no duty on these organisations to adhere to statutory guidance in the safeguarding of children.

There is the additional concern that there is even less organisational oversight in circumstances where classes are set up in private homes or outbuildings and parents bring in an external tutor to teach their children.

The lack of statutory guidance in this area creates difficulty holding individuals and organisations to account for the safeguarding and harm of children. There can be no confidence that individuals working or volunteering in this capacity undergo robust safer recruitment checks.

When concerns are raised, there is limited scope for the LADO to exercise powers on behalf of the local authority if there is no independent regulatory body to refer to. The usual referrals to the Disclosure and Barring Service are often ineffective due to there being little confidence that those who potentially should not be working with children are subjected to DBS checks before appointment. In the cases referred, it has been reliant on Police to investigate and potentially prosecute to prevent those who are unsuitable to work with children from doing so. The high threshold for a criminal investigation may not be met and children and their families can be reluctant to pursue prosecutions for fear of reprisal from their local community.

This issue is not limited to Barking and Dagenham and is a national picture which is emerging. There is government recognition that there needs to be clearer guidance and regulation of these facilities, but as yet there has been no indication of how this will be implemented.

8. Risk By Association

The guidance around this is under review. Such assessments require an understanding of the possible transference of risk and suitability into a professional setting from outside. Analysis of risk and suitability, explores not only that which would be a direct risk to children in a setting, but also wider risk to other children the person may have contact with. The LADO can offer consultation in these circumstances to consider risk alongside the organisation’s own HR advice.

9. Timescales

A significant concern relates to the amount of time it takes for the Police to investigate adults who have been subject to allegations of child sexual abuse. Barking Police CAIT Team report that, on average, it can take up to a year for the Police to prepare the case and obtain a decision from the Crown Prosecution Service. Because of this delay, both the child making the allegation and the adult/s requiring justice, experience delays. The person against whom the allegation has been made will often not be able to work during this time and some have reported to have suffered family problems and mental health difficulties during this time.Where the adult is a professional, the LADO process is stalled, with professionals having to wait for the Police to complete their interventions before other investigations can be progressed to a closure, such as disciplinary procedures and care standards investigations.

1. Complete a revision of the local managing allegations protocol in line with revised national guidance in Working Together to safeguard children in Education 2016

This has been achieved. The Managing Allegations Training also incorporates guidance from the updated Working Together.

1. Ensure the procured children social care electronic ICS systems for 2016/17 integrate LADO processes and systems so that LADO recording, monitoring, and tracking of cases is improved.

This has been achieved, a bespoke LADO package has been procured, it is expected to go live in March 2018.

1. Maintain an updated LADO space on the Barking and Dagenham SCB website which is regularly updated to reflect changes in national and regional guidance.

This has been achieved. The LADO referral form is updated and available on the website too.

1. Work closely with national partner agency groups through the pooled resources of the London Regional LADO Group to ensure that religious and health agencies have adequate safeguarding arrangements in place. Partners at national and local level should have internal protocols and procedures in place that include the need to refer and share information externally to Local authority LADO Services.

There has been regular attendance at the London LADO meetings by the B&D LADO and this remains an agenda item as it is an ongoing concern.

1. Work with our regional and national LADO Partners to develop a common data set that will assist us locally in reviewing our thresholds and identify any significant differences between us and other local authorities and trends in respect of referrals/consultations and Investigations.

This has been started. We expect that a common data set will be agreed by the next financial year.