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Contents

1. Introduction
2. Process

1. Introduction

This process will assist social workers and team managers especially in respect of considering requests from parents to accommodate their child as they will have to inform parents that this decision will have to be referred to a panel of senior managers.

The Panel will also ensure greater consistency in thresholds and decision making across the different service areas.

This Panel should not by-pass the existing line management decision-making processes but should rather run along side them.

Accordingly, Team Managers should, in the first instance, discuss relevant cases with their respective Service Manager and only refer to the Panel with that Service Manager's approval. Each respective Service Manager will retain the discretion to decline a request for the initiation of legal proceedings or accommodation without recourse to the Panel. However, no proceedings or accommodation can be agreed without the agreement of the Panel.

This process is not relevant for Emergency Protection Orders which, given their very nature, will not allow for the delay of up to 6 days for Senior Management approval. There is also the risk that a perceived lack of action on our part where risks have been identified within the family may push the police to securing accommodation via Police Powers of Protection. To address this risk the Panel process will have to be shared with the police.

However, there is no reason why the Out of Hours Service should not be similarly bound by the process outlined below in non-emergency situations.

This process will also have implications for the Chairs of Safeguarding Conferences. Whereas previously they may have recorded a decision as for the team to convene a legal Gateway Meeting in view of any ongoing non-compliance with the Safeguarding Plan, this decision should now be recorded as being for the team to refer to the Accommodation and Proceedings Panel for consideration.

This Panel process may be especially valuable in assisting the decision-making process in cases where there are long-term issues of chronic neglect with inconsistent periods of improvement i.e. families that "bump along the bottom" of the threshold.

2. Process

• The decision to refer to the Accommodation and Proceedings Panel should ordinarily be made only following a discussion and agreement between a team manager and their Service Manager.  This discussion and the decision made by the Service Manager whether or not to refer to the Panel should be recorded onto RAISE by the Team Manager. No referral to the Panel can be made without Service Manager approval although in the absence of the case managing Team Manager another Team Manager (preferably within the area base) can take responsibility for having this discussion with the Service Manager
• The Panel will make decisions as to whether :-
  • It is appropriate for the social work team to send a Letter Before Proceedings
  • Subsequent to a Letter Before Proceedings having been sent (and following further discussions between the Team Manager and Service Manager) whether it is appropriate to issue an application for Care Proceedings.
  • It is appropriate to Accommodate any young person under Section 20 of the Children Act. 
• The Accommodation and Proceedings Panel will generally meet on a Tuesday morning. The Panel will be constituted of a combination of any three Service Managers who will review relevant reports and chronologies in order to make an informed decision regarding any proposal to place a child in care.
• Given the timescales, it will not always be appropriate for a referral to be made to the Panel where children have been made subject of Police Powers of Protection or an Emergency Protection Order and the ongoing plan is to apply for an Interim Care Order. Where timescales do allow, the case should be referred to Panel. Where they do not allow, case discussions should be held with the relevant Service Manager for a decision to be made. Relevant reports should then be forwarded to the Service Manager so that the Panel can consider the case on a retrospective basis,
• Referrals to the Accommodation and Proceedings Panel can take the form of an e mail to the LAC or Placements service Administrative support with relevant reports, chronologies and, where appropriate, Letters Before Proceedings enclosed as attachments. In addition, the most up to date legal advice should be included in any report. This will enable the Service Managers to make as well -informed decision as possible regarding the proposal to admit a young person to care.
• As the Panel will sit prior to the Planning Meeting being held, the decisions made will have a direct bearing on the outcome of that Planning Meeting. The social worker will already have compiled a report for the Planning Meeting which they should also use as the report for Panel. Thus the social worker should not have any increased workload as a result of the introduction of this Panel.
• Any reports presented must include a description of what the desired objective is in terms of the plan to accommodate or instigate proceedings; what the likely impact will be and an assessment as to how the child/young person would benefit from such a plan.
• It should also include a description of the work and services that have already been attempted and some analysis as to the reasons for any lack of success. The Panel is unlikely to agree to the instigation of proceeding or accommodation simply because there is a lack of progress or compliance with the existing Safeguarding Plan. 
• Obviously the Panel only need to 'sit' where there are referrals made by the individual teams as there will be no other agenda items.
• In terms of Section 20 proposals, they will be guided by the principal that no young person should be accommodated unless :-
  • There are clear safeguarding concerns and the accommodation is as a direct alternative to care proceedings, or
  • There has been a programme of work completed by the Intensive Support Team who are in agreement that accommodation is the only and best alternative plan for the young person.
• Agenda items and reports will need to be submitted by 12 noon of the preceding Friday to ensure that the case is discussed the following Tuesday. Team Managers will receive a formal response from the Panel by the end of that working day.
• Notes will be taken from the Panel which will be entered onto RAISE. This will ensure that there is full and transparent accountability for the decision making processes.
• The Team Managers from the Fostering Team will also be e mailed the notes from the Panel so that they will be informed of the potential need for a placement at the earliest opportunity and they can start planning the placement process.
• Where a decision has been made to decline to agree to place a young person in care it will be the responsibility of the relevant Team Manager to keep the situation under review and re-refer to the panel (with their Service Manager approval) if the family circumstances deteriorate to such a degree that it indicates a different decision may be made.
• Where any agreement to issue an application for proceedings or to accommodate a young person creates the need for an out of district placement or independent fostering placement the Team Manager should discuss this need with their Service Manager. It will then be the responsibility of that Service Manager to discuss the request with the Service Director. In the absence of the Service Director the decision making responsibility for external placements is delegated first to the LAC Service manager.

End