Welcome to this short podcast on behalf of the West Sussex Safeguarding Adults Board. I am a young person and will be giving you information about the outcome of the transition and safeguarding audit, which our Board carried out in 2021 to 2022. This audit looked at the safeguarding records of ten young people with the aim to: evaluate and reflect on practice; learn from experience; inform multi-agency practice development; and strengthen multi-agency working.
So, firstly, I would like to give you the criteria for this audit and some information about the ten young people selected.
The young people chosen had to be between the ages of seventeen and a half to twenty-five. They must have been involved in a safeguarding enquiry in the twelve months preceding the audit, and there must have been multi-agency involvement with the young person. Following agreement of this criteria, ten young people were selected at random. Of these ten, seven were female and three were male. At the time of the audit, two were aged eighteen, one aged nineteen, five aged twenty, and two were aged twenty-one. Further details about the ethnicities of the young people, the type of abuse they experienced, and the cause and locations of risks, can be found in the learning briefing which accompanies this podcast.
So, now you know about the cases we audited, I want to share with you the five key themes identified from the audit where improvement in practice is needed.
The first was making safeguarding personal. This is a personalised approach that ensures safeguarding processes are carried out with, and not to, the young person. This focuses on meaningful improvement to circumstances and not just on the process, “investigation” and “conclusion” and, enables practitioners, families, teams and Safeguarding Adults Boards to know what difference has been made.
The second was professional curiosity. This is the skill of understanding and exploring what is happening for the young person, rather than making assumptions or accepting things at face value. Being professionally curious is necessary to fully understand a situation and risks to a young person, which are not always immediately obvious.
The third was management of ongoing risk, to maximise safety and to reduce future risk. Effective risk assessment should support positive risk management, and promote empowerment and control. It is an integral part of safeguarding and professionals need to adopt a flexible solution-focussed approach to mitigating risk. Any measures implemented should be reviewed regularly in response to the level and nature of risk.
The fourth was multi-agency working and information sharing. This is a theme that is frequently identified in Safeguarding Adults Reviews. The Sussex Information Sharing Protocol sets out how information between partner agencies should be shared and there are links to this protocol provided in the learning briefing accompanying this podcast.
The fifth and final key theme was effective and accurate case recording. This ensures high standards of care and support, is a legal requirement, and part of professional duty. Good case recording also promotes continuity of care and communication, is a tool to help identify themes and challenges, and is the key to accountability and evidence of intervention.
So, what can you do to improve your knowledge and practice on the themes raised from this audit?
Well, we have a number of resources that can be accessed to support improving your practice in relation to the five key areas identified by the audit. These include learning briefings and podcasts in relation to making safeguarding personal, person-centered approaches, professional curiosity, risk assessment, and multi-agency working and information sharing. Links to all of these resources are provided in the learning briefing accompanying this podcast.
In terms of what other resources and information we have to support safeguarding young people, we have a Safeguarding Young People 17.5+ protocol which is important for you to know of and follow. This protocol sets out safeguarding arrangements for young people, who are experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect. You can learn more about this protocol on our website by accessing the protocol and accompanying learning briefing and podcast.
Also, to promote and learn more about Safeguarding, we also have lots of resources for your use. You can find them all of these on our ‘Resources’ page on our website which includes:
- A Making Safeguarding Personal Leaflet
- An easy-read safeguarding leaflet
- And a selection of posters
Thank you very much for your time to listen to this podcast. We appreciate your support to make a real difference to young people in West Sussex.