The test as to whether a child is at risk of significant harm should be that either:

• The child can be shown to have suffered ill-treatment of health or development as a result of physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse or neglect and professional judgement is that further ill-treatment or impairment are likely.

or

• Professional judgement, substantiated by the findings of enquiries in this individual case or by research evidence, is that the child is likely to suffer ill-treatment or the impairment of health or development as a result of physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse or neglect.

If the child is at continuing risk of significant harm, safeguarding the child requires multi-agency help and intervention delivered through a formal Child Protection Plan.

Definition of Child in Need

Under Section 17 (10) of the Children Act 1989, a child is a Child in Need (CIN) if any of the following apply:

• He/she is unlikely to achieve or maintain, or have the opportunity of achieving or maintaining, a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision for him/her of services by a local authority
• His/her health or development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired, without the provision for him/her of such services
• He/she is disabled.

The Child Protection Plan (or minutes from the Child Protection Conference) will be distributed within 24 hours of the conference to all persons invited to attend the Child Protection Conference.

All Core Group members will bring this document to the first core group meeting to discuss and expand on together.

The Core Group is responsible for continuing to develop the Child Protection Plan, to evidence the increase or decrease in risk. The lead Social Worker will distribute the updated plan to all Core Group members..

Review Conference

At the Review Conference professionals will consider whether a child should remain the subject of a Child Protection Plan.

The test set out above applies.

A Child Protection Plan can be discontinued when:

• It is judged that the child is no longer at continuing risk of significant harm, requiring safeguarding by means of a Child Protection Plan. That is, the likelihood of harm has been reduced by action taken through the Child Protection Plan; the child’s circumstances have changed; or re-assessment of the child and family indicates that a Child Protection Plan is not necessary.
• If the decision reached is for a discontinuation of the Child Protection Plan, and step down to a Child in Need Plan.
• “Threshold not met at the child protection conference and is deemed no longer child protection where a Child in Need Plan is recommended”. A Child in Need Plan will be devised at the conference. The Social Work Team should remain involved with the family for a minimum of 3 months.
• Dual status: Should the child/children become Looked After by the local authority, while subject to a Child Protection Plan, relevant professionals will be asked if they agree to end the Child Protection Plan and continue reviewing the child under care planning regulations. May 2020

Categories of abuse or neglect the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering

Physical abuse

Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.

Emotional abuse

Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve conveying to children that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person.

It may include not giving the child opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate. It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond the child’s developmental capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction.

It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another. It may involve serious bullying (including cyber bullying), causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone.

Sexual abuse

Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening.

The activities may involve physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example, rape or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside of clothing. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse (including via the internet). Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males. Women can also commit acts of sexual abuse, as can other children.

Neglect

Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to:

• provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment)
• protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger
• ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers) or
• ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment

It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.