Commitment To City Child Protection

Efforts to protect Dundee children and young people and keep them safe from harm in the face of additional challenges caused by the pandemic are being highlighted to councillors.

They will hear that multi-agency partners are continuing to work together to support some of the city’s most vulnerable children.

On Monday (Feb 21) the children and families services committee will consider the 2021 annual report of the Dundee Child Protection Committee.

This details how services have adapted during the pandemic and ensured that face-to-face meetings with at risk children and families continued to take place, resulting in positive relationships and immediate provision of appropriate supports.

The Child Protection Committee report also highlights how core child protection processes operate in a timely and effective manner with good engagement from all partner agencies.

Work has included a focus on identifying and mitigating risks of hidden harm alongside the use of developments like the cross-sector family support Alliance to implement the Fast Online Referral Tracking (FORT) system, and support the distribution of over £550,000 of welfare funds to vulnerable and at risk families.

Priorities for the next year have also been identified, which include improving responses to older young people at risk of harm. Joint work will also take place across the protecting people committees to continue to address the impact of parental drug and alcohol use, domestic abuse, poor parental mental health and trauma on children and young people.

Councillor Stewart Hunter, children and families convener, said: “We cannot be complacent about the efforts that need to be maintained to protect children and young people across Dundee.

“The pandemic has caused a number of extra challenges and I would like pay tribute to frontline staff from across agencies and the third sector who are showing incredible dedication to this task.

“Our teams have been extremely flexible in responding to these circumstances and have developed innovative ways to deliver services.

Elaine Torrance, Independent Chair of the Child Protection Committee, said: ”I continue to be impressed by the effective multi-agency working in Dundee where professionals across agencies work closely together to provide timely advice, support and interventions to children and young people at risk of harm and their families and this is reflected in the annual report. 

The report recognises the progress made over the last year and the Committee has had a key role in overseeing data trends, managing risks and developing quality assurance processes. The report also recognises the dedication of staff throughout the pandemic and their role in continuing to develop positive relationships and engagement with children, young people and families. 

There continues to be more to do and in this area of work we cannot be complacent. Key priorities in the report include enhancing the voice of children and young people in strategic developments, improved workforce engagement, the development of a range of supports to young people as well as the implementation of new national guidance.”

Meanwhile, the policy and resources committee on Monday February 21 will hear that a recent joint inspection rated city services for children and young people at risk of harm as ‘Good’.

The inspection report published by the Care Inspectorate highlighted number of key strengths including:

• Committed staff who effectively recognised and responded to concerns, even as the pandemic progressed.
• Children and young people felt safer as a result of the strong relationships they had with key members of staff.
•  The collaborative approach throughout the partnership had resulted in the effective development and delivery of a range of multi-agency services that helped children at risk of harm and families to receive the support they needed. 
•  Senior leaders demonstrated effective and inclusive governance and accountability in their leadership of multi-agency child protection arrangements. Senior leaders continued to work together to effectively lead and direct staff as the Covid-19 pandemic progressed.

Inspectors looked at how staff were working together across a range of services in the Dundee community planning partnership area, including social work, health and education staff, police officers, and children’s reporters. 

Council leader John Alexander, convener of the policy & resources committee, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank staff who work across city agencies and the third sector for the actions they carry out every day.

“Their extraordinary efforts throughout the pandemic deserve to be highlighted as lockdown and restrictions made what is already a tough job even more difficult.

“The inspection report highlights how staff formed and sustained strong relationships with children and young people which were a major factor in helping them feel safe as the pandemic continued. They have used creativity to be able to keep in touch and be available.

“Protection of our most vulnerable children and young people is an absolute key priority in Dundee.”

Examples of good practice in the city are highlighted in the inspection report. These include the Pause project which invited women who had had children removed from their care to work with them on a voluntary basis.

Meanwhile, the Oor Fierce Girls campaign is also put in the spotlight. The partnership approach worked with young women to lessen the risk of future harm by raising awareness of the issues surrounding domestic abuse and giving them the opportunity to explore topics such as consent, healthy sexual relationships and positive peer relationships.

The inspection also says that some multi-agency services had developed by using improvement ‘test and change’ programmes, which had resulted in a flexible and tested approach to service delivery.

The committee will hear that areas for improvement raised in the inspection report align very closely with the self-evaluation activity of local agencies and that these are already being taken forward. Councillors will be presented with a detailed plan on how these points will be delivered.