East Suffolk Safeguarding Children, Young People and Adults at Risk of Abuse Policy - Appendix A - Legal framework

The Children Act 1989

The Children Act 1989 provides Local Authorities (social services departments) and others with powers and duties to protect children whilst at the same time providing safeguards for both children and parents against excessive or unwarranted intervention.

There are a number of general principles, which need to be borne in mind when considering any part of the legal framework. The child’s welfare is of paramount importance.

Under section 47 of the Children Act, a Local Authority must make enquiries regarding a child’s welfare where:

• they are informed that a child who may be considered at risk who lives or is found in the area is
  • a) The subject of an Emergency Protection Order, or
  • b) In police protection, or
• the council has reasonable cause to suspect that a child living or found in their area is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.

The enquiries will enable the local authority to decide whether they should take any specific action to safeguard and/or promote the child’s welfare.

All investigations will be carried out by Children’s Social Care and the Police where necessary and will be in accordance with the Suffolk Safeguarding Partnership’s guidelines. For this reason, if you become aware of something that may need further investigation, do not attempt to investigate the matter yourself.

The Protection of Children Act 1999

The Protection of Children Act 1999 has four principal objectives:

• To place the previous Department of Health’s Consultancy Index (a list of people who are considered to be unsuitable to work with children) on a statutory basis and to require certain childcare organisations to refer the names of anyone considered unsuitable to work with children for inclusion on the new list (called the Protection of Children Act List)
• To provide rights of appeal against the Protection of Children Act List and the Department for Education and Skills List 99
• To require regulated childcare organisations to check the names of anyone they propose to employ in posts involving regular contact with children against both Departmental lists and not to employ them if they are listed.
• To allow the Disclosure and Barring Service to act as a central Access point for criminal records information and the above two lists.

The Children Act 2004 – Section 11 Statutory Guidance

Statutory guidance on making arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children came into force on 1 October 2005. It details how the Council already contribute to the lives of children and young people and what is expected of them, including:

• Senior Management commitment to the importance of safeguarding and promoting wellbeing
• A clear statement of the Council’s responsibilities towards children, made available to all staff
• Clear lines of accountability for work on safeguarding and promoting well-being • Using safe recruitment procedures for those coming into contact with children and young people
• Providing appropriate training for all staff and councillors
• Effective working relationships within the council and with other agencies to safeguard and promote well-being and to share information effectively

The Care Act 2014 – Protecting Adults from Abuse or Neglect

An adult at risk is defined as a person over 18 years who is or may be in need of community care services by reason of mental illness, physical, learning or other disability, age or illness, and who is permanently or for the time being unable to take care of him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself against harm or exploitation.

This act, for the first time, sets out a clear framework for how local authorities and other parts of the health and care system should protect adults at risk of abuse or neglect.

The Act has a number of key requirements:

• For local authorities to set up a Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB). This board will be responsible for arranging Serious Case Reviews as necessary. The SAB operates at a Suffolk level.
• To make enquiries or to ask others to make enquiries when they think an adult with care or support needs may be at risk of abuse or neglect in their area and to find out what, if any, action may be needed
• To ensure that if the SAB requests information from the Council, they must share what they know with the SAB.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005

The Mental Capacity Act’s primary purpose is to provide a legal framework for acting and making decisions on behalf of adults and young people from the age of 16 who lack the capacity to make particular decisions for themselves. There are 5 key principles that underpin any actions/decisions made taken in relation to the act:

• A presumption of capacity - every adult has the right to make his or her own decisions and must be assumed to have capacity to do so unless it is proved otherwise.
• Individuals being supported to make their own decisions - a person must be given all practicable help before anyone treats them as not being able to make their own decisions.
• Unwise decisions – people have the right to make what some may term unwise decisions. You cannot treat someone as lacking capacity for this reason.
• Best interests – anything done for or on behalf of a person who lacks mental capacity must be done in their best interest.
• Less restrictive option – any intervention should be weighed up on the particular circumstances of the case and wherever possible the least restrictive option should be taken (or indeed no intervention at all).

The Children and Social Care Work Act 2017

In accordance with this Act, councils working together across Suffolk deliver the corporate parenting principles. Corporate Parenting is where Local Authorities have a legal duty to support care leavers making the transition from care into adulthood. Local authorities have a responsibility to ensure that young people know what services are available to care leavers. The act improves support for looked after children and care leavers, promotes the welfare and safeguarding of children and makes provisions about the regulation of social workers. Information is available on the support for care leavers being offered by Suffolk County Council.