Agenda item

To consider a report by the Corporate Director: Modernising and Wellbeing (copy enclosed) which proposes the adoption of a Corporate Safeguarding Policy and the establishment of a joint Member/officer Corporate Safeguarding Panel.

 

 

A copy of a report by the Corporate Director: Moderising and Wellbeing, which proposed the adoption of a Corporate Safeguarding Policy and the establishment of a joint member/officer Corporate Safeguarding Panel, had been circulated with the papers for the meeting.

 

The CDMW introduced the report and explained that Denbighshire’s proactive approach to ensuring compliance with its safeguarding responsibilities had been outlined in the report.  Despite a range of approaches Denbighshire could not be confident that robust safeguarding practice had been embedded across all the Council’s functions.  Details of the development of approaches adopted to maintain a corporate profile and overview for safeguarding issues had been provided in detail.

 

It was explained that the key responsibility to be discharged across a complex multi-functional organisation had never been clarified or separately resourced.  Successive authoritative reports, which included Waterhouse, Laming and Pembrokeshire, had made it abundantly clear that challenges to the resilience of safeguarding arrangements evolved in many different places, and safeguarding had to be “Everybody’s Business”.

 

Over the last ten years Denbighshire had developed several approaches to maintaining a corporate profile and an overview for safeguarding issues and these had been detailed in the report. 

 

A draft Corporate Safeguarding Policy and Guidelines, based heavily on that recently adopted in Gwynedd following an Estyn Inspection and as the result of requirements set out by the Inspectorate, had been circulated with the report.  The proposal submitted would provide a logical development to the work previously undertaken with the Corporate Accountabilities Framework and on the Corporate Safeguarding Action Plan.  The aim of the policy and guidelines would be to establish a structured means for ensuring that safeguarding was an issue taken on by every service in the Council as well as all Elected Members.  The CDMW informed Members that there would be a designated manager in each service who would be responsible for the coordination of safeguarding activities and the provision of advice to staff in the service.

 

Key aspects of the policy and guidelines had been summarised in the report and the Appendices provided further detail relating to:-

 

-  basic information about signs of abuse and referral pathways, which would link to child and adult protection procedures.

-  a useful section on Code of Conduct and Safe Working practices.

-  a section setting out the training support to be provided initially, which would need to be developed over a period of time.

-  cross referencing with our Safe Recruitment (Human Resources) Policies.

-  guidelines for Councillors on safe contact.

-  dealing with allegations of professional abuse, including links with child and adult protection procedures.

 

The CDMW explained that the package would provide a credible approach to making a reality of safeguarding as a corporate concern, and would foster consistency of approach and accountability and be tailored to the issues facing particular services.  The main cost implications would be threefold had been outlined in the report.  It was confirmed that the adoption of the Policy and Panel arrangements could have positive implications, especially for older people and disabled people, and no negative implications had been identified.

 

Although guidelines were currently sparse, HR were undertaking work to produce a policy on social media use.  The CDMW confirmed that the remit of the further work in this area would be incorporated in the remit of the CSP.  Cabinet were informed that the WLGA had produced a guidance document on Elected Members’ use of social media which could be of assistance.

 

Cabinet and the Corporate Governance Committee had considered and expressed their support of the adoption of the Policy, Guidance and Panel.  However, the Corporate Governance Committee had raised some issues about the document’s internal consistency, which had subsequently been addressed.  Members had made some specific suggestions about additions to the policy/items for the work programme, particularly relating to advice and good practice guidance on the use of technology/social media. These had been accepted and it was proposed that work on a single policy covering legal, HR and safeguarding implications be taken forward.  The suggestion that the Safeguarding Policy/Guidance/Panel should be reviewed after 3 years had been accepted, and a formal review date had been added to the front of the Policy.

 

The CDMW provided the following information and responses to questions from Members:-

 

-               a programme of training and a copy of the Safeguarding Policy would be provided for every member of teaching and ancillary staff in schools.

-                 heads of services had been requested to identify Designated Managers by the end of October, 2013.

-                individual school based policies pertaining to Internet use were currently in operation, and a self-assessment process relating to safeguarding and child protection would be undertaken in all schools.

-               issues regarding the use of social media had been identified as an area of work to be undertaken. 

-       the creation of a Safeguarding Policy based on three existing areas of work.  These included a WLGA guidance document on the use of social media by Elected Members, an update by HR of the Social Media Policy in relation to employees and work being carried out in relation to Safeguarding Aspects and the appropriate behavior of adults.

-      details of the provision of training organised by the Education Social Worker: Team Leader for School Governors. 

-          the annual audit of all schools being an effective innovation in ensuring that the Schools Improvement Plan and Safeguarding responsibilities were adhered to.

-        reference made to the statutory guidance framework produced by Welsh Government “Safeguarding Children in Education” which was currently being updated.

-       there being a commitment in the Big Plan to take forward work to identify young carers.  However, currently the number of young cares in schools had not been identified.

 

In response to concerns raised by Councillor S.A. Davies regarding the inclusion that safeguarding training be a mandatory requirement of all Elected Members, the Chief Executive stressed the importance of the need for the Council to ensure that every Elected Member received training on Safeguarding, and he emphasised that  failure to do so could result in severe criticism.  Councillor J.M. McLellan highlighted the possible legal implications if training on Safeguarding was not undertaken by all Elected Members.

 

During the ensuing discussion Councillor S.A. Davies proposed, and Councillor H.Hilditch-Roberts, seconded an amendment that the word “mandatory” be removed from the recommendation 3 in the report.  On being put to the vote the amendment was lost by 33 votes for to 0 against.  Members voted on the recommendation in the report which was carried by 35 votes for to 0 against.

 

RESOLVED – that Council:-

 

(a)           agrees to the adoption of the Corporate Safeguarding Policy.

(b)           agrees the establishment of a Corporate Safeguarding Panel with terms of reference as described in Appendix 8 to the report, and

(c)           confirms that safeguarding training be a mandatory requirement of all Elected Members within the first 12 months of taking office.

          (SE to action)