Newsletter Spring 2015
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NEWSLETTER SPRING 2 0 1 5 WELCOME TO THE FIRST EDITION OF THE NEW SOUTHAMPTON LOCAL S AFEGUARDING BOARDS NEWSLETTER! A note from our independent chairs I have now been chairing the LSCB for some seventeen months – the time has really flown! I continue to be impressed by the commitment and dedication of all I have the pleasure to work with on this journey. The Ofsted inspection found the LSCB to be in good shape and the action plan it triggered is well on track. A great deal has happened in the LSCB over the INSIDE THIS ISSUE: past few months and this newsletter is full of the developments and changes which have characterised this busy period. HEADSTART 5 In February the LSCB published a searching Serious Case Review into the circumstances leading up to the sad and untimely death of Blake Fowler (“Child K”). We expressed our sadness at the missed opportunities in this little boy’s life TRAINING 6 in the many media statements that accompanied the publication of the report. I am confident that the services offered by all partners of the LSCB are now more effective MODERN SLAVERY ACT 8 than those prior to 2011, the period covered by the Serious Keith Makin LSCB 2015 Case Review. SHARE AWARE 9 CAMPAIGN Welcome to the spring edition and the Local Safeguarding Adult Board (LSAB) first official newsletter entry. The LSAB, although operating for many years, has recently been given clear statutory responsibilities for assuring local safeguarding arrangements and partners act to help and AND MUCH MORE…. protect 'adults at risk' of abuse, exploitation or neglect. The Board has been working to decide how best to undertake these new roles and I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has con- tributed to this and will support the Board in the future. You can read more about the Care act and how this will affect care and support arrangements at page 5 of this newsletter. We will continue to work closely with our member agencies, the community and other partnerships in Southampton and neighbouring areas to ensure that the needs of adults at risk, NEWSLETTER namely those who require care and support and unable to protect F E E D B A C K Fiona Bateman LSAB themselves from abuse or neglect, are met. To this end we have set out within our Strategic Plan for 2015-16 the key priorities for the Board this year to help us better achieve this objective. This is We would like to hear your ideas available here. for this newsletter! A peer review of the LSAB in March recognised some areas of excellent practice. There are Things like: of course always areas of improvement. For us that is to ensure greater participation and consultation with frontline practitioners, service providers and most importantly people who Format have experienced abuse and neglect so that we continue to improve support to them. Fundamentally the Board wishes to ensure that services deliver an environment that pro- Ideas for articles tects against abuse and neglect and promote the wellbeing of adults in need of care and support, and our plan reflects this. Please contact us with any It is also important to recognise that safeguarding responses should offer protection guided thoughts. by the adult at risk and that our processes must be flexible to achieve this. To this end we are working with other LSABs across Hampshire and the IOW to produce clear guidance and will, during the course of 2015, coordinate awareness and training events to embed good safeguarding practices across the voluntary and statutory services and promote the understanding that 'safeguarding is everyone's business until the person is safe'. WHATS HAPPENING IN S OUTHAMPTON? Page 2 CARE AND SUPPORT IS CHANGING FOR THE BETTER – THE CARE ACT 2 0 1 5 As many of you will be aware, Adult Social Care is now governed by new legislation: The Care Act. In the past Adult Social Care legislation has been covered by a vast number different Acts. Now, and for the first time, The Care Act brings all of these individual areas together. It also makes LSAB’s statutory in all Local Authority Areas. Predominately the Care Act consolidates previous best practice by making them statutory requirements. Some of the significant areas of the Care Act include: Prevention, reducing and delaying need, Provision of Information, Advice & provision of Advocacy Services, Amendments to Assessment & Eligibility, Development of Direct Payment and Deferred payment options, Development of Adult Safeguarding, Development of integrated partnership working. For the first time Adult Safeguarding is now a statutory function, this means it is now equivalent to Children’s Safeguarding. Safeguarding within the Act is aimed at people with Care and Support needs who may be in vulnerable circumstances and at risk of abuse or neglect. One aspect of change is how partner agencies work together to protect individuals. In February the LSAB co-ordinated multi-agency training which not only provided an overview of the The Care Act but also ex- plained some of the changes that will be applied to Adult Safeguarding. The feedback provided in these courses will be put to good use and will inform future training development for both LSAB and SCC. For more information on the Care Act please visit Southampton Information Directory. Please click here for factsheets on the Care Act 2015 which you may find useful. SOUTHAMPTON INFORMAT ION DIRECTORY (SID) Southampton’s new online service provides a comprehensive directory of resources and information, advice and support that helps people find information and solutions about local care and carers. SID brings together a range of information into one knowledge hub, including: child care, adult care, support for those with special educational needs and their carers, education, local family activities, and money matters and benefits. Please click here to view the new site. WHATS HAPPENING IN S OUTHAMPTON? Page 3 EARLY YEARS PUPIL PR EMIUM From April 1st 2015 around 20% of our 3 and 4 year olds who attend early education provision are eligible for Early Years’ Pupil Premium. This is worth 53p per hour for up to 570 hours a year; equivalent to 15 hours a week for 38 weeks. This money will go directly to the early years’ provider, whether that’s a childminder, preschool or nursery, and they will use this money to help raise outcomes for the children. All 3 and 4 year olds who have been Looked After for at least 1 day and children whose parents meet the financial criteria, which is the same as that for Free School Meals, are eligible. The eligibility check will be carried out by the early years’ provider. Eligibility criteria: If parents are in receipt of one or more of these: Income Support income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance income-related Employment and Support Allowance support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit Child Tax Credit (provided they’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190) Working Tax Credit run-on, which is paid for 4 weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit Universal Credit Or if the child has: been in local-authority care for 1 day or more in England or Wales been adopted from care in England or Wales left care under a special guardianship order or residence order in England or Wales For more information, please email [email protected] NEW ADVOCACY SERVICE Following a recent procurement process Solent MIND working in partnerships with Choices Advocacy, together as Advocacy South, have been successful in securing the contract to provide Advocacy Services across Southampton from 1st April 2015. The new service will cover advocacy support including: · Independent Mental Health Advocates · Independent Mental Capacity Advocates · Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards & Paid Representatives st · Care Act Advocacy (new requirement from 1 April) · Special Education Needs and Disabilities advocacy and supporting those in transition For more · Supporting parents with an Learning Disability information, please · General community advocacy and self-advocacy groups click here WHAT’S HAPPENING IN SOUTHAMPTON? Page 4 THE LOCAL SAFEGUARDI NG BOARD TEAM HAS EXPANDED….. The Local Safeguarding Adults and Children’s Boards are now managed by the same team within the Quality Assurance Unit in Southampton City Council. The team includes: Sarah Lawrence— Safeguarding Board Manager Charlie Perrin— Safeguarding Board Coordinator Emma Gilhespy—Safeguarding Board Coordinator Libby Pearce—Safeguarding Board Assistant Sue Hall—Safeguarding Board Assistant To contact the team, please email [email protected] or phone 023 80 832995 CHILD SAFETY WEEK From the 1st – 5th June 2015 Southampton LSCB will be touring the city in Southampton City Council’s trailer raising awareness of child safety issues. Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) have agreed the week’s theme as: ‘Teatime Terrors' and will be using this to help frame discussions with families around the risks of accidents at this time of day. For example, drowning and bath water scalds, road accidents caused by heavy traffic while rushing home from school and nursery, and burns and scalds caused by kitchen appliances. We plan to hold demonstrations to the public, highlighting how easily accidents can happen in and outside the home. Further information about local opportunities will be available shortly. To find out more about Child Safety Week, please click here. CHELSEAS CHOICE Chelsea’s Choice is a theatre production that has toured the country, raising awareness about the issues of Child Sexual Exploitation. The play enables audiences to see how grooming and exploitation can occur in all communities.