North Lincolnshire's Local Safeguarding Children Board

What is a Local Safeguarding Children Board?

The North Lincolnshire Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) was set up in April 2006. It was established in compliance with The Children Act 2004.

Its purpose is to co-ordinate what is done by agencies who work together to safeguard children, protect them from harm and promote their welfare.

North Lincolnshire’s LSCB is made up of representatives from:

The Board may also invite from time to time others to advise, for example:

• Designated Health Professionals
• Faith and voluntary groups
• Legal Services

The Board meets every two months.

The LSCB's work is divided between seven action groups that all report to the Board.

The action groups are:

• The Policy and Procedures Action Group
• The Human Resources Action Group
• The Training Action Group
• The Communication/Community Participation Action Group
• The Children in Care Action Group
• The Common Assessment/Child in Need Action Group
• The Serious Case Review Action Group

The LSCB is committed to, and believes that all children deserve the opportunity to achieve their full potential. Its aim is to improve the well-being of children in North Lincolnshire, having due regard to the five outcomes identified in Every Child Matters, Change for Children Agenda:

• Be Healthy
• Stay Safe
• Enjoy and Achieve
• Make a Positive Contribution
• Achieve Economic Well-being

It believes that children have the right to be cared for in their own families where it is safe to do so.

The Board will:

"work in partnership with parents, children and staff to support children to be safe in the community in which they live"

Its responsibilities include:

• The development of policy and procedures
• Training of people working with children
• Communication and awareness raising to the wider community
• Monitoring and evaluation
• Undertaking Serious Case Reviews
• Working with other strategic bodies to fulfill the obligations set in the Children and Young People's Plan regarding ‘stay safe’
• To undertake work outlined in the Strategic Plan for Safeguarding

The LSCB has a role to contribute to the planning and delivery of children’s services through the Children and Young People’s Plan (CYPP)

Aims and objectives

North Lincolnshire is committed to providing a Local Safeguarding Children Board that makes safeguarding children everybody’s business.

The LSCB promotes safeguarding across three areas:

1. The prevention of maltreatment or impairment of health or development and working to increase the understanding of safeguarding of children issues in the professional and wider community, promoting the message that safeguarding is everybody’s responsibility
2. The coordination of proactive work that will support children and young people who may be vulnerable and identified as ‘in need’.
3. The coordination of responsive work to protect children and young people who are suffering or at risk of suffering harm.

Useful terms in relation to safeguarding children:

Child -'Anyone who has not yet reached their 18th Birthday'

Child protection - 'The process of protecting individual children identified as either suffering or at risk of suffering significant harm as a result of abuse or neglect'

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children - 'The process of protecting children from abuse or neglect, preventing impairment of their health and development and ensuring they are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care as to enable them to have the optimum life chances and enter adulthood successfully'

What is abuse and neglect?

They are forms of maltreatment of a child. Somebody may abuse or neglect a child by inflicting harm, or failing to act to prevent harm.

The abuse could be physical for example, hitting, shaking, throwing.

The abuse could be emotional abuse for example, making a child feel worthless, unloved. It may involve seeing or hearing the maltreatment of another, may involve serious bullying.

The abuse could be sexual abuse, which involves enticing or forcing a child to take part in sexual activities. It may involve non contact activities for example children looking at pornographic material, or in the production of such material.

The abuse could be neglect, this is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic needs or psychological needs for example inadequate care giving, being unresponsive to a child’s emotional needs.

What do I do if I am concerned about a child’s safety of welfare?

Safeguarding children is everybody’s business. If you are concerned that a child is being abused or neglected or that they may be at risk of harm, then you should contact North Lincolnshire’s Children’s Social Services Duty Team:

Tel: 01724 296500 (9am to 5pm Monday to Friday)

Tel: 01724 296555 (5pm to midnight and at weekends 9am to midnight)

In an emergency contact the police.