Bedfordshire Local Safeguarding Children Board

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Bedfordshire Local Safeguarding Children Board

• LSCB Inter-Agency Protocol Summary
• Safeguarding Sexually Active Children and Young
  People

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This summary is provided to help safeguarding
children practitioners gain a quick understanding
of the protocol. The summary complements the
protocol which must still be read and understood
by all safeguarding children practitioners and
managers. The protocol itself is the source
document and must be referred to at all times.
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Application

• All safeguarding children practitioners
• When providing sexual health services or advice
  to children or young people
• To assess the risk to children who seek
  professional advice on their sexual activity
• Or wish to access a sexual health service
• Where concerns are identified the safeguarding
  procedures must be followed

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Achieving the Right Balance

• Provide confidential sexual health services
• Reduce teenage conception and pregnancy

• Identify sexually exploited children
• Assess risk and taking safeguarding action to
  protect all children

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Responsibilities

• Conduct an assessment against specific risk
  factors (agency specific, CIN or CAF)
• By suitably skilled practitioner
• That involves seeking appropriate information
• Which informs decision on whether to refer
• And is fully recorded

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Legal Context

• Sexual activity is unlawful when
• One party is under 16
• One party doesnt give informed consent
• And where one party is under 18, when
• Involves payment (cash, goods or kind)
• Involves breach of trust
• Police have discretion on whether to investigate
  or prosecute will take agency views into account
• Assessors can request information from police /
  social care without making a referral

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Risk Factors

• Age, maturity, circumstances, background,
  behaviour
• Age / power imbalance, coercion, bribery
• Familial child sex offences
• Substance use / misuse
• Secrecy
• Minimalisation
• Grooming
• Information on sexual partner

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Requesting Information

• Not a referral
• Recorded for intelligence purposes, not recorded
  as a crime
• Recorded as a contact not a referral
• Minimal personal information
• No details of the relationship provided
• Assessor retains control over decision to refer

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Information Request - Response

• A person may pose a significant risk to children
  in the context of a sexual relationship refer,
  consent not required
• A person may be particularly vulnerable to sexual
  exploitation refer, subject to consent
• A person may have additional needs consider
  CAF, subject to consent
• No relevant information held on the information
  provided

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Children under 13

• Any sexual offence involving a child under 13
  is very serious and should be taken to indicate a
  serious risk of significant harm to the child.
  (WT 5.23)
• Where the allegation concerns penetrative sex,
  or other intimate sexual activity occurs, there
  would always be reasonable cause to suspect that
  a child, whether a boy or a girl, is suffering or
  is likely to suffer significant harm. (WT 5.24)

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LSCB Protocol - under 13s

• Penetrative or intimate sexual activity with a
  child under 13 will always require a referral to
  Childrens Social Care and Police. This is
  because such activity will always amount to a
  serious criminal offence and be likely to cause
  significant harm. (7.3)

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Appendices

• Risk assessment matrix
• Information request process
• Information request form
• Code for Crown Prosecutors