Children’s Services Transfer Protocol

Version Final v2-2

Approved by: PLT

Approved Date: 17th June 2019

Implementation: Immediate

Children’s Services Transfer Protocol

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About this document

Title Transfer protocol

Purpose To set out the procedure for the transfer of children’s cases

between teams / areas / services

Updated by Katie Peddie

Approved by PLT

Date 17th June 2019

Version number Final v2-2

Status Approved

Implementation

date:

Immediate

Review

frequency

2 months after implementation then every 2 years

Next review date June 2020

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Version Control Document Location: Surrey County Council Tri-X procedures

This document is only valid on the day it is printed

Date Issued: Version Summary of Changes Created by

10/05/2018 1 Final version K Peddie

03/06/2019 2 Updated final version to reflect new structures

K Peddie

14/06/2019 2-1 Updated section on Pre Birth Assessments

K Peddie

20/06/2019 2-2 Minor amendment to Pre Birth Assessment Section

K Peddie

Intended Audience This document has been issued to the following people for Review (R) Information (I)

and Review and Sign off (S). The Transfer protocol is mandatory and must be

shared with all managers, and social work staff and with those holding cases in Early

Help and Surrey Family Services.

Name Position S/R/I

Jacquie Burke / Tina Benjamin / Patricia Denney

Directors S / R

Sam Bushby / Siobhan Walsh / Paula Swindlehurst / Jo Moses / Carol Douch

Assistant Directors S

All Children’s Services Teams

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Contents

Part One – Principles .......................................................................................................... 2

1. Purpose ...................................................................................................................... 2

2. Principles .................................................................................................................... 2

3. Responsibilities ........................................................................................................ 11

Part Two - Process ............................................................................................................ 13

4. Transfer Process ...................................................................................................... 13

5. Transfer Meetings .................................................................................................... 14

6. Transfer following assessment ................................................................................. 14

7. Children with Disabilities ........................................................................................... 15

8. Transfer to Children Looked After Services .............................................................. 15

9. Care Leaver ............................................................................................................. 16

10. Pre-birth Assessments .......................................................................................... 16

11. Section 7 or Section 37 Reports: ........................................................................... 17

12. Transfer of Child Protection cases from other local authorities .............................. 18

13. Transfer of Family and Friends carer cases and Private Fostering to the Fostering

Service ............................................................................................................................ 18

14. Step Down Guidance ............................................................................................ 18

Step Down Family Safeguarding Teams Flowchart ......................................................... 21

Appendix 1: Internal Resolution and Escalation Process. ................................................ 21

Appendix 2: Surrey CC Transfer Summary and Audit ...................................................... 24

Children’s Services Transfer Protocol

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Case transfer process

Child identified for transfer (e.g. in case

supervision / CP / CIN meeting etc)

Details included in transfer spreadsheet by

TM (at least 48 hours prior to transfer

meeting)

Worker ensures all case recording is up to date and on LCS prior to the transfer meeting including: Demographics (including name, DoB, addresses, ethnicity, gender, religion etc); Relationships (including other professionals working with the family); Chronology; Genogram; Case Notes; Visits; Assessments; Court Orders, packages of support

Team Manager reviews case, ensures all management oversight and supervision

notes are up to date and completes transfer summary with SW and signs off case

ready for transfer

Team Manager discusses the child’s case

with potential receiving team manager

(including Early Help where the proposed

plan for Early Help involvement will be

discussed)

Transfer weekly meeting

Receiving team manager reviews information on the case and discusses any issues with

originating TM. If there are minor details (dates of court order etc) that have not been

completed, this should not delay transfer. Information must be followed up within 1 week of

transfer.

Receiving manager discusses the case with worker and allocates the new worker on LCS /

EHM

Joint visit to child / family arranged by current worker inviting new worker within 1 week of

transfer. NOTE: If a CIN / CP / Core Group meeting is already planned in that week, this may

be used to introduce the new worker to the family

Note: There may be a few exceptions where children cannot be transferred within 2 weeks due to the complexity of the case, the availability of family to meet with the new worker within the

timescales or disagreement between managers at the point of transfer. These should be managed as an exception and any disagreements resolved as quickly as possible with escalation to Service Managers if an agreement cannot be reached. No child who is subject of a child protection plan

should be left in a position where they are not visited or assessed due to disagreements relating to transfer. Transfers happen through discussion between managers and between managers and the allocated worker. Workers should not be told about allocation via their worktray or email but as part

of their ongoing supervision.

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Part One – Principles

1. Purpose 1.1 The purpose of this protocol is to outline the agreed process and points of

transfer for children, young people and their families requiring a children’s

services intervention. It includes the transfer points from and to all teams

within Social Care, including ‘step-up’ and ‘step down’ to Targeted Help and

CWD to Adult Services.

1.2 It is essential that staff and team managers ensure they are clear and

informed about this protocol to secure effective transition points that reduce

drift and delay in case planning and interventions

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2. Principles

The child's experience, needs and journey within the system are the central concern and should always be paramount.

Children and young people’s wishes and feelings must be clearly evidenced

Transfer arrangements will always be mindful of the need to ensure the safety of children. It is essential that good quality information is passed from the transferring team to prevent gaps in knowledge and to ensure that the welfare and protection of the child is paramount.

Thresholds for intervention must be clearly understood and applied

The transfer will be conducted in a timely fashion, according to defined standards ensuring as much continuity as possible for children.

Transfer between the services must not be blocked due to capacity issues or disagreement over thresholds. Any disagreements must be resolved via escalation to Service Manager / Assistant Director.

If a transfer is delayed, casework with the child must continue and not be put on pause pending a decision

Work is allocated within the service it is aligned to without exception, in order to ensure any staffing or resourcing pressures are clearly seen and addressed by senior managers

Good transfers are based on effective communication between teams and workers and therefore should never happen via email where the first a worker knows about an allocation is looking in their inbox, a discussion must be held first

Statutory requirements and court directions must always be adhered to

All children subject to statutory services will be allocated to an appropriately qualified social worker

All recording must be up to date, including demographics, chronologies, genograms, case notes, assessments and supervision notes.

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Clear requirements and expectations will be agreed and delivered by the team transferring. For example, what outcomes they are to achieve with the family.

Good quality information will be passed from the transferring team to the receiving team to prevent gaps in knowledge and to ensure that the welfare and protection of the child is paramount.

Case files that do not meet these standards will not be allocated/re-allocated/transferred and will remain the management accountability of the presenting team manager.

It is expected that social workers being allocated to a child will take the opportunity to read the case history prior to meeting with the child and their family.

Transfers will take no longer than 2 weeks from agreed transfer point

The following documents must be completed and

evidenced within the electronic files:

Demographics, professional involvements and family relationships must

be up to date

A full and up to date Chronology of the current team’s involvement

Child and Family Assessment to be completed with analysis of reason

for step down or escalation and clear summary of the concerns, what

intervention you are asking for and safety goals and desired outcomes for

the family i.e. to improve the relationship between the parent to prevent re-

referral of domestic abuse concerns and to prevent the child experiencing

domestic abuse and impacting on their emotional well-being. It must be

signed off by the transferring Team’s TM and feedback provided to the

family and referrer as appropriate;

A relevant plan should be on the file detailing what needs to happen and

setting out clear desired outcomes;

Case summary including the reason for referral, history of the family and

any new concerns identified during the assessment.

Visits to the family home, evidence that the child has been seen and

direct work completed and uploaded on LCS. Also within the child and

family assessment evidence of how the voice of the child has been

incorporated and analysed.

Evidence of regular supervision. Supervision records to be evidenced,

in accordance with the Supervision Policy. It is expected that the

supervision record will be explicit in recording why joint work or a step

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down is being requested, the expectation of Early Help and how one will

know when there are improvements.

Management oversight, which includes allocation notes, management

oversight, including when there is a change in direction of the case i.e.

from child in need to child protection, explaining the escalation or de-

escalation.

A copy of all current Legal Orders should be included in in the record

including the date of the order; In the case of a child Looked After (on a

Care Order under Section 31 of the Children Act 1989) a copy of the birth

certificate will be retained, or (for children Accommodated under Section

20) will have been requested;

Financial agreements should be up to date and recorded on the transfer

record.

All documentation should be signed off by the relevant social worker and

their line manager prior to transfer.

Targeted Help Teams will refer directly to Safeguarding Adolescent

Teams using the most up to date Early Help Assessment

When a transferring case is subject to LAC procedures the case file should

contain the following documentation which is signed off by the social

worker/line manager where appropriate and commented upon within the

transfer summary:

a) Placement Information Record

b) Care Plan

c) Review of Arrangements

d) Placement Agreement - Placement Planning

e) Contact Arrangements/Schedule

f) Medical Consent

g) Date of Medical/Health Review

h) Date of PEP

i) If the child is returning home, there must be a risk assessment of

the proposed arrangements

Any data quality errors should be resolved prior to transfer but are not

to be used as a reason to delay transfer

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2.1 Children, young people, their parents/carers and agencies, will be advised of

any plans to transfer them between teams, the transfer process and timings

by the allocated social worker. Wherever possible, case transfer should

always include a handover meeting with the child/young person and their

parent/carer to introduce the new worker within the week of transfer. If there

is already a CIN meeting / CLA Review or other meeting scheduled in

that week, this may also be used to introduce the new worker.

2.2 When children meet the criteria for transfer, this should be treated as a

priority, with every effort made to ensure smooth and timely transfer.

2.3 Ideally, the case should transfer through a formal meeting process to allow for

formal resolution of issues through an escalation route if required. However

there may be occasions where managers can agree a case transfer through

discussion between team managers and workers in their team. Where

transfer has happened in this way, and update on the case should still be sent

to the weekly meeting on progress of the transfer.

2.4 At no point should a child subject to a child protection plan or a looked after

child be left unallocated or not visited because the case is transferring. The

allocated worker must continue to visit and to undertake direct work, including

reviews where they are due.

2.5 It is always unacceptable to allocate cases to a Team Manager (TM) and no

child subject to child protection or looked after child can ever be left

unallocated. If this is a risk of occurring the relevant Service Manager must

immediately report the concern to the Assistant Director to enable appropriate

remedial action to be taken.

2.6 If difficulties are experienced in transferring cases due to capacity, this should

also be escalated to the relevant Service Manager and if necessary to the

Assistant Director to resolve disagreements and potential resourcing

issues (see This guidance is provided for all teams working across Family

Resilience and Safeguarding in Surrey. The purpose of this guidance is to

ensure:

Children and families receive continuous needs-based support

The service and support provided is delivered by the appropriate

service in a timely way

All those involved understand the process and practice informing a

consistent approach

2.7 The step down approach describes social work behaviours and practice that

supports the family to engage with relevant services and relationships which

will continue to provide the help they require to strengthen family life and

sustain the ongoing changes they want for their family following closure to

social care.

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2.8 How we end our work with children and families is important. Good endings

can build resilience and confidence amongst families and partners by

recognising new strengths and skills and acknowledging the importance of

supportive relationships and behaviours within the family network that ensure

the child is safe and their needs are met.

2.9 Good stepdown practice has at its heart a shared understanding of the needs

of the child and family at the point of closure. Evidence of a strengths based

conversation with family and partners that brings meaning and purpose to the

planning of ongoing Early Help support and access to appropriate services or

network support arrangements that will meet the identified need. To achieve

this the informed consent and participation of the family in the stepdown

process is essential.

2.10 Whether closing a C&F assessment or ending a Child Protection or CIN Plan

the closing summary and final review minutes should evidence the following:-

A simple description of the need /risk that led to social care involvement

and what has changed that means that this is no longer needed.

The views of the social worker and the family on the purpose of an

ongoing Early Help plan. What do the family want to achieve?

Recommendation on the level and nature of the support required to meet

ongoing need. (Targeted level 3, Early Help at Level 2 or Universal and

family network support at Level 1)

Information about Early Help Lead professional or key partners who will

continue to support the family to achieve these goals.

2.11 Stepdown may be as a result of recommendations from a Child and Family

Assessment or follow on from a Child in Need or Child Protection plan

supporting transition to Targeted support at level 3 or ongoing coordinated

help at level 2 using an Early Help Plan and an identified lead professional.

Not all families however will require additional support from other agencies

and stepdown practice may focus on affirming the support of the family and

community network and ongoing access to relevant universal services that

are coordinated by the family themselves.

Early Help Hub support for Step down from Family Safeguarding Teams 2.12 Social Workers are encouraged to use the Family Information Directory to

help identify local support services and share with parents as part of their

work with the family at the point of closure and stepdown.

FIS Website: www.surreycc.gov.uk/fis Family Information Directory: www.surreycc.gov.uk/directory Telephone: 0300 200 1004 (Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm, 24 hour answerphone) Email: surrey.fis@surreycc.gov.uk

2.13 In contacting the Early Help Hub for support for stepdown the Social worker

will be asked the following questions:

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Have the children and family members consented to stepdown?

What were the worries that led to social care intervention and what has changed that means that this is no longer needed for the child and family?

What do the social worker and family want to achieve through ongoing early support?

Who is currently involved as part of the family support network?

What kind of support do you and the family think would be most useful?

Is there a date for a planned closing review or case closure? The role of the social worker in Step down is to:

Engage the family and professional support group in a stepdown conversation in a timely way so that there is a common understanding of the purpose and nature of ongoing Early Help before closure is finalised.

Record the stepdown conversation and plan in the final review minutes and the closing summary which should be shared with the family and TAF and if appropriate the Early Help Hub.

If there is an agreed Lead Professional their name and contact details should be recorded on LCS and in involvements.

The role of the EHH Early Help Advisor is to:

Provide the social worker with advice and information about the services that could provide ongoing support to the family.

Offer support and advice to Early Help Professionals who will be taking on the Lead Professional role and continuing as members of the TAF.

Support social workers with referral to level 3 services as part of a stepdown plan when necessary.

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Step Down Family Safeguarding Teams Flowchart

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2.14 Appendix 1: Internal Resolution and Escalation Process.)

All managers will commit to attending the transfer meetings for the

children they are transferring to secure consistency of approach.

2.15 Managers must attend the transfer meeting prepared with names of the

workers who will be taking children on the transfer list. The date of transfer

will be agreed at the first transfer meeting following a child being added to the

transfer list and as a minimum will transfer after the subsequent transfer

meeting.

2.16 All TMs receiving cases will ensure that newly allocated children are

immediately assigned on LCS to the receiving practitioner by 5.00pm on the

same day as transfer was agreed. Where the transfer is to Early Help, this

will be allocated following the step down conversation.

2.17 All presenting TMs are required to ensure that children’s cases that are

presented for allocation and inter-team transfer are up to date.

2.18 One Social Worker one family principle applies; the exception may be looked

after children that become pregnant and the need for a separate referral in

relation to their child but this will be decided on a case by case approach.

2.19 Children’s cases will sit within the appropriate service and any volume,

demand or pressures will be managed within that service.

Exceptions to Case Transfer:

a) Friends and family assessments: will remain within the locality teams

however the assessment will be undertaken within the Fostering Service..

b) Closed cases: any child re-referred less than 12 weeks from closure (the

date of closure recorded on LCS / EHM) will be transferred directly back to

the Social Work Team where the family are living who had previously

worked with them. Where a re-referral has occurred, the manager must

review the record to establish why it was closed and whether it was closed

prematurely. Management oversight must be clearly recorded, particularly

in these cases.

(Children re-referred at a later stage will be re-assessed by the Assessment

Team.)

c) Children with disabilities who receive a single package of support who

are not considered to require a social worker will be transferred to a worker

who will monitor the package of support they are receiving which will be

reviewed in accordance with the schedule established with the family.

d) S7 and S37 court reports: If there has been no involvement from

Children’s Services in the last 3 months, S7 assessments go to CAFCASS,

otherwise they are sent to the relevant assessment team. S37 reports go

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directly to the relevant Family Safeguarding team.

e) Referral to ACT: when a child is referred to ACT, they are not transferred,

but the ACT is added as an additional involvement with the originating team

holding accountability

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3. Responsibilities Social Worker:

3.1 Where children have been identified for transfer to another team, the social

worker will need to complete any outstanding work prior to transfer. It will be

added to the spreadsheet for discussion at the next Transfer Meeting by the

Team Manager. The social worker will need to talk to the child and their

family about transferring them to a new worker and should arrange a time and

date to introduce them (if they don’t already know them). If the child is

‘stepping down’ to Targeted Help, the social worker should initiate a step

down conversation with the Early Help Hub and outline with them the

proposed plan and what it is intended to achieve.

Team Manager

3.2 Where children from are transferring to another team, the Team Manager

must:

agree that they have met the threshold for transfer and audit the records

to ensure that they are of a good quality using the Transfer Summary and

Audit on LCS.

have an early conversation with the receiving team manager to let them

know that the child will be transferring to them.

ensure that the social worker has completed the work to a good enough

quality or is on track for completing by the deadline.

attend the Transfer Meeting and be prepared to give a quick case

summary. Discuss any actions with the social worker and ensure that the

case is transferred within the required timeframe (2 weeks from

identification).

agree that a request should be made to the Early Help Hub for either joint

working or step down, which should be recorded in either supervision or a

management oversight on the case notes with a rationale, expected

outcomes and timeframe transfer.

3.3 It is the managers responsibly to ensure the social worker has completed all

expectations set out in this protocol and this should be recorded. If they are

not completed then the manger given expected timeframe and monitors the

social worker, so as to avoid drift for the child. Moreover from the work

completed by the social worker the manager should be able to “understand

the journey of the child and hear their wishes and feelings” and understand

the need for early help.

Service Manager

3.4 Service Managers will have oversight of the Transfer Meetings in each of the

Areas, Chairing it on a rota basis. The Chair will need to ensure that

attendees have the list of children to be transferred and the list of children

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who were discussed at the previous meeting with an update on their status.

Where there are concerns about capacity in the receiving team, this should be

resolved locally first, if this is not possible, it should be referred to the

Assistant Director. If there are issues with ‘stepping down’ the escalation

process should be followed (see Appendix 1). Service managers are

responsible for having oversight of the children moving within their service

and where there are delays in allocating workers.

3.5 The Service Managers are responsible for reviewing the list of children who

have not transferred within the required 2 weeks, and having oversight of the

issues. They will also be required to resolve issues of capacity, escalating

where necessary, reporting issues of caseloads to the Assistant Director.

Assistant Director

3.6 The Assistant Director has the final decision over children that have been

escalated. Data will be submitted in the assurance report in relation to

capacity and workload of the service and where the “pinch-points” might be.

Targeted Help

3.7 The Early Help Hub will have ‘step-down conversations’ with social workers

and a robust plan will be formulated. The Early Help Hub will either advise

the Social Worker of level 2 services that are suitable for the family or allocate

to a Targeted Help Service. If a Child and Family Assessment has been

recently completed, a further Early Help Assessment would not be required.

3.8 Where TYS think a child may need non-urgent level 4 intervention in the form

of a C & F assessment, the Targeted Youth Support (TYS) manager will have

a discussion with the Team Manager in the Safeguarding Adolescent Team

(SAT) in the first instance to discuss threshold. Once it has been agreed they

will be added to the internal transfer list for allocation that week, and once

there is a named worker on that same week. Once there is a named worker

the TYS manager will trigger the referral through to Child and Family

Assessment to the allocated social worker in SAT and within 5 days a joint

visit between the SAT social worker and the TYS worker to start the

assessment.

3.9 For urgent cases i.e. sec 47 or a child coming into care same-day, the TYS

manager will phone family safeguarding duty and the duty manager will

allocate to a worker that day to immediately pick up on the actions. Preferably

the Team Manager will allocate to a SAT worker but if no-one is available, it

may be allocated to a duty social worker although this should be an exception.

3.10 If it is a same day placement the Assistant Director must agree this - the TYS

worker will complete any placement referral form and the SAT duty worker will

support them by checking its quality. And then any Sec 20 agreements, all the

CLA work will be done by SAT. The TYS worker and the SAT/duty worker

should undertake joint work for aspects such as gaining s20 consent as the

TYS worker will know the family and child but it must be a social worker who

obtains those consents and undertakes all the CLA processes.

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Part Two - Process

4. Transfer Process 4.1 Good practice in case transfer relies on good and effective communication

between the social worker and their manager and between the team they may

be transferring to. Where this is working well, the case transfer meetings will

be more effective and will impact on the thresholds across the service.

4.2 To enable effective transfer of a case, the allocated worker and their line

manager must ensure that all casework is clear and up to date on LCS.(see

section 1 Principles)

4.3 The manager should have an early discussion with the receiving team

manager to notify them that a child will be transferring to their team and when

this is likely to happen. This decision and outcome of discussion will be

recorded on the child’s record. The receiving manager should take this

opportunity to also review the child’s record.

4.4 Prior to transfer, the case file should be quality assured by the supervising

manager using the case file transfer audit tool on LCS (see Appendix 2:

Surrey CC Transfer Summary and Audit

4.5 for an example of how to complete this), ensuring that all records are up to

date and that the case complies with the principles as set out in section 2

above (see also Practice Standards). A case summary should be completed

giving a summary of the key issues and concerns including timescales.

4.6 At time / day of transfer, the receiving Team has 24 hours to identify missing

exemplars, assessments or other work and inform the originating team; in

order for the originating team to address these remedial actions.

4.7 The transferring team is responsible for ensuring that all paper files are

transferred to the receiving team (where paper records are kept).

4.8 It is the responsibility of the originating team to ensure that all actively

involved agencies, professionals and family members are notified of the case

transfer, the name and contact details of the newly allocated worker and

team.

4.9 Prior to the formal transfer date, the new worker and current worker should

plan introductions to family and professionals and undertake a joint visit where

the case is transferred to Early Help and should also write to them all

confirming transfer has occurred.

4.10 This letter should include the new worker’s team and contact details.

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5. Transfer Meetings 5.1 Transfer meetings will be held weekly in each of the Areas. The purpose of

these meetings is to provide a consistent approach across the service to the

effective and timely transfer of children between teams and to effectively

manage the thresholds within the service and between teams.

5.2 Service Managers will chair the meeting and all Team Managers transferring

and receiving cases are expected to attend for the specific cases they are

transferring / receiving whilst the process is being secured across the

services. Should there be issues in transferring, this must be escalated to the

Assistant Director for resolution.

5.3 The Team Manager will include the children to be transferred on the transfer

spreadsheet at least 48 hours prior to the Transfer Meeting. Anything

received after this time will not be discussed and will be put on the transfer list

for the following week. When this occurs case responsibility will remain with

the presenting team. (Note: This is at the discretion of the managers who are

transferring and receiving. Where they have agreed between themselves that

the case can transfer and have everything in place, this may transfer prior to

the next meeting and an update provided to the meeting).

5.4 The meeting will agree any remedial actions required to facilitate the transfer

and this will also be recorded as a management oversight on the child’s case

record.

5.5 The electronic case summary should be authorised by the respective Team

Manager to be available for the transfer meeting.

5.6 The Team Manager transferring the case will audit the file and its contents, as

will the receiving Team Manager and they will agree remedial actions required

5.7 Completion of assessments, review, care plans and pathway plans will usually

be required although it is acknowledged there may be rare occasions when

there are some exceptions agreed by the Service Managers.

5.8 Where children are not transferred within the 2 weeks and have not been

agreed as ‘exceptions’, they will be reviewed by the Service Manager.

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6. Transfer following assessment 6.1 During an assessment where it is determined that children and young people

will require ongoing work through a Child in Need or Child Protection Plan or

that they will be ‘stepped down’ to an Early Help service the team manager

will have an early discussion with the receiving team manager to advise them

and then add the child’s details to the Transfer spreadsheet.

6.2 The decision to transfer must be clearly recorded on LCS and a new social

worker is identified by the receiving Team Manager.

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6.3 Prior to transfer, the Assessment team will ensure that the record is up to date

with the Child in Need plan agreed and the chronology completed

6.4 Assessment teams retain case responsibility until such time as it is clear that

the case can either be closed, stepped down to Early Help services or

requires further social care input. The Assessment teams pass on

responsibility to the relevant Social Work Teams at the point at which:

either a Child in Need Plan has been agreed; or

ICPC

where reunification is the plan, CLA transfers to Family Safeguarding

Team at the Placement Planning Meeting

at the point of the initial LAC Review, following a child being made

looked after

Cases in Care Proceedings will transfer to the Family Safeguarding

Team at the first Court Hearing.

6.5 Once the level of risk/need is sufficiently reduced cases will be ‘stepped down’

from Assessment or the Locality Social Work teams for on-going support that

is coordinated, and where appropriate, delivered through Targeted or Early

Help services in the community

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7. Children with Disabilities 7.1 Children with disabilities who are referred into the service through the Hubs

will generally include those where the parents are looking for support

including short breaks and direct payments. These children will be referred

directly to the Children with Disabilities Service subject to the child meeting

with the Children with Disabilities Eligibility Criteria.

7.2 If a looked after child has disabilities and is likely to be eligible for adult

services, they will be assigned a Transitions worker who will work alongside

them to facilitate the transition to adult services. Where a looked after child

with disabilities is likely to go into independence, they will be allocated a PA.

7.3 For further information on the transition of children with disabilities into adult

services, please see the Transitions Protocol.

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8. Transfer to Children Looked After Services 8.1 Where children are being transferred to the Looked After Children team from

a Family Safeguarding / Adolescent Safeguarding team, it is the expectation

that a handover meeting will be undertaken, to include the originating and

receiving social workers and receiving team manager. At this meeting, the

care plan will be shared and discussed with the looked after children team

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and a joint visit to the child will be agreed to introduce the new social worker.

The pro-forma designed by the Children in Care Council should be completed

by the new social worker to describe themselves and this should be shared

with the child at the joint visit (if not before).

8.2 Children who are likely to become looked after are tracked through the PLO

tracker, however it is helpful for these children to also be identified and

included on the case transfer spreadsheet.

8.3 The receiving Team Manager will oversee casework tasks that need to be

completed prior to the transfer and assign roles and responsibilities. When

the child transfers there may be specific tasks that the outgoing social worker

holds to complete because this is in the child’s best interests e.g. writing the

review report or updating the CPR etc.

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9. Care Leaver 9.1 When a Looked After Child turns 15 and a half, the young person’s social

worker must start the pathway planning assessment alongside the young

person, to be completed no later than 16 and three months, in line with

statutory guidance. Issues such as ‘Staying Put’ and University should be

considered as part of this initial Pathway Plan in order to inform any work

going forward with the young person.

9.2 Where the young person is an ‘eligible’ care leaver, a personal adviser should

be assigned to them by their 16th birthday and the social worker will arrange a

joint visit with the personal adviser to introduce them to the young person.

Where the young person is ‘eligible’, both the social worker and the personal

adviser will continue to work with the young person until their 18th birthday

when the social worker ceases their involvement. Joint working will include

mapping and shared visits as needed.

9.3 The Pathway Plan must be developed alongside the young person.

9.4 There will be rare exceptions where a young person is made subject of a Care

Order past their 16th birthday or where an unaccompanied asylum seeker is

made known to us and becomes looked after under s20, in which case their

assessment must take into account pathway planning. These young people

become ‘eligible’ for care leavers’ services once they have been looked after

for 3 months.

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10. Pre-birth Assessments 10.1 In cases where there have been previous Care Proceedings and/or evident

Child Protection concerns:

a) If the pregnancy is at 12 weeks or more and confirmed by a medical

practitioner, the Assessment team will complete the Initial pre- birth (C&F)

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assessment; Refer to pre-birth assessment guidance – Initial

areas/questions to consider. The Initial pre-birth C&F assessment will

evidence if a full comprehensive pre-birth assessment is needed.

b) In line with this rationale, it is recommended that Initial pre-birth (C&F)

assessments commence between the 12th and 14th week of pregnancy

(3 months) where we are made aware of the pregnancy (it is

understandable however that there will be cases of concealed

pregnancies where pre-birth assessments do not happen within this

timeframe). This allows sufficient time for a statutory assessment and

services to be put in place to reduce the chances of the unborn coming

into care at birth.

c) Comprehensive pre-birth assessments are the responsibility of the area

Family Safeguarding team. In the following circumstances the Initial Pre-

birth C&F assessments are the responsibility of the safeguarding team if

they are already in Care Proceedings with siblings or if previous children

have been removed by Surrey on a permanent basis. The same

timescales for assessments and interventions apply as in the previous

point.

d) If the Care Proceedings for any siblings have concluded within the past 3

months then the relevant Family Safeguarding Team will undertake the

new pre-birth assessments (including initial pre-birth C&F). (In particular

circumstances the Team Managers from the Family Safeguarding Team

and/or Assessment may wish to discuss this further - Social Workers and

Managers in the Family Safeguarding Team will have relevant information

and experience with the family but, on the other hand, a ‘fresh view’ may

be needed).

e) Where it is likely that the baby will be removed at birth, the social worker

must make contact with the Adoption Agency Adviser to discuss Early

Permanence options.

See also Pre-Birth Assessment Guidance and the SSCB Pre-Birth Child Protection

Procedure

11. Section 7 or Section 37 Reports: 11.1 Requests from the Court for s37 reports should be directed to the Family

Safeguarding team in the relevant area and a Child & Family Assessment

opened, or, if a recent assessment has been undertaken, this would be

updated.

11.2 Requests from Court for s7 reports will be sent directly to the relevant

Assessment team. As the assessment is a completed s7 report this would not

necessarily trigger a Child and Family Assessment unless the circumstances

of the presenting needs of the child require it.

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11.3 If the case is an open case or has been closed less than three months of the

report being requested, the new referral should be passed to the most recent

allocated Social Worker/Team for completion.

11.4 Step parent adoptions are to be undertaken within the Adoption Team and are

to be transferred to that team on receipt of request.

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12. Transfer of Child Protection cases from other local authorities

12.1 When Surrey is notified that a child subject to a child protection plan by

another local authority has moved into their area, the relevant Assessment

team is responsible for negotiating transfer. This includes making contact

with the responsible local authority and receiving notifications for transfer

across local authority boundaries. Once a decision has been made that the

criteria have been met, transfer should be arranged to take place within 15

working days via a ‘transfer-in’ initial conference.

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13. Transfer of Family and Friends carer cases and Private Fostering to the Fostering Service

13.1 In cases where a potential Family and Friends carer has been identified who

may consider SGO or Reg 24 placement this does not require the child to be

transferred to a new team, rather to include an additional involvement of the

Fostering Service (for more information please see Assessment of Family or

Friends as Foster Carers process)

13.2 Usually a Private Fostering referral will be made directly to the Fostering

Team. However, if during the course of working with a family, a Private

Fostering arrangement has been identified by the family, once it has been

determined that the child has not met the threshold for accommodation, the

relevant children’s team must refer to the Fostering Team so that a visit can

be completed within 7 working days of the arrangement being identified. In

these cases viability assessments are not required. However, the social

worker needs to complete the Private Fostering referral form. In this case the

Fostering Team is an additional involvement and the case is not transferred.

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14. Step Down Guidance 14.1 This guidance is provided for all teams working across Family Resilience and

Safeguarding in Surrey. The purpose of this guidance is to ensure:

Children and families receive continuous needs-based support

The service and support provided is delivered by the appropriate

service in a timely way

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All those involved understand the process and practice informing a

consistent approach

14.2 The step down approach describes social work behaviours and practice that

supports the family to engage with relevant services and relationships which

will continue to provide the help they require to strengthen family life and

sustain the ongoing changes they want for their family following closure to

social care.

14.3 How we end our work with children and families is important. Good endings

can build resilience and confidence amongst families and partners by

recognising new strengths and skills and acknowledging the importance of

supportive relationships and behaviours within the family network that ensure

the child is safe and their needs are met.

14.4 Good stepdown practice has at its heart a shared understanding of the needs

of the child and family at the point of closure. Evidence of a strengths based

conversation with family and partners that brings meaning and purpose to the

planning of ongoing Early Help support and access to appropriate services or

network support arrangements that will meet the identified need. To achieve

this the informed consent and participation of the family in the stepdown

process is essential.

14.5 Whether closing a C&F assessment or ending a Child Protection or CIN Plan

the closing summary and final review minutes should evidence the following:-

A simple description of the need /risk that led to social care involvement

and what has changed that means that this is no longer needed.

The views of the social worker and the family on the purpose of an

ongoing Early Help plan. What do the family want to achieve?

Recommendation on the level and nature of the support required to meet

ongoing need. (Targeted level 3, Early Help at Level 2 or Universal and

family network support at Level 1)

Information about Early Help Lead professional or key partners who will

continue to support the family to achieve these goals.

14.6 Stepdown may be as a result of recommendations from a Child and Family

Assessment or follow on from a Child in Need or Child Protection plan

supporting transition to Targeted support at level 3 or ongoing coordinated

help at level 2 using an Early Help Plan and an identified lead professional.

Not all families however will require additional support from other agencies

and stepdown practice may focus on affirming the support of the family and

community network and ongoing access to relevant universal services that

are coordinated by the family themselves.

Early Help Hub support for Step down from Family Safeguarding Teams 14.7 Social Workers are encouraged to use the Family Information Directory to

help identify local support services and share with parents as part of their

work with the family at the point of closure and stepdown.

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FIS Website: www.surreycc.gov.uk/fis Family Information Directory: www.surreycc.gov.uk/directory Telephone: 0300 200 1004 (Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm, 24 hour answerphone) Email: surrey.fis@surreycc.gov.uk

14.8 In contacting the Early Help Hub for support for stepdown the Social worker

will be asked the following questions:

Have the children and family members consented to stepdown?

What were the worries that led to social care intervention and what has changed that means that this is no longer needed for the child and family?

What do the social worker and family want to achieve through ongoing early support?

Who is currently involved as part of the family support network?

What kind of support do you and the family think would be most useful?

Is there a date for a planned closing review or case closure? The role of the social worker in Step down is to:

Engage the family and professional support group in a stepdown conversation in a timely way so that there is a common understanding of the purpose and nature of ongoing Early Help before closure is finalised.

Record the stepdown conversation and plan in the final review minutes and the closing summary which should be shared with the family and TAF and if appropriate the Early Help Hub.

If there is an agreed Lead Professional their name and contact details should be recorded on LCS and in involvements.

The role of the EHH Early Help Advisor is to:

Provide the social worker with advice and information about the services that could provide ongoing support to the family.

Offer support and advice to Early Help Professionals who will be taking on the Lead Professional role and continuing as members of the TAF.

Support social workers with referral to level 3 services as part of a stepdown plan when necessary.

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Children’s Services Transfer Protocol

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Step Down Family Safeguarding Teams Flowchart

Decision to close is discussed with manager

Management Oversight approves case to close and stepdown

to Early Help

SW discusses closure and step down with family and

professionals and agrees purpose of Early Help Plan.

What do the family want to achieve? Who could help?

Family give consent for Early Help support

Social Worker closes to

Safeguarding Service. The

family, new lead professional

and any other agencies

involved continue to meet as

a Team around the Family as

agreed

Universal/ Early Help 2 Level 3 Targeted Youth Support

from Children Centre or Family

Support Programme

Request from CC or FSP accepted.

Provider contacts SW directly to

inform

Provider contacts family to inform

Social worker records name of

allocated worker in involvement and

involves CC or FSP in closing

review or Joint visit.

Social worker

contacts TYS for

discussion and

direct referral

Joint visit to the

family.

TYS new Lead

professional

attends closing

review

Social Worker with family consent

may contact the EHH for support in

identifying relevant Early Help

services to support ongoing

identified need

Early Help agencies/ lead

professionals/ family network

members attend final review

meeting to plan and agree Early

Help plan for ongoing support to

meet identified need.

New Children

Centre or Family

Support Programme

requests for support

sent via Early Help

Hub

SW provides copy of

draft closing

summary with

Stepdown

information and date

of final review or

planned closure

Social Worker

can ring EH

Hub for advice

re possible

local services

to provide

ongoing

support to

family

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Appendix 1: Internal Resolution and Escalation Process.

Introduction The purpose of this paper is to set out clearly the action that needs to be taken when

there is a lack of resolution about the potential referral of a case between teams,

including Children’s Social Care and Early Help / TYS.

It is anticipated that the vast majority of cases will be agreed at the case Transfer

Meetings or at the consultation meetings between Early Help/TYS and CSC,

however there will be occasions where there is a lack of agreement at this stage and

therefore escalation will be required to resolve this disagreement through

implementation of this process.

All involved need to cooperate and collaborate to minimise the possibility of children,

young people or families failing to get a service when required.

It is also essential that clear agreements are reached about how children, young

people or families are kept informed of any decisions that will impact on the services

they receive.

Procedure Consultation Meetings (between Early Help/TYS and CSC) A consultation meeting will be called within 3 working days, from the time of the

communication between agencies re need to discuss the case, for either of the

incidents outlined:

When a single agency referral has been made to the Early Help and they do not deem the referral appropriate.

When Early Help teams are working a case, which they consider may require progression to a service from CSC

It is the responsibility of the agency who initiates the consultation to organise the

consultation meeting, but the responsibility of both parties to ensure the meeting

takes place within the agreed timescale.

The agency that holds, and is accountable for the case, whilst the referral remains

unresolved is the referring agency who must continue to ensure that the child is

visited and any reviews and assessments are undertaken.

NOTE – IF THE ISSUES ARE OF A CHILD PROTECTION NATURE THEN THE CHILD PROTECTION PROCEDURES SUPERCEDE THIS PROCESS AND MUST BE IMPLEMENTED IMMEDIATELY. Recording of Decisions It is the responsibility of the initiator of the consultation meeting to ensure the

completion of the relevant paperwork (for all stages of this process).

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All discussions must be recorded at the time of the meeting on LCS (if the meeting is

between Early Help and CSC, this record must also be transferred to EHM when the

child is transferred)

How each decision is reached must be clearly guided by the Thresholds Criteria. When an agreement is NOT reached in the consultation meeting further escalation

may be required as follows:

STAGE 1 When an agreed outcome cannot be reached in the consultation meeting then this

must be recorded in the minutes and brought to the attention of the respective

managers of each service within 24 hours (e.g. 1.00 pm to 1.00 pm the following day

- not including weekends or bank holidays) These 2 Managers will hold a discussion

within the next 24 hours of receiving the information regarding lack of agreement (not

including weekends or bank holidays) to resolve the lack of resolution. If no

resolution can be reached then Stage 2 needs to occur. This lack of resolution needs

to again be recorded on the consultation template at the time of the meeting.

STAGE 2 If there is a lack of resolution at Stage1 then the process needs to progress to stage

2 – this needs to occur within the next 24 hours (not including weekends or bank

holidays) of the lack of resolution being reached by the managers.

Stage 2 involves the Team Manager escalating the matter to their Service Manager

and they will discuss the matter with the managers concerned, and their counterpart

Service Manager and seek resolution within 24 working hours of their discussion (not

including weekends or bank holidays). The outcome of this discussion (resolution

achieved or not) must be recorded on the consultation template by the initiating

agency of the original consultation meeting. If resolution is not achieved then the

matter needs to escalate to Stage 3.

STAGE 3 If there is a lack of resolution at Stage 2 then the process needs to progress to Stage

3 – this needs to occur within the next 24 hours (not including weekends or bank

holidays) of the lack of resolution being reached by the Service Managers.

Stage 3 involves the Service Manager escalating to their Area Head 24 hours of the

discussion (not including weekends or bank holidays).

If in the very unlikely event resolution is not agreed between these 2 Heads of

Service then the ultimate decision sits with the Assistant Director Children’s Social

Care and this must be made and recorded on the Consultation template and the

action implemented.

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Children’s Services Transfer Protocol

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Appendix 2: Surrey CC Transfer Summary and Audit

Case Transfer

example.pdf

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