Health & Social Care

In Bradford, safeguarding children is everybody's business. Child protection means protecting children from physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect. It also means improving their life chances by supporting children to grow up to be confident, healthy and happy adults.

If you are concerned about the safety and welfare of a child in Bradford then please contact Bradford Social Care and Health.

What does Child Protection Unit do for Area Child Protection Committee Agencies?

• Provides a duty consultation service.
• Maintains the Child Protection Register (“Custodian”).
• Chairs and minutes Child Protection Case Conferences and Reviews.
• Monitors adherence to Area Child Protection Committee and Agency Procedures & assists with writing procedures.
• Supports the ACPC (Area Child Protection Committee), including with Serious Case Reviews.
• Contributes to training.
• Quality Assurance function for Child Protection.

Duty Consultation Service

• Information from the Child Protection Register.
• Other information regarding child protection enquiries.
• Information regarding potentially dangerous adults.
• Advice regarding procedures.
• Duty can be contacted on 01274 434343, Monday – Thursday , 8.30 – 5.00; Friday, 8.30 – 4.30.

The Child Protection Register

• Children living in the community who are assessed as being at risk of significant harm, and who require a child protection plan to safeguard their welfare.
• A child’s name can only be placed on the register at a Child Protection Case Conference.
• Registration can act as a warning "flag" for agencies working with a child & family.
• The Child Protection Unit is responsible for the maintenance of the register on behalf of the ACPC

Child Protection Case Conferences and Reviews

• These are multi-agency meetings, involving parents/carers.
• Conferences and reviews consider information and assessments from agencies and information from parents/carers.
• If a child is registered, a key worker must be identified, a core group established and a date set for the first Child Protection Review.
• The first Child Protection Review must take place within 3 months of the Conference. Subsequent Reviews must be at intervals of no more than 6 months.

Child Protection Procedures

• These are the local arrangements for the implementation of the requirements of “Working Together to Safeguard Children”, and its supplementary guidance.
• The main part of the procedures are common to all ACPC agencies.
• The final section (Section 11) is for agencies’ own procedures, in our case social services child protection procedures.

Bradford ACPC Membership

• Bradford and Airedale Health Trusts
• The Care Trust
• Education Bradford
• West Yorkshire Police
• The Youth Service
• Early Years
• The National Probation Service
• CAFCASS
• NSPCC
• Crown Prosecution Service
• Youth Offending Team
• Voluntary Sector
• Connexions
• Bradford Social Services

Functions of ACPC

• To ensure guidelines are in place that enable agencies to work together to safeguard children;
• To monitor adherence to the guidelines;
• To support agencies in developing their own procedures;
• To provide a programme of inter-agency training;
• To ensure proper administration of the Child Protection Register;
• To undertake Serious Case Reviews (Part 8 Reviews), when appropriate.