Councillors & Local Authority Members – useful resources

The local authority (the Council) has statutory responsibilities to safeguard children (Children Act 1989) and vulnerable adults (Care Act 2014).

Safeguarding is about keeping people safe and protecting them from harm, neglect, abuse and injury. It is about creating safe places, being vigilant and doing something about any concerns you might have.

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and it is essential that all elected Members understand their role in this.

Corporate Parent
For children in care, the Council has a statutory responsibility as corporate parent. Members have an important role in making sure that the Council acts as a good corporate parent for all children in its care, to seek the outcomes that any good parent would want for their own children, to enable each child to reach its full potential.  This includes education, health and welfare and cultural needs.

As corporate parent, the Council needs to ensure that there are appropriate steps in place to ensure it listens to the voice of looked after children, prioritise their needs and have high aspirations for them.

Duty to Report Safeguarding Concerns
If you become aware of any individual case of safeguarding concerns, relating either to children or vulnerable adults, arising through your work with constituents, you must report this to the relevant services.

• All contact details can be found on our concerned page.

Training
Because of the importance of safeguarding for all elected Members, it is essential that they fully understand the duties and issues involved.

• Safeguarding training is available to all elected Members through our multi-agency training offer.

Resources
Local Government Association (LGA)
The LGA is an excellent source of information on safeguarding issues for children and young people and adults.

• Find out more on their website at www.local.gov.uk

SCIE
SCIE provide training and resources to support public sector agencies to safeguard adults and children.

• Find out more on their website at www.scie.org.uk/safeguarding

NSPCC
The NSPCC is an invaluable source of safeguarding information.

• Find out more on their website at learning.nspcc.org.uk/safeguarding-child-protection/