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The Children's Hearings System in Scotland 2003
Training Resource Manual 2nd edition

4 RESPONSIBILITIES TO CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES

Duties of local authorities towards children and young people

There is a general duty placed on local authorities in the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 to promote the social welfare of people in their area by providing advice, guidance and assistance. Local authorities have a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children who are 'in need' by providing a range and level of services appropriate to their needs.

Children 'in need'

Section 22 of the Act defines a child as being in need of care and attention if:

• he or she is unlikely to achieve or maintain, or to have the opportunity of achieving or maintaining, a reasonable standard of health or development unless services are provided for him/her by the local authority
• his or her health or development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired, unless such services are so provided
• he or she is disabled, or is affected adversely by the disability of a member of the family.

Children affected by disability

The local authorities have additional duties to children with disabilities. Services must be designed to give children with disabilities the chance to lead as normal a life as possible, and to minimise the effects of their disabilities. The services must also minimise the effect on the children of someone else's disability in the family. It is acknowledged that hardship and stresses within a family caused by a child's or parent's disability can also disadvantage another child within the family.

When a child has a disability, is chronically sick or mentally ill, or when someone else in the family has a disability and it seems that the disability is affecting the child's quality of life, parents and guardians have a right to ask for an assessment of the child's and family's needs. The local authority must carry out this assessment which will indicate what services they should provide to fulfil their welfare duty to the child.

'Looked after' children

Under previous legislation, children were described as being 'in care'. Now children and young people who are being provided with accommodation by the local authority, who are subject to supervision requirements (whether they live at home or away from home) or who are under child protection orders or warrants are all described as 'looked after'. This means that the local authority has a duty to:

• safeguard and promote the child's welfare (by, among other things, preparing the child for leaving care)
• provide family support services where the child is at home
• promote contact between the child and his or her parents
• ascertain and take account of the child's views and the views of parents and relevant adults
• have regard to the child's religion, race, culture and linguistic background
• review the child's case at regular intervals.

The care plan

Each looked after child is required under the Arrangements for Looked After Children (Scotland) Regulations 1996 to have a care plan in which certain matters are addressed:

• the local authority's immediate and longer term plans for the child
• details of any service to be provided to meet the care, education and health needs of the child.
• the respective responsibilities of the local authority to the child, any person with parental responsibilities for the child and any other relevant person.

Where a child is subject to a home supervision requirement, in addition to these statutory matters to be addressed, the care plan should also record:

• details of the supervision requirement
• timescales for meeting objectives and reviews
• how disagreements are to be dealt with
• occurrences that would lead to a review hearing being called
• any other plans (for example child protection or Co-ordinated Support Plan) relevant to the child.

Care reviews for looked after children

Local authorities are required to review cases of all children who are looked after by them. This includes children who are subject to a supervision requirement wherever they are living. Review practice must aim to avoid delay and drift. The overall objectives of the care review will be:

• to provide an opportunity to take stock of the child's needs and circumstances at regular, prescribed time intervals
• to consult formally with parents and children
• to assess the effectiveness of current plans as a means of securing the best interests of the child
• to provide an opportunity to oversee and make accountable the work of professional staff involved
• to formulate future plans for the child.

The format and formality of the review will vary depending on the child's circumstances. A review should be seen as helpful rather than intrusive by a child and his or her parents. The review should focus on progress and positive developments in the child's circumstances and emerging talents, skills and abilities as well as dealing with problems that arise.

Status of reviews

Where the child is not subject to a supervision requirement the review will be the forum where decisions, except where adoption becomes a consideration, are made about future work with and care of the child.

Where a child is subject to a supervision requirement the review does not have full decision making powers. It may formulate recommendations to be presented to a children's hearing which will make the decisions. However, within the scope of the supervision requirement, many matters may be left to be determined by the local authority and the child's parents; for example, contact arrangements, school changes or the allocation of responsibilities to different persons for the various aspects of the work.

Frequency and timing of reviews

Where a child is looked after by the local authority and placed away from his or her own home:

• first review within 6 weeks
• second review within 3 months of the first review
• subsequent reviews every 6 months.

Where a child is on home supervision:

• first review within 3 months
• subsequent reviews within 6 months from the previous review.

Additional reviews may need to be called if there is a major change of circumstances and if plans are failing to achieve the desired outcomes etc. Where a child is subject to a supervision requirement each review should consider whether the supervision requirement continues to be necessary and where the local authority is satisfied that it is no longer needed they should refer the case to the reporter to call a review hearing.

A review should be conducted prior to a children's hearing considering a case when the local authority feel that the best interests of the child who is subject to a supervision requirement would be served by:

• the supervision requirement ending or being varied
• referral to the reporter because a condition in the requirement is not being complied with
• applying for a parental responsibilities order
• applying for a freeing for adoption order
• placing a child for adoption
• an application has been, or is about to be, made to adopt the child.

When the care review considers that adoption or freeing for adoption are options, the adoption panel will also need to consider the case prior to the review hearing.

Where a child or relevant person has requested a review, or a relevant person proposes to take the child to live outwith Scotland, the local authority must hold a review if it is practicable, which will depend on the time available before the review hearing is held.

Attendance at the review

• A chairperson who ideally should not have line management responsibility for the case.
• Children aged twelve or over should be invited to attend, and the attendance of younger children considered in the light of their age and understanding.
• Those with parental responsibilities in relation to the child should normally attend.
• Key professionals with the ability to make a significant contribution to the review. The child's social worker, foster carer or key residential worker should always attend.

Attendance by other professionals depends on the contribution they can make to the functions of the meeting.

Matters to be addressed at reviews

• The nature of the child's placement will determine the matters to be addressed.
• Home supervision - is the care plan proving workable and are the necessary arrangements and resources in place to meet the conditions of the supervision requirement?
• Looked after children away from home - fuller preparation will be needed prior to these reviews and a pro-forma has been recommended by the Scottish Executive.

At all reviews following the initial review, the basic information required should include a description of any changes and developments that have been made. Both problems and progress should be recorded. In addition, there should be an overview of future tasks - what remains to be done, what needs to be done differently and who will take responsibility for the work.

Records

A written record must be kept of the review for future use. The child, parents and carers or key workers should have copies of the review decisions. Other professionals should receive information relevant to their role in working with the child and family. The child's privacy should be respected.

Assistance for young people who were formerly looked after by the local authority

The Act places a duty on the local authority to provide advice and assistance to prepare a child for when he or she is no longer looked after by the authority. This underlines the importance of throughcare for young people who are looked after by the local authority. These aftercare responsibilities are with the local authority as a whole not one particular department. In many instances the social work department will take the lead role but those of the housing and education departments are also important. A young person should not move on to independence too quickly and must be consulted about decisions concerning his or her life.

In addition to this general duty to help a child, the local authority must advise, guide and assist any child under 19 who was looked after by a local authority at any time after he or she ceased to be of school age. However, if a supervision requirement is terminated before the child reaches school leaving age, he or she will miss out on automatic entitlement to this support.

The Act also gives the local authority the powers to extend this support to young people up to the age of 21 years who request advice or guidance. However, the local authority is not obliged to make the help available.

Supervision

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 specifies that compulsory measures of supervision may include 'measures taken for the protection, guidance, treatment or control of the child'. The child's circumstances established through assessment and discussion at the hearing will dictate whether all or some of these aspects will be the focus of the work with the child.

A local authority must 'give effect' to a supervision requirement made by a hearing. This means that it is the whole authority who carries the responsibility and not just one department. Social work and education in effect are the two main services who will be involved but others may have some relevance, for example, housing and leisure and recreation. Housing is particularly relevant for young people of 16 and over who are in need of accommodation. The leisure and recreation service may be able to provide a diversionary provision.

The objectives of supervision whilst the child is living at home are to:

• provide effective measures of care for children living at home with their families
• enable children and their families to recognise and tackle successfully the difficulties and problems which led to the child being referred to a children's hearing
• reduce offending behaviour where this is an issue
• provide protective measures for the child where this is an issue
• help ensure school attendance where this is an issue
• provide programmes of supervision which will maintain the confidence of panel members and the public in the effectiveness of supervision as a decision of a hearing
• provide programmes of supervision which aim to integrate the child in the community and maintain the confidence of the community.

Supervision requirements

In assessing the child's and the family's circumstances a social worker should consider whether the objectives can be achieved by voluntary provision of services rather than by compulsory supervision. The role of the hearing is to consider options in the light of discussions and to decide on whether or not to make a supervision requirement. A hearing must decide whether:

• the voluntary co-operation of the child and family with services offered by the social worker and other agencies is unlikely to be sufficient and that a supervision requirement would be better for the child than no order being made
• the child's needs can best be met at home or in another setting
• a condition relating to contact between the child and any other person should be attached to any supervision requirement
• there is significant risk by the child continuing to live at home.

What is the purpose of supervision?

The programme for supervision should be linked to the statement of reasons for the hearing's decision so that the child, parents and social worker are clear about the basis for it. A plan should be drawn up by the social worker in conjunction with the child and family (together with other professionals where appropriate) and should set out:

• the purpose and specific issues to be addressed through supervision with the child and family
• the proposed methods by which the supervisor and others will approach these issues
• what the parents undertake to do
• what the child undertakes to do
• the timescale for the plan
• the process for reviewing progress.

How is supervision carried out?

Supervision objectives are achieved through the choice of the right techniques and services. A range of different approaches can be used in any supervision programme and it is the responsibility of the social worker to ensure that they are properly co-ordinated and effective in their delivery. Collaboration between agencies and within the authority is essential. It does not mean that the social worker will be the person who is undertaking all the work with the child and family. It may be that the majority of contact will be with another professional or service, e.g. educational psychologist and school, but the social worker will probably act as the co-ordinator.

Methods of supervision

The methods used in supervision may include:

• Family based work which may encompass family casework, family therapy, mediation and behavioural problems in support of the more effective functioning of all members of the family together.
• One-to-one approaches involving casework, counselling, problem-solving, personal learning (of skills and knowledge), and work aimed at behavioural change or attitudinal change where the emphasis is on the support and development of the individual.
• Groupwork techniques for children, parents or for whole families focusing on mutual support, problem solving, skills development. They can also be used for confidence building, project development or similar goals where the contribution of other people facing similar difficulties can be productive.
• Resources in the community for instance family centres, day care, befriending, specialist schooling, home care, community education, youth services, and voluntary groups.

The role of the social worker in supervision

The role of the social worker in home supervision is to:

• maintain contact at the level agreed in the care plan
• undertake direct work with the child and ensure that the child's views are sought and listened to concerning intervention in his or her life
• work closely with the child's family, listen to their views and to ensure the child's needs are met and welfare ensured
• oversee the implementation of the care plan and ensure the focus of work is on achieving its objectives
• co-ordinate the work of other professionals with the child and family as agreed in the care plan
• ensure a review of the plan is undertaken to meet the statutory requirements.

Whatever the key issue may be in the supervision requirement (e.g. offending behaviour; child protection; failure to attend school) the role of the social worker is to focus on matters related to that key issue.

Children's service plans

To ensure that services are tailored to meet the particular needs of children in their area, each local authority is required, in consultation with health authorities and trusts, voluntary organisations, housing agencies, the reporter and chairman of the children's panel, to prepare and publish plans for the provision and development of services for children. The authority also has a duty to publish information about the children's services which it makes available. Whilst the social work department will inevitably constitute a major part of the plan, contributions from other departments, particularly education but also housing and recreation and leisure will have an important part to play.

Social work services resources

There is a range of resources available for children and families. Included here is some information about those generally provided. However, not every authority will have access to all and some will have others not mentioned here.

Child or family centres

Child or family centres encompass a very wide range of projects. Most have a specific focus on children in need, with some providing specialist services for children with disabilities. The age range will vary, although many cater for children below their teenage years and some take only children below school age. The aims are also varied, although they will usually include some of the following: encouraging improvements in the child's health and development; preventing abuse or alleviating the effects of abuse; improving parenting skills; and providing respite for parents. Some will offer an outreach service to families in their own homes.

Family helpers

These are people employed by the social work service to give assistance to families. This may include help with the care of children, budgeting or home making skills.

Day care

Day care covers various services for both pre-school and older children. The primary role is one of enhancing the development of young children but also contributing to a child's well-being by providing support and to help carers. After school provision is a good example of this. Such schemes not only provide a safe environment for children whose parents may be at work but also enable children to develop a broad range of interests and adopt a positive approach to the use of leisure time.

Day care also fulfils an important preventive role by providing a range of resources from mutual self-help to parent-craft training and health education. The local authority has a duty to provide day care for pre-school children in their area who are 'in need'. In practice, this usually means day nurseries, play groups and daily minders.

Nurseries

These services are offered for children usually up to the age of 5 years by the private and voluntary sector as well as by the local authorities. The nurseries offer structured and unstructured play and help promote the child's social, emotional, physical and cognitive development. A nursery can also relieve stress on the parents/carers. Some nurseries offer their facilities for supervised and unsupervised contact visits between a child and parent specified by a court or hearing.

Befriending schemes

Children may be befriended by volunteers on an individual basis. Children are matched to selected and screened volunteers who spend time with them and involve them in recreational activities. Most of the schemes require local authority support and funding. The aim is to provide the child with an additional non-professional form of adult support.

Youth Justice

As part of the Scottish Executive's strategy to reduce offending behaviour in young people, there is expected to be a local commitment to the overall aims for Scotland's Youth Justice Services, which are to:

• achieve the national standards ( see Appendix 2)
• support parents, carers and their families in their efforts to prevent and stop their child's offending
• increase local communities' confidence in Scotland's system of youth justice
• enhance the integration of young people who have offended into all aspects of community life and ensure they maximise their potential.

In order to achieve these aims, each local authority area is expected to have an Inter-agency Youth Justice Strategy Group and a Youth Justice Services Team.

Inter-agency Youth Justice Strategy Group

The key task of this Group is to ensure progress towards meeting the national objectives and standards. Organisations responsible for the local youth justice system should be represented at a senior level. The Scottish Executive recommends that membership includes senior local authority staff responsible for relevant services such as Social Work, Education, Housing, Development and Leisure; the Police; Health, Children's Reporter, and representatives from the Youth Justice Service Teams, Children's Panel, voluntary sector, the local Fiscal service and the community.

Youth Justice Services Team

The team has specific operational responsibilities which are:

• effective liaison with appropriate agencies
• effective co-ordination of youth justice work to support young people who receive behavioural support at school; who are truanting or are excluded from school; who are homeless; misusing drugs or alcohol etc.
• improving the links with diversionary opportunities.

Every area's youth justice team must work towards reducing the number of persistent young offenders, although their work also includes implementing early intervention measures that prevent offending and diverting young people from persistently offending.

It is expected that after an audit of patterns and types of youth offending in their areas, teams will ensure that there is the appropriate range of programmes available to tackle and reduce the offending behaviour in their area.

Programmes to reduce offending behaviour

Research shows that there is no single programme or intervention that has all the answers to reducing offending. Rather, a range of approaches is required. Programmes used should be based on a comprehensive assessment of the young person's offending behaviour and the reasons for it. Core programmes would include:

• intensive community based support and supervision
• restorative justice approaches
• family/parent support
• cognitive skills
• anger management
• alcohol, drugs, and mental health programmes
• diversionary projects.

Children away from home

While the services and support described above may meet the needs of some children and their families, other children will benefit from additional care outwith their family. Local authorities are obliged to assist children in such situations and they can 'accommodate' children in a wide range of circumstances. This may be with another family or in a residential home or school. For some, this will be a short-term requirement, but others may require substitute care for many years. Whilst it is very important that young people and children should not be in care any longer than it is necessary, it is also important that their experience of care should be a beneficial one.

If the decision of the hearing is that a child should live away from home it is the responsibility of the local authority to put this into effect. Before making a recommendation to a hearing that a child should reside in a particular residential establishment, the local authority must be satisfied that the residential placement proposed is appropriate to the child's needs.

Children's homes and hostels

These are often provided and maintained by the social work service of the local authority but in addition use is made of the resources of the voluntary organisations to meet the demands. Often voluntary organisations can provide a specialist service which the authority is unable to provide. Establishments vary in size. Some specialise in a particular age range of children, e.g. preparing young people about 16 years old for living independently. Each establishment will have a statement of its functions and objectives which will be readily available. Children entering residential care should have a clear understanding of what is involved and it is important that they should be aware of their rights and responsibilities.

The number of children and young people in residential care has decreased over the years as more emphasis has been placed on keeping children in their own homes with appropriate support or by placing them with foster or community carers.

Foster care

Foster care is one of the services which local authorities provide or commission voluntary agencies to provide under their duties to looked after children. Foster carers are recruited locally and are assessed, trained and formally approved as foster carers before they begin to care for children. Applicants' assessments take account of the following:

• experience, attitudes, expectations, understanding and perception of fostering
• capacity to work in partnership with the child's family
• capacity to provide a foster child with protection, nurture and opportunities for development
• ability to work with the fostering agency
• preferences and suitability as a foster carer for any particular group of children or for any particular fostering tasks.

Many children live temporarily, or sometimes permanently with their relatives or a family friend without any intervention by the local authority. Where, however, a child is looked after by the local authority, and is placed with a friend or relative the friend or relative must be approved as a foster carer except:

• where the placement is an immediate placement and lasts for less than six weeks
• where the placement is a condition of a supervision requirement made by a children's hearing.

In these two situations the local authority must be satisfied that the placement will be in the child's best interests. In addition, prior to placing the child, the social worker must:

• interview the proposed carer
• confirm that the person is a friend or relative
• inspect the accommodation
• obtain information about any other persons living in the household
• reach a written agreement with the proposed carer which specifies that the carer will:
  • care for the child as if he or she were a member of the carer's family and in a safe and appropriate manner
  • permit anyone authorised by the authority to visit the child at any reasonable time
  • allow the child to be removed any time by the local authority if the authority considers the placement is no longer in the child's interests
  • ensure that any information concerning the child or his or her family which is given in confidence remains confidential
  • allow regular contact between the child and anyone with parental responsibilities where this is agreed by the local authority.

It is good practice for police checks to be sought on all members of the household and a health reference on the prospective carers.

Fostering panel

Each local authority or voluntary organisation must appoint a fostering panel or panels which consider whether to recommend approval of foster carers. Where the panel recommends approval they must also recommend whether approval is for any child, for certain categories of children, for instance in a particular age range or those needing emergency care, or for a particular child or children, for instance a child already known to the potential foster carers. Most prospective carers will be assessed as having strengths and an interest in an age range or particular type of fostering. The fostering panel recommendations are made to the fostering agency who must make the decision.

The composition of fostering panels is for the local authority to determine but one member must be a medical adviser and it is good practice for both sexes to be represented and for three people to represent a quorum. The chairperson should have considerable child care knowledge and be experienced and skilled in chairing meetings. Members who have been parents, foster carers or who have been fostered as a child are valuable. The panel should, where possible, reflect the backgrounds and heritage of children who are likely to need placement and the carers likely to seek approval.

Respite care

Respite care schemes are intended primarily for children with disabilities although it can have a wider application. It may include respite care away from the child's home, in order to give the family a break, to extend the range and quality of the child's experience and give the child opportunities to develop increasing autonomy and independence. The arrangements vary greatly from provision within the child's home, daytime care, occasional overnight stays and regular periods of care with an approved family or foster carer, or in a residential home.

Refuges

It has been recognised that vulnerable young people should have a place to go on a short-term basis if they feel themselves to be at risk. The local authority may provide a refuge either in a residential establishment or a local authority household for a child who appears to be at risk. The establishment or household must be designated for this purpose. However, authorities are not obliged to provide them. A child must ask to go into a refuge and can only stay for seven, or in exceptional circumstances, fourteen days.

Secure accommodation

Secure accommodation provides residential care where a child may be locked up or otherwise supervised in a way that physically prevents him or her from leaving the premises without approval. This type of accommodation has to be approved by Scottish Ministers. It is provided for children who are a danger to themselves and others in the community. It is designed to rehabilitate them and to protect the public. This involves controlling the child, including taking away their freedom; assessing the child's behaviour and needs; providing care, education and treatment.

Several specialist units are registered to provide secure accommodation for children aged between 8 and 18. Each unit must have an open wing and provide education.

Key requirements for child care services

The key features which should be taken into account in looking after any child or young person (particularly those away from home) are as follows:

• Individuality and development

Young people and children in care have the right to be treated as individuals who have their own unique relationships, experiences, strengths, needs and futures, irrespective of the needs of other residents. They should be prepared for adulthood and supported until they are fully independent.

• Rights and responsibilities

Young people, children and their parents should be given a clear statement of their rights and responsibilities. They should have a confidential means of making complaints. They should be involved in decisions affecting them and in the provision for their care. Their rights should be consistently respected.

• Good basic care

Young people and children should be given a high standard of personal care. They should be offered new, varied and positive experiences of life and should be included in the wider community.

• Education

Young people and children should be actively encouraged in all aspects of their education, vocational training or employment and offered career guidance. Their individual educational needs should be identified and met.

• Health

Young people's and children's health needs should be carefully identified and met; they should be encouraged to avoid health risks and to develop a healthy life-style.

• Partnership with parents

Young people and children in care should be cared for in ways which maximise opportunities for parents' continued involvement, and for care to be provided in partnership with parents, wherever this is in the interests of the child.

• Child centred collaboration

Young people and children should be able to rely on a high quality of inter-disciplinary teamwork amongst the adults providing for their care, education and health needs.

• A feeling of safety

Young people and children should feel safe and secure in any care setting.

Complaints

Young people need to be able to make their complaint in confidence particularly if they are being accommodated by the local authority. All local authorities have established complaints procedures in line with the government requirements which are sometimes part of the local inspection units. These units have a responsibility for inspecting all children's homes regularly. Young people are increasingly involved in the work of inspection, both locally and nationally.

Education resources

Additional Support Needs

Wherever possible children with additional support needs will be maintained within mainstream schools. Children and young persons have additional support needs if they have a learning difficulty which calls for provision for additional support to be made for them. A learning difficulty is said to be present if children:

• have significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of those of their age; or
• suffer from a disability which either prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for those of their age.

Learning difficulties may be related to a physical or neurological disability or barriers to learning caused by social, emotional or behavioural problems, or mental illness. Children with additional support needs should be integrated in their local mainstream schools wherever possible.

A Co-ordinated Support Plan is an official document which may be opened for a very small number of children when the circumstances are serious enough to justify the child's needs being watched over regularly. It facilitates the identification of a child's learning difficulties so that long term educational plans may be made. Special facilities and resources may be provided such as auxiliary class room assistants.

Residential schools

In the main these cater for children between the ages of 8 and 16. The emphasis in these schools is on providing an education for the children at the same time as helping them with their behavioural problems which cannot be managed in their home base. Each school may achieve these aims through different methods and it is important that you discuss these methods with the social workers at a hearing in order to help you decide where the most appropriate placement for the child might be.

Establishments operate individual care regimes which, combined with group care, are designed to best meet the needs of each individual child. These may involve nurturing care, remedial education, vocational training, and opportunities for children to gain in self-esteem by recognising and developing their own abilities. Some schools for example provide care for seven days a week. It is important that you find out what type of care is being offered. Not all schools are run by the local authority. Some are independent, with their own management boards and some are part of voluntary organisations, such as the Church of Scotland or Barnardos.

Education for looked after children

Following a review of arrangements for the education of looked after children HM Inspectors of Schools and the Social Work Services Inspectorate published a report 'Learning with Care' (March 2001) which made the following recommendations.

• Local authorities should carry out a full, multi-disciplinary assessment involving education and social work personnel, and others as appropriate, around the time a child becomes looked after. This assessment should provide a baseline for future educational progress. Points for action should be identified in the care plan and placement agreement.
• Local authorities should implement the quality assurance procedures to ensure that statutory requirements are met effectively. Local authorities should ensure that all looked after children have care plans and placement agreements as specified in the legislation.
• Except in exceptional circumstances, all looked after children should have permanent full-time education, however that may be organised.
• Schools should take particular care to identify the learning needs of all their looked after children, set them challenging but realistic educational targets and systematically monitor the progress made. A senior member of staff in each school should maintain an overview of looked after children's progress and take responsibility for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place for supporting the children's education.
• Local authorities should develop an integrated policy covering education and social work which ensures that the educational needs of looked after children are met effectively. They should also provide joint professional development for education and social work staff, and carers, to ensure that they are able to contribute effectively towards the implementation of the policy.
• Unless there are compelling reasons to the contrary, parents having contact with their children should receive regular information about their children's progress in school, including end-of-session reports.
• As part of their quality assurance procedures local authorities should undertake an audit of their residential units to assess how far they are educationally rich environments and, where shortcomings are found, make plans to take appropriate action.
• Local authorities should include explicit and targeted consideration of the education of looked after children in Children's Services Plans and reviews.
• Local authorities should keep accurate statistics on a range of aspects of the education of looked after children as agreed in the Social Work Information and Review Group document ' Local and National Information Requirements for Social Work'.

Voluntary organisations

There are many voluntary organisations which provide a service to children and young people. These may be 'one off' organisations which deal with a small number of children on a very local basis to a large national voluntary organisation which may provide a network of provision. Most organisations work in partnership with the local authorities and if they provide residential accommodation or day care are required to be registered with the local authority.

Agencies working together to protect children

In all investigations or child protection plans, the child's welfare is the paramount consideration. Child care services and child protection work in particular require good inter-agency co-operation. It is important for all professionals to combine an open-minded attitude to alleged concerns about a child with decisive action when this is clearly indicated.

Child Protection Committees

Local authorities are required, either on their own, or in collaboration with other authorities, to have an inter-agency child protection committee. The committees have clear procedures and guidance for dealing with child protection referrals and for providing training and advice across the agencies. They have the task of developing, monitoring and reviewing child protection policies, and promoting effective and harmonious co-operation between the various agencies involved. The committees are made up of representatives from all the main agencies, statutory and voluntary, which are involved in child protection work in the area and who have authority to speak and act on the agency's behalf. The children's reporter is usually a member of the committee.

Child protection guidelines

These provide a rapid reference for staff of all agencies involved in child protection in an area. They are the result of multi-disciplinary consultation and are approved by the Area Child Protection Committee for use by all agencies in that area. They contain sections on the definition, classification and identification of abuse and spell out the recommended action to be taken by each professional group in the event of child abuse cases coming to their attention.

Child protection case conferences

These are central to the child protection procedures which each local authority will have. They are convened by the social work service to bring together the professionals concerned and provide them with an opportunity to exchange information and make plans together. They assist planning to help families and welfare agencies ensure that a child at risk is properly protected from harm and, when necessary, to ensure that concerns are registered. Parents and carers and, where appropriate, children are encouraged to attend case conferences. Account is taken of the child's views and feelings having regard to their age and understanding.

Care and protection or other services for the child and family should be based on a comprehensive assessment of the child and family's needs including an assessment of the level of risk to the child. Child protection plans are formulated to protect the child from harm or further risk of harm.

Amongst the options available to agencies is the convening of a case conference about an unborn child if there appears to be a risk of significant harm to the child when he or she is born. The case conference may decide that the child's name should be placed on the child protection register when he or she is born and agree an inter-agency child protection plan. The conference may recommend that the local authority seek a child protection order at birth.

Decisions of a case conference may be subject to a subsequent children's hearing decision - the case conference can only make a recommendation to the children's hearing. Throughout the child protection process, the work is conducted on an inter-agency basis. The case conference is the prime forum for:

• sharing information and concerns
• analysing risk and formulating the plan for the protection of the child and for the provision of services to the child and family
• monitoring what is happening.

The child protection register

Local authorities are responsible for maintaining a central register known as the child protection register. This lists all the children in the area who are currently the subject of an inter-agency protection plan. It ensures that the plans for these children are formally reviewed at least every 6 months. The register provides a central point of speedy inquiry for professional staff who are concerned about a child and want to know whether the child is the subject of an inter-agency plan. Registration does not of itself provide any protection. The inclusion of a child's name on the child protection register will normally only occur following a child protection conference. A child's name is usually only removed from the register when a case conference agrees that formal inter-agency working is no longer necessary to protect the child.

The register is maintained by the social work service and must be held separately and in secure conditions. Access to the register is available twenty-four hours a day. The keeper of the register (a designated local authority official) should notify other local authorities in writing when a registered family moves out of their area. The keeper may also be responsible for attempting to trace a registered child whose whereabouts have become unknown.

Joint investigation

Joint investigation is a process whereby social work, police and health professionals plan and carry out their respective tasks together when responding to complex or substantial child protection referrals. In any such investigation the welfare of any child or children at risk is the paramount consideration.

The police and social services should share and evaluate jointly all relevant information at an initial planning meeting, involving health services where possible since medical information and assessment may assist the planning and management of any injury. Planning should consider the child's needs, risk to the child and the conduct of child protection inquiries including any criminal investigation.

Agencies should adopt a measured approach when dealing with allegations of abuse by adults. They should make sure that their investigations do not prejudice efforts to collect evidence for criminal prosecution of any alleged abuser(s).

5 PERMANENCY PLANNING

The right of a child to be brought up in a loving family is enshrined within the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child. For most children this will be the family they were born into. For a small number of children, however, this will not be possible and alternatives may have to be explored. Where the possibility of a 'looked after' child returning to live with the birth parents has been ruled out and placement with the extended family is unable to meet the needs of the child, alternative plans need to be made as quickly as possible.

These plans will initially be discussed at a care review. Permanency planning is the term for the process that follows. The available options will be considered and legal advice sought. If the review has identified that the child is in need of long-term care, security and stability away from his or her birth family there are three options for securing legal responsibility for a child until they are sixteen.

• Parental Responsibilities Order (s.86) This can only be applied for by a local authority. It transfers parental responsibilities and rights to the local authority except the right to consent to adoption.
• Adoption Order An application is made by the prospective adopters. The order legally terminates all responsibilities and rights of birth parents and transfers them to the adoptive parents.
  -Freeing for Adoption Application is made by the local authority. It transfers parental responsibilities and rights to the local authority with the longer term goal that adoptive parents will be found. Once freed for adoption there is no further requirement of the court to have birth parent/s consent to adoption.
• Section 11 Order A person may apply for an order granting specific parental responsibilities and rights. This person is usually a wider family member, foster carer, friend of the family. The order does not transfer the right to consent to adoption and can be revoked.

Parental responsibilities orders

Who may apply

Only a local authority may apply to the sheriff court for a parental responsibilities order. No time span is prescribed over which children must be looked after by a local authority before an application may be made.

The planning process

Depriving a parent of his or her parental rights and responsibilities is a very serious step and should be applied for only when it is clearly in the child's best interests to do so. Guidance from the Scottish Executive indicates that local authorities, in reaching the decision whether or not to apply for an order, should have considered and be able to demonstrate:

• where a child is away from home, returning the child to his or her parents or extended family is unlikely to be in the child's interests, or has been tried and failed and further attempts are unlikely to be in the child's interests
• where the child is accommodated, the child's immediate and long-term needs cannot be met by a reliable accommodation arrangement with the parents
• where the child is subject to a supervision requirement, a variation of the conditions of the requirement would not meet the child's immediate and long term needs; or that the need to attend a children's hearing at least annually would create needless instability and uncertainty for the child
• if the child is to remain with current foster carers, whether or not the foster carers are willing to apply for a residence order which would give them parental responsibilities and rights. Depending on the nature of the order applied for or obtained, these might or might not be shared with a parent or someone else with parental responsibilities and rights.
• whether the child's best interests would be better met by adoption either by his or her current foster carers or in a new family
• if one or both parents of the child is dead, whether there is anyone with an interest in the child who should be encouraged to apply to be the child's guardian and whether this would meet the child's needs for someone to exercise parental responsibilities.

Before making any decision the local authority should:

• ascertain the views of the child's parents or any other person who has parental rights in relation to the child where this is reasonably practicable
• discuss the plans with the child so that he or she can understand the effects of a parental responsibilities order.
• have regard, as far as practicable, to needs arising from a child's racial, religious, cultural and linguistic background when they look after a child. They should consider whether the making of a parental responsibilities order would positively or negatively affect their ability to meet the child's needs. If negative, alternative plans should be made to meet those needs.

Full consideration should be given to the question of an application at the statutory care review. In practice this responsibility is usually passed to the Adoption or Permanence Panel of the local authority (see below). Where the conclusion is that a parental responsibilities order will meet the child's best interests, a recommendation to this effect is made to the designated senior officer within the local authority. It is this officer who makes the decision to make an application informed by legal advice.

Court application

The sheriff must be satisfied that each person who is a parent or a person who for the time being has parental rights in relation to the child freely and with full understanding of what is involved agrees unconditionally to the making of the order.

If there is no agreement, the sheriff may dispense with the consent if that relevant person:

(i) is not known, cannot be found or is incapable of giving agreement; or

(ii) is withholding such agreement unreasonably; or

(iii) has persistently failed, without reasonable cause, to fulfil one or other of the parental responsibilities to safeguard and promote the child's health, development and welfare, or, if the child is not living with him or her, the responsibility to maintain personal relations and direct contact with the child on a regular basis; or

(iv) has seriously ill-treated the child, whose reintegration into the same household as that person is, because of ill-treatment or for some other reasons, unlikely.

When an application is made, the sheriff must appoint a reporting offer and curator ad litem (this can be the same person) who will also visit the child, family members, carers etc and compile a report.

The sheriff must:

• consider all the reports
• consider the welfare of the child throughout his or her childhood
• take account of any views expressed by the child;
• only make an order if it would be better for the child than not making an order.

An order cannot be made which allows one of the relevant persons to retain his or her rights and responsibilities.

There is no right of appeal under the Act, but parental responsibilities orders are subject to the ordinary sheriff court appeal system, i.e. to the sheriff principal and/Court of Session and the House of Lords.

Referral to a children's hearing

Where a local authority intends to apply for a parental responsibilities order and the child is subject to a supervision requirement the case must be referred to the reporter prior to making the application. The children's hearing is required to consider the case and within seven days of the hearing send a report to the court, the local authority, the child, any relevant person and any safeguarder who was appointed in the proceedings, outlining its advice on the appropriateness of the order. At the same time the children's hearing must review the supervision requirement and may continue, vary or terminate it.

Where the children's hearing reports that it is not in favour of the making of a parental responsibilities order, the local authority should take this advice into consideration before deciding whether to proceed with an application.

Effects of a parental responsibilities order

• The local authority assumes all the responsibilities and rights which were formerly held by the relevant persons except the right to agree, or decline to agree to the child being freed for adoption or to being adopted. These rights remain with the person who had them prior to the granting of the parental responsibilities order. Parents lose their right to attend a children's hearing.
• The making of the order means that the child is a 'looked after' child and the local authority will therefore have duties towards the child as well as rights and responsibilities.
• A child will be allowed reasonable contact with anyone who formerly had parental responsibilities or with whom he or she lived. This is subject to the court making an appropriate order about contact on the application of the child, local authority or others. Contact can therefore be restricted or refused altogether.
• The child may be placed with a parent, guardian, relative or friend, either for a fixed period or until they decide to end the arrangement, if it is considered this would benefit the child. A sheriff may attach conditions to any parental responsibilities and has the power to vary or discharge the order.

Variation, discharge or termination of the order

An application to discharge or vary the order may be made to the sheriff by the child, local authority or any person with an interest.

Duration of a parental responsibilities order

• If not varied or discharged, the order continues until the child is 18 years old, although all parental responsibilities and rights except that to provide guidance end on the child's 16th birthday.
• The order also ends if the child is adopted, is freed for adoption or there is a decision under the Child Abduction and Custody Act 1985.

Adoption panels

An adoption agency, which is usually the local authority is required to have an adoption panel.

Functions of the panel

• To consider whether adoption is in the best interests of a particular child and if so whether a freeing application should be made.
• To provide a written report of the consideration given by them to alternatives to adoption and in circumstances where adoption with parental contact is recommended, why adoption is recommended rather than an alternative course of action.
• To consider whether a prospective adopter is suitable to be an adoptive parent.
• To consider whether a prospective adopter would be a suitable adoptive parent for a particular child. A recommendation cannot be made about prospective adopters being suitable for a particular child unless a recommendation has also been made that adoption is in the best interests of the child.

The Regulations give agencies the discretion for adoption panels to:

• consider permanency plans for children
• consider plans to place siblings together or separately
• monitor and review the implementation of plans for children
• review after a specified time approved adoptive parents who have not been linked to a child
• consider reports on the disruption of any adoptive placement and make recommendations about whether adoption is still in the best interests of the child
• consider matters relating to financial assistance of adopters.

Full reports are considered by the panel before making a recommendation to the agency decision maker. The agency decision-maker is independent of the panel, a senior member of staff and should be knowledgeable about adoption matters. He or she must make a decision within fourteen days of the panel recommendation and the parents and prospective adopters notified of it within a further seven days.

Membership of the panel

Regulations specify a minimum of six members but in practice agencies tend to have more. Numbers, qualifications and experience of members should enable the panel to discharge its functions effectively and both men and women should be represented. There should be knowledge amongst the members in relation to adoption and separated children and parenting experience, particularly as an adoptive parent. There should be a balance between representatives from agency staff, management committee members or elected representatives of the agency and representatives from the communities served by the agency. Membership should also, where possible, reflect the racial and cultural heritage of the children and adopters considered.

The panel must also have a medical and a legal adviser. The medical adviser will interpret medical information for the panel and advise on its relevance for a child's placement for adoption, or on prospective adopters' suitability to adopt a child, or on the eligibility of a child, on health grounds, for an adoption allowance. The legal adviser will be able to advise members on the legal issues of each case and to clarify the alternatives to adoption.

The views of the child

The panel must take into account the views of the child about any plan for his or her future when making a recommendation. Generally these will be represented by the social worker and the carer, and the child may be offered the opportunity to write something about himself or herself and the plans. Children aged twelve or over will be required to agree to adoption so consideration of their views is essential.

Adoption orders

All provisions to do with adoption are to be found in the Adoption (Scotland) Act 1978 as amended and The Adoption Agencies (Scotland) Regulations 1996 and The Adoption Allowance (Scotland) Regulations 1996.

All local authorities are obliged to provide an adoption service in their area and have a duty to meet the needs of children who have been or may be adopted and those of the parents and guardians of such children as well as those who have adopted, or may adopt a child. There are two categories of adoption agency: local authorities and adoption societies.

Adoption agencies in making any decision in relation to the adoption of the child must:

• have as their paramount consideration the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child throughout his or her life
• so far as is practicable take account of the views of the child, if the child wants to express them, and in doing so take account of the child's age and maturity
• so far as is practicable take account of the child's religious persuasion, racial origin and cultural and linguistic background
• so far as is practicable take account of the wishes of a child's parents or guardians about the religious upbringing of the child
• consider for every child whether adoption is in the best interests of that child or whether there is a better practicable alternative.

Agencies must also provide post-placement support for children, adoptive parents and, birth parents and other family members if this is required.

The planning process

If a child care review has ruled out the possibility of the child returning to live with the birth parents and a placement with extended family is unable to meet the needs of the child, alternative plans need to be made without delay. The agency should consider the available options and seek legal advice. A thorough assessment of the child is necessary, both for the decision making process and for preparing court reports at a later date. Alternatives to adoption must be considered and the agency must be clear that adoption is the best provision that can be sought for the child.

Where a child is looked after and a return to his or her family no longer seems appropriate, it is important that parents are informed of the likely direction of the agency's planning well before the child care review at which the option of pursuing an adoptive placement is discussed.

The racial, religious, cultural and linguistic aspects of the child's heritage should be identified. Generally, it is easier for a child to feel knowledgeable, confident and comfortable about his or her racial, religious, linguistic and cultural background if this is shared by his or her adopters.

Where it has been decided that adoption is the best course of action for the child, the adoption agency must decide on the most appropriate route to adoption: an application may be made to free the child for adoption, followed by an adoption application by the prospective adopters (local authority adoption agencies only); or an adoption application.

Freeing orders

The adoption agency must apply for a freeing order. Such an order may be helpful if:

• rehabilitation is not in the child's interests and the child needs the security of adoption, especially very young children and those of primary school age
• where the above is the case and a placement has not yet been found
• where parents are so hostile as to make it necessary for the agency to pursue the matter through the court protecting the identity of any adoptive family. A placement could then be made in which anonymity is protected for the child's benefit and the carers' peace of mind
• where the wisdom of the adoption plans needs to be tested in court without the child being placed with a family and with whom he or she may not be to remain (thus avoiding unnecessary trauma for the child). Non-disclosure of address of a new placement may be considered when providing a child with a 'secure base' and parents cannot be trusted not to compromise the child's safety or security because of serious threats or actual violence.

Adoption orders

An application for an adoption order is made by the prospective adoptive parents. The decision about when to lodge the petition in court to adopt a child should be made by the prospective adopters in consultation with the agency. Prospective adopters may be single individuals; couples who are 'strangers' to the child, i.e. new placements; current foster carers who have been caring for the child for some time and who now wish to adopt, usually with the support of the local authority.

Criteria for granting an order

An adoption order or freeing order is made by the sheriff. When an application is made, the sheriff must appoint a reporting offer and curator ad litem (this can be the same person) who will also visit the child, family members, carers, prospective adopters etc and compile a report.

The sheriff must:

• consider all the reports
• consider the welfare of the child throughout his or her life
• take account of any views expressed by the child
• only make an order if it would be better for the child than not making an order.
• be satisfied that the birth mother and father who have relevant rights or the guardians agree freely and unconditionally to an adoption order being made. The court may dispense with the need for agreement if the parent or guardian:

(i) is not known, cannot be found or is incapable of giving agreement; or
(ii) is withholding such agreement unreasonably; or
(iii) has persistently failed, without reasonable cause, to fulfil one or other of the parental responsibilities to safeguard and promote the child's health, development and welfare, or, if the child is not living with him or her, the responsibility to maintain personal relations and direct contact with the child on a regular basis; or
(iv) has seriously ill-treated the child, whose reintegration into the same household as that person is, because of ill-treatment or for some other reasons, unlikely.

Effect of the granting of the orders

If a freeing for adoption application is granted, all the parental responsibilities and rights in relation to the child are transferred from the birth parents to the adoption agency. Before a child can be freed for adoption, the court has to be satisfied that the child has either been placed for adoption with prospective adopters or is likely to be placed.

If, after twelve months, a child freed for adoption has not been placed or adopted, the birth parents must be informed. The parent may then apply for a revocation of the freeing order.

Adoption Orders cannot be challenged at a later date by birth parents.

Children subject to a supervision requirement

If a child is subject to a supervision requirement and the local authority has decided to pursue adoption or a freeing order, it must within a specified process, notify the reporter of its plans.

In all cases the agency must send to birth parents a memorandum outlining what the application for freeing for adoption or adoption order means together with a form for them to sign stating they are in agreement with the application to go forward.

If agreement is not given within 28 days and the child is subject to a supervision requirement, the agency must notify the reporter within 7 days. The reporter must then arrange a children's hearing to sit within a further 21 days to give advice on the application.

Where the birth parents are in agreement with the plan and the child is subject to a supervision requirement the reporter is notified and he/she will then arrange for a children's hearing to give advice on the matter. No time scales are laid down for the notification or the calling of the hearing in these cases.

The children's hearing in either situation must consider all plans for adoption and freeing for adoption and write a report giving advice as well as review the supervision requirement. The report will be sent within 7 days to the court, the local authority, the child, any relevant person and any safeguarder who was appointed in the proceedings. The hearing may continue, vary or terminate the supervision requirement depending on its consideration of the plan and the thinking of the local authority.

Where a court makes an adoption order or frees a child for adoption where a child is subject to a supervision requirement and is satisfied that as a result compulsory measures of supervision in respect of the child are no longer necessary, it may terminate the requirement.

Contact

There has been a significant change in adoption practice over recent years regarding contact with birth parents and birth family members. It is possible for contact arrangements to be specified as part of an adoption order although some arrangements are reliant on the adoptive parents willingly accepting and carrying them through once the order is granted with or without a contact order being attached to the adoption order.

If the Adoption Panel recommends that there should be continuing contact following an adoption between a child and one or both birth parents it must provide a written report to the agency why adoption is recommended rather than an alternative course of action. An assessment of whether any form of contact should be retained must be based solely on what is likely to be in the child's best interests, both at the point of the placement and in the future. The views of the adoptive parents will be important as they will have the responsibility once the adoption order is made of managing the contact between the child and birth parents.

6 SUMMARY

Children's hearings make decisions about children who are in need of compulsory measures of intervention. They do not do this in isolation but as part of a network of agencies working together to promote children's welfare. A thorough knowledge of the roles and responsibilities of people working within and alongside the children's hearings system will help panel members to make effective decisions.

Resource provision for children and families changes continually and it is important that panel members update their knowledge and understanding of children's services throughout their panel membership. This part of the manual provides a framework from which panel members can begin to develop awareness of resources within their own panel areas.

ADOPTION OR FREEING APPLICATION CHILDREN SUBJECT TO SUPERVISION

7 FURTHER READING

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