Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board
Content
This website aims to provide useful information to ensure making and keeping children safe is everybody’s business.
To drive this work forward the Board identifies a number of priority areas.
The OSCB will focus its work during 2010/11 in relation to
- Quality Assuring front-line practice
- Prevention, Identification and protection children living in Neglectful situations
- Engagement with front line practitioners
- Raising the profile of the OSCB
- Reviewing the OSCBs own working practices and effectiveness
- Developing a strategy and work in relation to parents who misuse drugs and alcohol
- Supporting the work on Domestic Abuse and its affect on children
Information
For parents and carers
For children and young people
For professionals
For members of the public
Interagency procedures manual
TrainingNews
Operation Bullfinch - Child Exploitation Warrants Executed (March 2012)
On 22nd March 2012, Thames Valley Police executed 14 warrants across Oxford as part of an operation targeting child exploitation offences.
Operation Bullfinch is an investigation into child exploitation on 24 girls aged between the ages of 11 and 16 years old in Oxford.
The joint investigation, being carried out by Thames Valley Police and Oxfordshire County Council’s Children, Education and Families Department, is aimed at rescuing potential victims and securing convictions of suspects believed to be responsible for these crimes.
Twelve men, aged between 21 and 37 years old, have been arrested and are currently in police custody. They have been arrested on suspicion of a variety of offences including causing the prostitution of females under the age of 18, administrating drugs for the purpose of rape, trafficking, grooming and rape.
Read the full Press Statement here:
The Munro Review of Child Protection - The Final Report: A Child-centred System (May 2011)
The Final Report of the Munro Review of Child Protection, A child-centred system is published today. Professor Munro’s analysis finds that local areas should have more freedom to design their own child protection services and that ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ to child protection is preventing local areas from focusing on the needs of the child.
The report signals a radical shift from previous reforms that, while well-intentioned, resulted in too much bureaucracy and a loss of focus on the needs of the child. Professor Munro says that the Government and local authorities should operate in an open culture, continually learn from what has happened in the past, trust professionals and give them the best possible training.
Professor Munro’s recommendations are aimed at creating long-term change to the system and should not be taken forward in isolation, as there is no one quick fix. What is needed is a fundamental shift in the way the system works, to enable professionals to focus on the needs of children, young people and families and how to give them the best possible help.
The Government will work closely with a group of professionals from across the children’s sector to develop a full response to Professor Munro’s recommendations later this year. Download the Final Report here (pdf format, 2.1Mb)
The Munro Review of Child Protection - Interim Report: The Child's Journey (Feb 2011)
This is the second report of the review of child protection in England. Its theme is the child’s journey. This phase of the review looked at how the system could be reformed to keep a focus on the child’s journey – the journey from needing help to receiving it.
You can read the report here. You can read part one of the review (published in Oct 2010) here.
Safeguarding Newsletter!
Welcome to the monthly Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board Safeguarding Newsletter. The aim is to keep practitioners and agencies up to date with the work of the OSCB and other local and national news. Back issues are available upon request. If you wish to be added to the distribution list for the email version of the newsletter, please email oscbtraining@oxfordshire.gov.uk.
- Safeguarding Newsletter - Issue 15 - March 2012 edition
- Safeguarding Newsletter - Issue 14 - February 2012 edition
- Safeguarding Newsletter - Issue 13 - December 2011 edition
- Safeguarding Newsletter - Issue 12 - November 2011 edition
Worried About A Child?
There are a number of organisations you can speak to but if you think a child is in immediate danger, call the police on 999. You can also get advice and help from NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 or get help via email on help@nspcc.org.uk.
You do not need to know everything about the child and what is happening just to be worried, or feel that everything is not right.
If you are:
- concerned that a child may be suffering physical, sexual or emotional abuse or is being neglected
- are a child or young person and you are being abused or neglected
- are a parent or carer and you feel you are harming your child or are close to doing so,
please contact the Children's Social Care team on one of the following numbers:
Access to Information and Services Team (in office hours): 0845 050 7666
Emergency Duty Team (outside office hours): 0800 833 408
Banbury Assessment Team: 01865 816670
Oxford Assessment Team: 01865 323048
Abingdon Assessment Team: 01865 897983
OSCB Leaflets
Below are two of the recently developed leaflets produced by the OSCB:
- The 7 Golden Rules for Information Sharing (.pdf, 1.92Mb)
- OSCB Aide Memoire - key contacts and what to do if a child discloses (.pdf, 1.82Mb)
- 10 lessons from SCRs and 10 pitfalls in assessment (.pdf format, 1.10Mb)
- Serious Case Review Summary Document (.pdf format, 3.82Mb)
- Child Protection Conferences - a guide for parents and carers (.pdf format, 1.67Mb)
Child Protection Conferences - a guide for children and young people (.pdf format, 1.58Mb)
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