Agenda item

Report CS18108

The Board considered an update on the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy 2017-19 that was ratified by the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board in July 2017 and had been shared with Ofsted at the monitoring visit in August 2017. 

The Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy 2017-19 was a multi-agency document providing a strategic foundation upon which the local safeguarding framework would be further developed.  The Strategy would also define the roadmap to strengthen the identification and assessment of vulnerable adolescents in Bromley and outline intervention procedures.  The strategy focused on five priorities comprising knowing the problem and response, strong leadership, prevention and early intervention, protection and support, and disruption and prosecution.  The strategy would be underpinned by the protocols for Child Sexual Exploitation and Missing Children, published in Summer 2017, as well as the forthcoming protocol in Gang Involvement and Association.  Members of the Health and Wellbeing Board were requested to note the strategy and ensure that all relevant staff were aware of the Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy and the underpinning protocols for Child Sexual Exploitation and Missing Children.  The Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Children Board explained that whilst the Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy provided the overarching strategy, the operational protocols for Child Sexual Exploitation, Missing Children and Gang Involvement specified how this would be delivered.

In considering the report, a Member praised the excellent layout of the strategy and queried how it would be communicated to all key partners, including schools.  The Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Children Board confirmed that a robust strategy was in place for the publication of the Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy which included an App to assist parents, carers and professional in identifying vulnerable young people.  The Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy would also be part of the training programme for designated Child Safeguarding Leads in schools.  Another Member underlined the need to engage with voluntary groups, and the Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Children Board noted that following the recent reconfiguration of the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board, a Community Engagement Sub-Group had been created to develop closer links with the community which would support the communication of the strategy.

A Member queried a statement within the Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy identifying a correlation between living in a more deprived part of the Borough and increased risk of self-harm and suicide which the Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Children Board clarified as a finding of a 2017 study by the Samaritans.  The Chairman requested that work be undertaken to identify if this was applicable to Bromley, as suicide and self-harm amongst vulnerable young people in the Borough had historically been identified as impacting high-achieving young people as well as those living in deprived and disadvantaged circumstances.

The Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Adults Board highlighted the importance of both Safeguarding Boards working together to ensure that young people were safeguarded in a seamless manner as they transitioned to adult services.  The Independent Chairman, Bromley Safeguarding Children Board agreed that there should be a focus on early intervention to address issues experienced by vulnerable adolescents, but that robust pathways would also be needed to support the move of vulnerable adults into adult social care and the Vulnerable Adolescent’s Strategy would be updated to reflect this. 

RESOLVED that the update be noted.