Child Protection Conferences: Complete Guide for Social Workers UK

What is a Child Protection Conference?

A Child Protection Conference (CPC) is a multi-agency meeting that brings together family members and professionals to assess risk, make decisions about whether a child needs a child protection plan, and if so, formulate that plan. It is the key decision-making forum in child protection.

There are two types: the Initial Child Protection Conference (ICPC) and the Review Child Protection Conference (RCPC).

Initial Child Protection Conference (ICPC)

Purpose

The ICPC has three main purposes:

1. Bring together and analyse information from all agencies about the child's health, development, and functioning
2. Make a judgment about whether the child is at continuing risk of significant harm
3. Decide what future action is needed to safeguard the child and promote their welfare

Timescales

Who Attends?

Attendance should include:

• Family: Parents, carers, and the child (if appropriate)
• Children's social care: Social worker and team manager
• Police: Representative from child protection team
• Health: GP, health visitor, school nurse as relevant
• Education: Head teacher or designated safeguarding lead
• Other agencies: Any professionals with significant involvement
• Independent Chair: Chairs the conference

The Role of the Independent Chair

The conference is chaired by an Independent Reviewing Officer or Child Protection Chair who:

• Ensures all participants can contribute
• Keeps the focus on the child
• Summarises information and analysis
• Facilitates decision-making
• Ensures decisions are clearly recorded

The Social Worker's Report

The social worker must prepare a report for conference that includes:

• Summary of the Section 47 enquiry findings
• Chronology of significant events
• Information about each child's developmental needs
• Analysis of parenting capacity
• Assessment of family and environmental factors
• Risk and protective factors
• Views of the child and family
• Professional analysis and recommendation

Sharing the Report

The report should be shared with parents at least two working days before the conference. This allows them to:

• Read and understand the concerns
• Prepare their response
• Discuss with an advocate if they have one
• Raise any factual inaccuracies

Conference Decisions

Decision 1: Is the Child at Continuing Risk?

The conference must decide whether the child is at continuing risk of significant harm. The test is:

• The child has suffered significant harm, AND there is a likelihood of further harm, OR
• The child is likely to suffer significant harm in the future

Decision 2: Child Protection Plan

If the child is at continuing risk, they will be made subject to a child protection plan under one or more categories:

• Physical abuse
• Emotional abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Neglect

Decision 3: Outline Protection Plan

The conference agrees an outline child protection plan including:

• What needs to change to reduce risk
• What actions will be taken and by whom
• How the child will be kept safe
• Contingency plans if things go wrong
• Core group membership

Review Child Protection Conference (RCPC)

Purpose

The RCPC reviews whether:

• The child remains at continuing risk of significant harm
• The child protection plan is effective
• Progress is being made
• The plan needs to be amended
• The child protection plan can be discontinued

Timescales

• First RCPC: Within 3 months of the ICPC
• Subsequent RCPCs: At intervals of no more than 6 months

Outcomes

• Continue the child protection plan (with amendments as needed)
• Discontinue the plan if risk has reduced sufficiently
• Consider legal proceedings if progress is not being made

Family Participation

Family participation is a core principle of child protection conferences. This means:

• Parents should attend unless there are exceptional reasons to exclude them
• Children should be supported to attend if appropriate for their age
• Families should receive the report in advance
• Families should be able to contribute their views
• Families may bring a supporter or advocate

Exclusion of Family Members

Family members may be excluded for all or part of a conference if:

• Their presence would prevent full and proper consideration of the child's interests
• There are concerns about violence or disruption
• A criminal investigation would be prejudiced

Any exclusion must be recorded with clear reasons and the excluded person's views should still be sought.

The Child's Participation

Children's views must be represented at conference. This may be through:

• The child attending (with support)
• A written or recorded statement from the child
• The social worker presenting the child's views
• An advocate speaking on the child's behalf

What Makes a Good Conference?

Before the Conference

• Thorough Section 47 enquiry completed
• Comprehensive report prepared and shared in time
• Family helped to understand the process
• Child's views obtained
• All relevant professionals invited

During the Conference

• Clear focus on the child's experience
• All views heard and considered
• Good analysis of risk and protective factors
• Honest and respectful dialogue
• Clear decision-making
• SMART actions agreed

After the Conference

• Decisions communicated promptly
• Child protection plan distributed
• Core group convened within 10 working days
• Actions followed through

Common Challenges

Disagreement About the Decision

The conference decision is made by the professional group attending. If professionals disagree:

• All views should be heard and recorded
• The Chair facilitates reaching a decision
• Voting may be used if consensus cannot be reached
• Dissenting views should be recorded

Hostile or Distressed Family Members

• Acknowledge the difficulty of the situation
• Take breaks if needed
• Consider whether the family member needs time out
• Keep the focus on the child
• In extreme cases, the conference may need to be adjourned

Conclusion

Child protection conferences are a critical safeguarding mechanism, bringing together professionals and families to make decisions about children's safety. Effective conferences require thorough preparation, clear analysis, meaningful family participation, and focused decision-making.

As a social worker, your role is to present a comprehensive, balanced report that enables the conference to make informed decisions. The quality of your assessment and analysis directly impacts the quality of the conference decision and the protection plan that follows.