Case review

Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews

A Child Safeguarding Practice Review (previously known as a Serious Case Review (SCR)) is undertaken when a child dies or the child has been seriously harmed and there is cause for concern as to the way organisations worked together.

The purpose of a child safeguarding practice review is for agencies and individuals to learn lessons that improve the way in which they work, both individually and collectively, to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

The trigger for this is a notifiable incident - There is a Duty on local authorities to notify incidents to the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (this is a National Panel).

Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 (opens new window) states that a local authority in England knows or suspects that a child has been abused or neglected, the local authority must notify the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel if:

the child dies or is seriously harmed in the local authority's area, or
while normally resident in the local authority's area, the child dies or is seriously harmed outside England.

Rapid Review

Initially a rapid review will be undertaken in order to ascertain whether a local child safeguarding practice review is appropriate, or whether the case may raise issues which are complex or of national importance such that a national review may be appropriate.

The Gateshead Safeguarding Children Partnership (GSCP) has a group which oversees and quality assures all the child safeguarding practice reviews undertaken by the partnership, and provides advice on whether the criteria for conducting a review have been met.

Publication of CSPRs

Upon completion of a child safeguarding practice review, there is an expectation that the final report is published in full and will be available on the website for a minimum of 12 months.

The report will include:

a summary of any recommended improvements to be made by persons in the area to safeguard and promote the welfare of children
an analysis of any systemic or underlying reasons why actions were taken or not in respect of matters covered by the report.

Any recommendations will be clear on what is required of relevant agencies and others collectively and individually, and by when, and focussed on improving outcomes for children.

Additional information and guidance in relation to child safeguarding practice reviews can be found in the statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 (opens new window).

Other learning reviews

In addition to child safeguarding practice reviews, the GSCP will also undertake Multi-Agency Case Reviews / Partnership Reviews which do not meet the criteria for a child safeguarding practice review, but are considered to offer good opportunities to identify lessons for learning and ways in which multi-agency practice to safeguard children and young people can be improved locally. See Learning Reviews Methodology Framework.

Case review guidance

Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review Framework

NSCP and GSCP Learning and Improvement Pathway (Word doc, 600 KB)(opens new window) - This guidance is aimed at those involved in undertaking or contributing to Local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews, such as Independent Lead Reviewers, Review Team members, those providing information reports on behalf of their organisation as well as those responsible for quality assuring and embedding the learning from the review process.

The guidance provides GSCP with a framework for the commissioning and dissemination of learning from Local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews. It should be read alongside the relevant statutory guidance set out in Chapter 5: Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 (opens new window).

The framework and guidance has been endorsed by safeguarding partners and will be reviewed and updated to reflect changes national guidance and emerging good practice.

Learning Reviews Methodology Framework

Learning Reviews Methodology Framework (PDF, 378 KB) -This guidance sets out four standard methods of extracting and acting upon learning, which have been endorsed by Gateshead Safeguarding Children Partnership.

This framework is applicable for cases where there are examples of good practice for learning across the partnership, but which may provide scope for learning from which service delivery may be improved, or for cases that do not meet the criteria for a Child Safeguarding Practice Review

Referral

Any professional or agency may refer a case for consideration using the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Referral Form.

Form A Referral Form (Word doc, 79 KB)(opens new window) - Complete the referral form if you have concerns about the way that agencies have worked together to safeguard and promote the welfare of a child.

Published case reviews

Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 (opens new window) states reviews are about promoting and sharing information about improvements, both within the area and potentially beyond so safeguarding partners must publish the report, unless they consider it inappropriate to do so. In such a circumstance, they must publish any information about the improvements that should be made following the review that they consider it appropriate to publish. The name of the reviewer(s) should be included. Published reports or information must be publicly available for at least one year.

Please see below every Child Safeguarding Practice Review published by the GSCP in the past 12 months.

Baby Alfie - March 2022 (PDF, 299 KB)(opens new window)

Learning from other case reviews

Safeguarding Board Business Managers across the region have developed a Regional Learning Resource (PDF, 487 KB) with a regional theme of Vulnerabilities in Babies.

Regional

Links to CSPRs published across the wider region:

National

National review into the murders of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson:

GSCP briefing note Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson (PDF, 264 KB)(opens new window)
National review slides Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson (gi.ui.mediatype.powerpoint, 458 KB)(opens new window)

The Independent Review of Children's Social Care:

Slides - summary of final report (opens new window)

NSPCC (opens new window) work with local safeguarding partners nationally to ensure that learning from case reviews can be accessed and shared at a local, regional and national level.

Recently published case reviews (opens new window) - a list of the child safeguarding practice reviews, serious case reviews, significant case reviews and child practice reviews added to the National case review repository from 2017 to 2021

Learning from case review briefings (opens new window) - a series of thematic briefings highlighting the learning from case reviews. Each briefing focuses on a different topic, pulling together key risk factors and practice recommendations.

Practitioner briefs

Contact us

Gateshead Safeguarding Children Partnership
Ground floor
Civic Centre
NE8 1HH

07395 361 053

SafeguardingBoardsBusinessUnit@Gateshead.Gov.UK

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