Social Work Reform: Revised guidance on working together to safeguard children criticised

Responding to today's publication of the revised Working Together to Safeguard Children guidance, Kim Bromley-Derry, president of the Association of Directors of Children's Services, said the association was disappointed that local authorities were the main focus for revisions to the guidance. He added that the role of health agencies should have been strengthened. 

"Procedures and guidance do not save children — well-trained and experienced professionals do," he said. "The role of guidance is to support professionals in their daily tasks and in using their professional judgment, and as such the redraft of Working Together misses some opportunity to do this.

"We will, however, work collaboratively with the National Safeguarding Delivery Unit on the production of a short practitioner guide, which will be a much more useful tool for frontline professionals. We cannot expect these busy staff to wade through hundreds of pages of guidance when they are trying to make a decision about a particular child."

But in its report into the progress made since Lord Laming published his review of child protection services one year ago, the government said the guidance would prove a useful tool to professionals.

The report states: "In revising [Working Together], we have consulted extensively with national stakeholders, local partners and frontline practitioners to ensure that it is stronger where it needed to be and even more useful for frontline practitioners."