Is this about information sharing databases? No, that announcement isyet to come, and please call them child indexes. This currentconsultation is about guidance on how, when and why to share informationabout children.
Is it "joint guidance"? Yes, it's been developed across the Departmentfor Education and Skills (DfES), Department of Health, Home Office,Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department forConstitutional Affairs. And it aims to cover all services, includinghealth, education, early years, social care, youth offending andleisure. And all adults, including volunteers who work with children andyoung people across the public, private and voluntary sectors.
Comprehensive. But non-statutory. It continues to endorse theGovernment's belief that individual practitioners must be allowed, aswell as be able, to make their own decisions when it comes to sharinginformation about a child - linked to an interesting notion of whypeople might want to do so: to help children achieve the Every ChildMatters outcomes, to safeguard and promote their welfare, and to preventthem from committing crime.
Crime prevention? The current meeting place for Home Office and DfESpolicy. The paper lists key principles for sharing information on achild. This starts with the welfare and safety of the child, thenexamines the legal basis for sharing information, and how to deal withconfidential information. The practitioner must consider thesignificance of the information they have and whether specific agenciesneed to know about it.
And if information does need to be shared? Then, in general, thepractitioner must be open and honest with the child and family, and gaintheir consent - with obvious exceptions for issues that could place thechild at risk. And, finally, information must be accurate and kept forno longer than necessary. When shared, or when a decision is made not toshare it, this must be recorded.
But what does the law say? The guidance looks at Data Protection Actprinciples, and the conditions under which data may be shared. Itclarifies the common law duty of confidence, which exists when there isa special relationship between the parties: perhaps a teacher and pupil,or doctor and patient. And it confirms that Article 8 of the EuropeanConvention on Human Rights - the right to respect for private and familylife - is not absolute. It is lawful to disclose personal or sensitiveinformation if that disclosure is necessary to prevent crime or toprotect the health and welfare of the child or young person.
Right, but that still doesn't tell me when to share sensitiveinformation. There's a flowchart to help you make an informed decision,and a collection of case study examples that take up the bulk of thedraft guidance. But no, it does not provide instruction on how toidentify those times when you should share information on a child.Instead, it's trying to build up your confidence and help you to decidewhether you need to go to someone else to check case notes.
I work in health. Then you have to look at this guidance. For the healthservice, it's proposing a two-tiered approach to sharing information,one of which involves contacting others without disclosing your ownsuspicions or concerns.
FACT BOX
- The Government should issue guidance on the Data Protection Act 1998,the Human Rights Act 1998, and common law rules on confidentiality andwhen these impact on the sharing of information between professionalgroups in circumstances where there are concerns about the welfare ofchildren and families. (Recommendation 16 of the Victoria ClimbieInquiry)
- Cross Government Guidance: Sharing information on children and youngpeople is available atwww.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/conDetails.cfm?consultationId=1366
- Responses are due by 15 November.
