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Roles and Responsibilities

Councillors

Councillors are responsible for the monitoring and review of this policy, through an annual report to the Cabinet.

The Chief Executive

Within each organisation or council the Chief Executive has overall responsibility for the implementation of this policy and for nominating a Named Senior Officer to represent that organisation on the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (NSCP) and to ensure that guidance and practice within each organisation is consistent with the NSCB inter-agency guidance.

The Named Senior Officer

The Named Senior Officer is responsible for:

  • Ensuring that this policy is disseminated across the Council and that awareness of child protection issues is maintained;
  • Recording any reports made to Nominated lead at the Councils as well as any referrals made to lead agencies;
  • Representing the organisation (as above) on the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (NSCP) and raising organisational level issues at the NSCB; and
  • Overseeing the dissemination of relevant information from meetings of the NSCB to managers and employees of the organisation District Council’s (as above). 

The Lead Agencies

The lead agencies (Nottinghamshire Children’s Social Care and Police) will take the lead in assessing whether or not abuse has taken place, or whether a child is at risk of abuse.

Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) / Team of Designated Officers

The term Local Authority in this context refers to the Nottinghamshire County Council. The Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) / Team of Designated Officers is responsible for offering advice and guidance to all agencies about how to respond to concerns and allegations about people who work with children. The LADO / Team of Designated Officers will monitor timescales for resolving any such concerns. This information will be reported back to the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (NSCP). For more information about this role see Managing Allegations/Concerns in Relation to Adults who Work with, Care for or Volunteer with Children Procedure and Key Regional Contacts.

Named Senior Manager

The Named Senior Manager is the person to whom all allegations or concerns of abuse by staff are reported and whose responsibilities include ensuring that the correct procedure is followed when such allegations or concerns are raised. The Named Senior Manager will liaise with the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) / Team of Designated Officers and attend Strategy Meetings as appropriate.

Nominated lead at the Councils

Nominated leads at each organisation are responsible for ensuring any suspected child abuse is referred to the lead agencies. The Nominated lead at the Councils are not a substitute for Child Protection professionals, but will act as an initial contact point for employees and managers to discuss any concerns and ensure a consistent response. A Nominated lead at the Council should be contacted immediately by line managers in response to any suspected child abuse. See Key Local Contacts.

Please see The Responsibility to Refer to the Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) Procedure, Speak to Someone for more information.

All Employees

All employees have a responsibility to report any concerns about the welfare of children to their line manager immediately and in appropriate cases make referrals as set out in The Responsibility to Refer to the Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) Procedure.

Employees of the District Council's are not, however, responsible for deciding whether or not child abuse has taken place.

The Human Resources and Payroll Manager

The Human Resources and Payroll Manager is responsible for ensuring that appropriate checks are carried out on all employees who have regular contact with children. See Guidance for Safe Recruitment, Selection and Retention for Staff and Volunteers Procedure for more information.

Employees who oversee the letting of Council Facilities

Employees who oversee the letting of the Council's facilities to external organisations are responsible for ensuring that these organisations either have or work towards the production of Child Protection statements or policies within agreed deadlines.

Parents or Carers

The parents or carers of children taking part in activities organised by the District Council's or delivered at Council's facilities have a responsibility to provide all relevant information that employees require to ensure the highest standards of care for their children. This includes information about medical conditions, medication, behavioural characteristics and dietary requirements.

End