Consideration of the need for an inter-agency referral discussion

An IRD is the start of the formal process of information sharing, assessment, analysis and decision making following a reported concern about abuse or neglect of a child or young person up to the age of 18yrs. This can be in relation to familial or non-familial concerns and must consider siblings or other children within the same context. This includes unborn babies who may be exposed to specific areas of risk. *

*IRD’s for unborn babies in Highland will happen in the following circumstances:

• Where a pregnant woman has been the victim of domestic abuse
• Where a pregnant woman, the father of the baby or the pregnant woman’s partner are known to be schedule 1 offender(s)
• Where either the pregnant woman, her partner or the father of the baby have a significant criminal history including for domestic abuse.

In all cases, if there is an IRD for an unborn baby, the pregnancy should be managed under the Vulnerable Pregnancy Pathway.

IRD’s are required to ensure a co-ordinated inter-agency child protection process up to the point that a Child Protection Planning Meeting (CPPM) is held or a decision is taken that a CPPM is not required, or some alternative process is more appropriate.

The decision to hold an IRD can be made by either of the agency decision makers of Health, Police or Social Work, however a request to consider an IRD can be made by any agency.

All aspects of the IRD must be recorded in a consistent way. This will include the date and time of the IRD, those in attendance and which agency they represent. It should also consider the information shared at IRD, the options which were considered, and the decisions reached. Any lack of consensus must be recorded and how this was escalated and/or resolved. This will form a single core IRD record which agency decision makers will hold a copy of in their respective systems. 

Capacity of the child or young person

As far as can be determined, consideration should be given to

• Child’s age
• Linguistic abilities
• Suggestibility
• Effects of stress and trauma

The additional support needs of each child must be taken into account, including:

• Health concerns
• Emotional distress
• Speech and language
• Translation requirements
• Risk of self-harm
• Additional supports relating to disabilities and protected characteristics.

Practitioners in Police, Social Work and Health must participate in the IRD and Education/Early Learning and Childcare may have an essential contribution. Third sector agencies may also be approached for information where relevant. IRD participants must be sufficiently senior to assess and discuss available information and make decisions on behalf of their agencies. This requires access to supervision and training relevant to their role.

Social Work services: have the lead responsibility for enquiries relating to children who are experiencing or likely to experience significant harm and assessments of children in need. Where a child protection planning meeting (CPPM) is required, it will be a social worker who becomes the Lead professional.

The Police: have lead responsibility for criminal investigations relating to child abuse and neglect, sharing responsibilities to keep children safe. In Highland where the decision at IRD is for a child protection medical, the police will liaise with the paediatrician on call for child protection.

The Designated Health Professional: will lead on the need for and nature of recommended health assessments as part of the process. They will share relevant health information about the child at the IRD with consideration of any health needs. On some occasions it will be appropriate to share the health information of parents/carers of the child(ren) if it is believed this may have contributed to the concern. Decisions made at IRD should ensure the health needs of the child are considered.

Core agencies must plan together to ensure co-ordinated action. Education and ELC are critical sources of contextual information about children of nursery or school age and there will be occasions where it is appropriate to invite a sufficiently senior education rep to the IRD. Each agency must research the information systems available to them in order to share proportionate and relevant information for the purpose of effective decision making.

The IRD must be convened as soon as is reasonably practicable. Where there is a risk to the life of a child or the likelihood of immediate risk or significant harm, intervention must not be delayed pending receipt of information gathering/sharing.

The IRD process may have to begin out with core hours with a focus on immediate protective actions and interim safety planning, including where appropriate a child protection medical. A comprehensive IRD must be completed as soon as practicable. This should normally be on the next working day.

An IRD must be co-ordinated. It may be a process rather than a single event. Information must be gathered, shared and recorded at each meeting in order to support co-ordinated decision making and response. All core agencies must participate. There may be a requirement for a follow-up professionals meeting as new information comes to light. This should be recorded on the original IRD record for completeness.

An IRD is closed when a reasoned and evidenced inter-agency decision has been made and recorded about joint or single agency assessment and action up until the point of either

• A Child Protection Planning Meeting (CPPM)
• A decision that a CPPM is not required.
• A decision that although CPPM is not proportionate, the family may still require support from social work or other agencies
• Closure may also follow a reasoned inter-agency decision to take no further action

The IRD process provides a strategic basis for authorisation to the next stage in joint or single agency assessment. The priorities within the context of the IRD are:

• The safety and needs of the child(ren) involved.
• The level of risk faced by the child(ren) and by others in this context.
• Evidence that a crime has been committed or may be committed against a child or any other child within the same context.
• Legal measures which may be necessary

Participants must consider how the aforementioned priorities will lead to decisions about:

• The immediate safety and wellbeing of this child or other children involved.
• Is a single agency or joint agency investigation required and why?
• If no further investigation is required, what are the reasons for this?
• Is a joint investigative interview (JII) required? and if so, what are the arrangements for this?
• Will this JII be carried out using the Scottish Child Interview Model (SCIM) or the “5-day model”?
• Is a medical examination required? If a medical is required, this will be arranged between the Designated Person within police (DP) and the paediatrician on-call for child protection.
• Is early referral to the Children’s Reporter required? (NB this would only be considered in extraordinary circumstances, and it is always considered at each CPPM)
• If a child protection investigation occurs, and a CPPM is required, the CPPM will follow within 14 days (10 working days) from when a decision is made that a CPPM is required.
• If a CPPM is not necessary, proportionate & co-ordinated support may still be required.

• How information about the investigation can best be shared with the child(ren) taking account of their maturity and capacity, feelings and views
• How will information be shared with the family and whether this should not be shared if this may jeopardise a police investigation or place the child or any other child at risk of significant harm?
• IRD decisions should be kept under review if significant new information becomes apparent.
• Keeping a named person informed and involved.

A Lead Professional (who will be a qualified Social Worker) is required within the child protection investigation to ensure co-ordination of assessment(s) and next steps within the development of a multi-agency child’s plan. They are the point of contact between the family/carers/guardians/advocates and professionals who will need supported to understand what is happening at each stage. They may also provide additional signposting for advice and support. This person will be identified at the point of decision to convene a CPPM.

if any agency involved in the IRD disagrees with the decision of any party and where a compromise cannot be reached, consultation with senior managers from core agencies should take place in order to reach a decision. The points of disagreement and resolution must be recorded on the IRD record. There should be no delays in protective action as a result of the disagreement and the majority decision will apply to avoid delay beyond 24 hours.

Where there is a lack of consensus to hold an IRD in the first instance, the general guide should be that if one of the IRD reps from any of the 3 core agencies (police, health or social work) believes that an IRD should be held then it should go ahead. The formal information sharing will assist in making a decision about what further action (if any) is required.

Concerns that relate to multiple families or a group of children may necessitate a level of additional co-ordinated professionals’ meetings to that of the individual IRD for each child.  in such cases, senior managers of each of the agencies involved should be informed and kept updated. This should allow consideration of context and patterns of concern, leading to a strategic and co-ordinated response.

An IRD can be reconvened if new information arises which could lead to a reconsideration of the required inter-agency response. This should be entered onto the original IRD documents to ensure completeness of the IRD record.