Article 19.2 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) requires Parties’ protection of children to include measures for identification of all forms of ‘maltreatment’. ‘The Promise’ acknowledges that, underlying situations “where the worst has happened to children is the acknowledgement that key information about a child was not shared timeously or not listened to. In many cases the information shared was not taken account of by the people who needed that information. There are processes and procedures that can assist with the swift, smooth sharing of information” (Independent Care Review, p36).
A chronology is a timeline of child, young person and family circumstances. It provides a record of key events in the order that they happened. Chronologies may be put together by one or more agency to help them understand how to support a child, young person or family. Chronologies can help prevent people having to keep repeating what has happened in their lives.
Chronologies provide a key link in the chain of understanding needs/risks, including the need for protection from harm. Setting out key events in sequential date order, they give a summary timeline of child and family circumstances [or those of an individual using adult services], patterns of behaviour and trends in lifestyle that may greatly assist any assessment and analysis. They are a logical, methodical and systematic means of organising, merging and helping make sense of information. They also help to highlight gaps and omitted details that require further exploration, investigation and assessment (National Risk Framework, (2012)).
A triennial report on Learning from significant case reviews (Care Inspectorate, (2018), p26-7) strongly evidenced the need to improve information sharing, recognition of patterns and analysis of concerns, by means of multi-agency chronologies. The Care Inspectorate (2017) Practice Guide to Chronologies remains a central point of reference.
The Practice Guide to Chronologies, Care Inspectorate (2017) sets out nine key characteristics of a chronology that should mean it is:
- a useful tool in assessment and practice
- not an assessment, but part of assessment
- not an end in itself, rather a working tool which promotes engagement with people who use services
- accurate and relies on good, up-to-date case recording
- detailed enough but does not substitute for recording in the file
- flexible so that detail collected may be increased if risk increases
- reviewed and analysed–a chronology which is not reviewed regularly is of limited relevance
- constructed differently according to different applications, for example current work and examining historical events
- recognising that single-agency and multi-agency chronologies set different demands and expectations
A chronology should be clearly laid out with the following (minimum) information:
- Date(s) of significant event
- Details of significant event
- Source of the information
- Action(s) taken to support and/or to ensure safety of child/family member(s)
- Name of person entering the information
The Practice Guide to Chronologies (2017) states that, as part of a skilled and focused approach, chronologies can be an essential tool in caring for and protecting children and adults by:
- bringing together issues identified by different agencies and presenting them coherently
- contributing precise data which can help practitioners to identify patterns of behaviour which will contribute to an assessment
- recognising that a chronology is relevant in criminal justice work for assessing and managing people who constitute a high risk to themselves and/or others
- using their findings as an integral part of supervision and peer review
- strengthening the partnership between practitioners and people who use services.
You should give the same consideration to the information shared within chronologies as you give to other information sharing.
When contributing to, developing, sharing or storing a chronology you should consider the following principles:
- Only the minimum amount of information should be shared that is necessary for the identified purpose;
- Information should not be further shared or processed in any manner incompatible with the purpose(s) specified;
- Information should not be kept longer than is necessary for the purpose identified to the individual to whom it relates; and
- If sharing or use of information may negatively interfere with an individual’s private and/or family life then this interference must be legitimate, appropriate and proportionate to the concerns.
The lead professional has the role of coordinating the information into one multi-agency chronology. A technical solution for sharing is in development. In advance of the CPPM or Adult Protection Case Conference, the lead professional will request single agency chronologies from all key partner agencies.
The shared template ensures that this can be easily transposed and sorted into date order. The lead professional will summarise and edit information where appropriate, such as where there are duplicate entries or a large amount of historical information. The chronology is then used to support analysis at the meeting and as needed in future.
Getting it right for every child & young person in Highland: interagency practice model & child protection procedures 2024
