Safeguarding Young People

Young people feel safe and parents and professionals concur with this view overall. This is due to the action taken by staff to protect young people from risks associated with child sexual exploitation and radicalisation. Young people have significantly reduced the occasions that they go missing from the home, which maximises their safety because staff know where they are and can monitor them. When young people have left the home without authority, staff search for them and follow the agreed missing from care protocols. Staff effectively use the services of the independent advocate whose good rapport with the young people enables informal chats about the reasons why young people go missing. Strategy meetings address any safeguarding concerns and ensure that young people who frequently go missing receive the right guidance and support. Risk management strategies and key work sessions allow staff to talk to the young people and encourage them to keep safe.

Staff act on safeguarding concerns to ensure prompt investigation in conjunction with the placing authority and other safeguarding agencies. Where an investigation outcome has been inconclusive, staff continue to monitor young people’s well-being to ensure their continued safety.

For example, bullying, intimidation, threats of violence and anti-social behaviours between peers and towards members of the public have been common features. The positive action taken by staff challenges poor, disrespectful behaviour and educates the young people about acceptable and unacceptable behaviours thus reinforcing clear routines and boundaries. This also helps the young people to settle down into home life. It also enables them to take responsibility for their actions and focus on their individual goals. The young people are responsive to staff praise, which boosts their self-esteem and is showing positive signs of improved