As of 1st April 2025, the Cumbria Safeguarding Children Partnership (CSCP) will cease to exist. This means there will be two Safeguarding Partnerships for Cumbria - one based in the Cumberland area and one in the Westmorland and Furness area. Planning is underway to ensure that this transition is as smooth as possible.
The two new partnerships are working closely together and will be keeping you informed. Therefore, please keep an eye out for further updates.
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Local Authorities separation of internal systems
As part of the ongoing work to disaggregate Cumberland and Westmorland and Furness Councils, there is considerable activity ongoing to separate the current ‘pan-Cumbria’ Liquidlogic Children's System (LCS), the IT system used to record children's record standards and create separate platforms for each authority. A key part of this work will entail ‘switching’ the systems and separating existing data to the two new platforms. This work is scheduled to begin on the 17th February 2025 (subject to testing) and will last between 2 and 3 weeks. There will be little noticeable disruption during this period, however any information recorded during this period will have to be moved at a later date onto the new system when it goes live.
Within Children’s Services at both Cumberland and Westmorland and Furness Council, there is work ongoing to prepare for this, however one action will be to seek to move, where possible, any non-essential activity within this transitional period. These requests will not impact any safeguarding activity.
Your co-operation in this is greatly appreciated. Please watch this space for updates as we approach the February date.
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Dads-to-be in Lancashire and South Cumbria can now download the DadPad app for advice and support. The app is a useful resource before baby arrives and after baby is born, and is designed to be used as a quick, on-the-go reference tool, allowing new dads to enjoy their babies and feel more confident about fatherhood.
The app covers topics such as:
- Feeding, holding, changing, and cleaning your baby
- Surviving without sleep and coping with crying
- Getting to know your baby
- Home safety and first aid
- Looking after yourself and supporting your partner
The app is now free to download for parents in all Lancashire and South Cumbria postcodes only.
DadPad | DadPad app | Essential guide for new dads (thedadpad.co.uk)x
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The CSCP are delivering an array of training sessions. Please review below the current training being delivered either face to face or via teams.
Please also visit our learning zone on our website for all our eLearning courses offered to professionals and volunteers working with children/young people and their families who live in Cumbria.
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Child Exploitation Training
The CSCP recommend that anyone working with children should complete Child Exploitation (CE) Level 1 eLearning as mandatory training. Click here to access the training.
Those practitioners who work more closely with children and young people and are involved in their safety planning should complete Child Exploitation (CE) Level 2 training.
- Monday 13 January 2025 (1-4pm) Barrow AFC, Barrow
- Thursday 13 March 2025 (10am-1pm) St Gregory & St Patrick's Infant School, Whitehaven
To book your place, please email CSCP.Training@cumbria.gov.uk
Non Fatal Strangulation and Non Fatal Suffocation Training
Following excellent feedback from a recent session, the CSCP are running a further multi-agency lunchtime learning session on Non Fatal Strangulation and Non Fatal Suffocation (NFS).
The session is suitable for multi-agency frontline professionals and those with safeguarding practice/policy development responsibilities.
The session aims to equip you with:
- Awareness of the seriousness of NFS
- An understanding of the physiological and psychological impact of NFS
- Developed understanding of risk associated with NFS and how to identify and manage risk
- An understanding of how victims may present
- An understanding of how to respond and support appropriately to safeguard victims and children & young people
Wednesday 5 February 2025 (12-1pm) via MS Teams
To book your place, please email CSCP.Training@cumbria.gov.uk
Important information - please join 5-10 minutes prior to the session and do not share the teams link with others.
Impact Chronology
The CSCP are delivering training on Impact Chronology. The sessions will be face to face workshops across the county. The aim of the sessions are to enable practitioners to develop skills in using impact chronologies.
- Thursday 27 February 2025 (1.30pm to 3.30pm) Cumbria House, Carlisle
- Wednesday 12 March 2025 (2pm to 4pm) West Cumbria House, Workington
To book your place, please email CSCP.Training@cumbria.gov.uk
Important information - this training is multi-agency and we encourage practitioners from all agencies to take part in this training.
Safeguarding Level 3
The CSCP have secured further dates for Safeguarding in Practice - Working Together to Safeguard Children - Multi-agency approach to safeguard, protect and promote the welfare of children. The course is designed for Designated Safeguarding Leads Only.
This training is part of a programme of learning events that practitioners and professionals, working with children, can access to support their learning at level 3.
- Tuesday 11 March 2025 (1.30pm to 4.30pm) - Barrow Town Hall, Barrow
- Further dates tbc (Carlisle/Wigton)
To book your place, please email CSCP.Training@cumbria.gov.uk
Child Exploitation Vulnerabilities Checklist - lunch and learn and twilight sessions
The CSCP are delivering a lunch and learn and a twilight session on how to complete the 'child exploitation vulnerability checklist'.
The session will take place on the following date/times.
- Thursday 20 March 2025 (12.15pm - 1.30pm) - via teams
- Thursday 20 March 2025 (3.30pm - 4.45pm) - via teams
To book your place, please email CSCP.Training@cumbria.gov.uk
Important information - please join 5-10 minutes prior to the session and do not share the teams link with others.
SafeLives are a UK-wide charity dedicated to ending domestic abuse, for everyone and for good. They are independent, practical and evidence-led, with survivor voice at the heart of our thinking. They work with organisations across the UK to transform the response to domestic abuse.
This face-to-face training is free to all professionals and the sessions will last a full day.
For available dates and to book a place, please click on the link below
Book your place (Eventbrite)
Important Information - Police Officers/staff need not attend as Cumbria Constabulary have their own DA Matters Training.
Westmorland and Furness Council's Early Help Team and Domestic Abuse Team are delivering an awareness session to staff at schools, colleges and settings on the following domestic abuse topics.
- Introductions and role of the DA Team
- Definitions of abuse
- Indicators and types of abuse
- What is controlling and coercive behaviour?
- Stages of change model
- Domestic abuse and the impact on children and child’s voice
- DASH & MARAC process
- Support for families and children
- The Operation Encompass process
- The Early Help Team offer
This awareness session is available to all staff with DSL responsibility or who work directly with families in Westmorland and Furness.
For more information on dates of sessions and how to book, please click on the link below.
With funding from the Office for Health Inequalities and Disparities via both Westmorland & Furness and Cumberland councils, CADAS are offering specific support to people in Cumbria who have been bereaved by addiction.
The project will offer those bereaved by addiction access to:
- A mixture of face to face and virtual peer support groups across the county
- 1-1 Bio-Psychosocial Interventions with a Recovery Coach
- Depending on whether they are experiencing addiction themselves or are an affected other, they will be able to access existing peer support groups in addition
For further details, please click on the briefing note and poster below
Bereaved by Addiction Support in Cumbria - briefing note
Bereaved by Addiction Support in Cumbria - poster
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The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel for England has published its 2023/24 annual report. The report analyses data and outlines learning from Serious Incident Notifications, rapid reviews, a sample of local child safeguarding practice reviews, national reviews, thematic analysis and reports. Key themes explored include: safeguarding children with mental health needs; safeguarding pre-school children with parents with mental health needs; and extrafamilial harm. The Panel also sets out its priorities for future work.
Read the press release: ‘Mission-led’ government must centre vulnerable children
Read the report: Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel: annual report 2023 to 2024
NSPCC Learning has published a CASPAR briefing summarising the recent Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s annual report. The briefing summarises: the context and challenges in the safeguarding and child protection system; data from rapid reviews; spotlight themes and learning for practice; and plans for the Panel’s future work.
Read the briefing: Summary of the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel annual report 2023/24
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The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill has been published and introduced to Parliament for its First reading on 17th December. The Bill aims to change the law to better protect children and raise standards in education in England. Measures proposed in the Bill include: the introduction of registers in every local authority in England to identify children who are not in school; a system of unique identifier numbers for children across services to assist information and data sharing; strengthening the role of education professionals in safeguarding; greater support for families to stay together, including access to Family group decision-making meetings for all families with children at risk of entering the care system; and stronger regulation of children’s social care providers.
Additionally, parents will no longer have an automatic right to educate their children at home if their child is subject to a child protection investigation or under a child protection plan. The DfE has published policy summary notes on measures in the Bill.
Read the news story: Legislation breaks down barriers to opportunity for all children
Read the policy summary: Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill 2024: policy summary
Access the Bill: Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill - UK Parliament
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Cafcass has created a new animated film explaining family court proceedings to children and young people. Made in collaboration with young people who have experiences of family court proceedings, the latest Taking Me Seriously film explains to children and young people what court recommendations are and why it is important that they are understood clearly. While aimed at young people, the film is also useful for professionals to help develop an understanding into what it’s like for children to go through court proceedings.
Watch the film: Cafcass emphasises the importance of explaining decision making to children in new animated film
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Ofcom has published a statement and guidance on age assurance and children's access assessments, outlining what online services must do under the Online Safety Act to help prevent children from encountering pornography and other harmful content. Online providers must take action to start to comply with these new rules. Services that allow pornography must introduce processes to check the age of users by July 2025. In addition, all user-to-user and search services, must carry out a children’s access assessment to establish if their service is likely to be used by children by 16 April. Once the Protection of Children Codes and guidance are finalised in April 2025, platforms likely to be used by children will need to assess the risks and take appropriate action – which may include using age assurance. Ofcom has also announced an age assurance enforcement programme which will involve reaching out to adult services to inform them of their obligations under the Online Safety Act.
Read the news story: Age checks to protect children online
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