CDOP Annual Report
Child death review partners—defined in Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 as local authorities and Integrated Care Boards—are responsible for reviewing the death of every child normally resident in their area, and any non‑resident child who dies locally where appropriate. These reviews help families understand what happened and identify any learning to improve services.
Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole, Dorset and Somerset have combined their arrangements to form a single Pan‑Dorset and Somerset area. A joint Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP) now carries out all child death reviews across these areas. This arrangement has been in place since July 2019.
For more information please see: Child Death Review – NHS Somerset ICB
The SSCP Quality and Performance subgroup considers data, trends and themes across single and multi-agency quality assurance work to identify what development is needed across the system. Please see the link below to find out more about the SSCP Quality Assurance framework:
SSCP Quality Assurance Framework
The SSCP Learning and Improvement subgroup oversees Rapid Reviews, Local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews and non-statutory learning reviews. Please see the link below to find out more about SSCP Learning and Improvement methodologies:
SSCP Learning and Improvement Framework Methodologies
The statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children (2023) promotes good information sharing in order to enable the key partners to fulfil their duties under multiple pieces of legislation.
Read the Somerset Information Sharing Agreement here
The SSCP Information Sharing Arrangement (ISA) provides the framework for sharing of personal data between agreed parties to meet the purpose of:
– improving access to information in order that each organisation can fulfil their legal duties
– safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in Somerset and to protect them from harm
DfE Information sharing advice for safeguarding practitioners guidance can be read here
These arrangements set out how the Safeguarding Partners, along with other organisations including Education, work together to safeguard children in Somerset. This is in response to the duties outlined in the Children and Social Work Act 2017 and Working Together 2023.
Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership Arrangements