Redbridge local safeguarding children board

News:    11 February 2025

New!  Safer Internet Day 2025

Help us make this Safer Internet Day bigger than ever before.  Get involved by showing your support on social media #SaferInternetDay .  New research shows that exposure to scams online is a regular part of life for young people, with 79% of 8 to 17-year-olds coming across scams at least once a month, and almost half at least once a week.  The UKSIC research can be read here.

New!  Lay Members Required

The RSCP is looking to recruit up to three new Lay Members to join us.  This is a volunteer role that would interest a local resident who has experience in working with children and families and in their welfare and safeguarding.  the Partnership really needs the insight of residents and local communities in this important work.  Please see the advert below for more information.  Applications should be submitted on application form and submitted to RedbridgeSCP@redbridge.gov.uk by 28 February 2025.

The RSCP Vision and Values Statement provides background on what we are setting out achieve.

New!  Foster for Redbridge

Redbridge Council need more foster carers who can make happy, lasting memories for a child or young person.

We often take some things for granted.  Taking our children to the park or to a playground; jumping in puddles; getting your wellies stuck in thick mud.  Many children in Redbridge, however, have never experienced these fun and free activities.  A care leaver remembers the time that she was fostered and had a picnic in a park, “I had never had a picnic in a park before.  I was 11. It was so exciting.”

If you would like to create happy memories for our most vulnerable children and are considering fostering for Redbridge Council, please call 020 8708 6068 or visit the Local Authority website to book onto our next Virtual Information Session.

Young Carers

A young carer is someone under the age of 18 who is caring for a parent, sibling or other family member who has a long-term illness or disability, mental health problems, learning disability or have become frail with old age.  Carrying out caring responsibilities has a big impact on a young person’s life and can leave them vulnerable.  It can affect them both physically and emotionally.  It can result in increased vulnerability to risk.  Statistics compiled from the 2011 UK census estimated that there are at least 177,000 young carers in the UK, with around a third caring for a person with a mental illness.  It is likely the actual number is higher, and research has suggested around a third of young carers are involved in inappropriate and excessive caring with consequent effects on schooling and other key areas of their lives.  Many young carers can remain unknown to services and therefore remain unsupported. It is vital that professionals working in adult and Children’s social care make enquiries about any children or young people within the family to ensure identification and support.

Redbridge Children with Disabilities (CWD) Team has commissioned Endorphins (London & Southeast Ltd) to provide support for young carers within Redbridge:

Young Carers – Age Range:

  • 8–13-year-olds (morning session) 9.30 am to 12 noon
  • 14 – 19-year-olds (afternoon session) 12.30 to 3.00 pm

The Young Carers Provision for any sibling aged 8 to 19 years, the provision is based at Valentines High School. Their team of Playscheme Workers deliver sessions which include a wide range of activities that everyone can engage in and enjoy. All staff are qualified and skilled to deliver safe and high-quality services. Each session supports up to 20 children/young people (aged 8-19 years) in a safe and supportive environment in local, accessible community settings. Activities promote fun and friendships, reduce loneliness and enhance social and essential life skills. Activities include arts and crafts, inclusive multi-sports/activities, dance, drama, gaming, DJing and music, quizzes/bingo, open talk stations, relaxation techniques, mindfulness, aerobics classes, football coaching, silent disco, karaoke, inflatable obstacle courses, go karting, mobile animal zoo experience and lots more.

Contact: Faye Makhlouf – Managing Director – faye@endorphins.uk

Child Sexual Abuse Report

The national review into child sexual abuse in the family environment, undertaken by the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, was published in November 2024 and can be downloaded via the link below:

There are key recommendations for development for individuals, agencies and Safeguarding Children Partnerships (SCPs).  One relates to the finding that professionals receive little training and support to respond to this particularly difficult type of abuse.  The Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse has made available a number of free webinars to help.  These include:

  • Responding to harmful sexual behaviour in education settings – 5 March, 09:00 – 10:00
  • Spotting the signs and indicators of child sexual abuse – 9 April, 09:00 – 10:00
  • Supporting parents/carers when their child may have been sexually abused – 14 May, 09:00 – 10:00

Find out more and sign up via the CSA Centre events page.  The RSCP is also holding a free briefing (online) Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse – An Introduction on Friday 14 March 2025 which is facilitated by the CSA Centre.

Publication of the Government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill has been published and introduced to Parliament at its first reading. 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.

The  Bill can be accessed via the link below:

The Department for Education (DfE) has published some helpful policy summary notes to accompany the Bill:

RSCP Training Programme 2024 – 2025

Our  RSCP Training Programme for 2024/25 is available to all working or volunteering with children and families in the Redbridge area.  There are over 70 sessions are grouped into three series, key to your work with children and families :

  • Understanding Safeguarding Risks
  • Contextual Safeguarding & Child on Child Abuse
  • Creating Safer Settings for Children and Families

We hope you find something here for your continued professional development.  To book your place on any of the courses, please use our online booking form.  You will see there are some courses that have ‘dates and times TBC’; please don’t try and book a place on those yet – we just want you to know they’re in the pipeline for this year!  For notes on training fees and cancellation policy, please click here and visit our website for full details of our training programme.  If you’ve received this email from someone else and you’d like to sign up to our mailing list, you can do so using our contact form.