Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures

Some of the documents below are under review following the change from the West of Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Board to West Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Board. We will update these documents once the new versions have been produced.

Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Policies and Procedures

The purpose of the Policy and Procedures is to support staff to respond appropriately to all concerns of abuse or neglect they may encounter, providing a consistent response across Berkshire.

Berkshire Multi-Agency Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures has a dedicated website.

The Policy and Procedures were adopted by Bracknell, Slough, Reading, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham in April 2016. They are regularly updated and staff and managers should regularly refer to the online version. Staff can sign up to receive email alerts for amendments.

Our vision in Berkshire is that all agencies will work together to prevent and reduce the risk of significant harm to adults at risk of abuse or neglect, whilst supporting individuals to maintain control over their lives and make informed choices without coercion.

Amendments

The Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures are reviewed and amended regularly by the Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures Group.

Escalation policy

Download the tri-borough policy here:  Resolving Professional Disagreements - Escalation Policy v.4 [149KB] .

A word version of the stage 4 referral form can be found here [25KB] .

Safeguarding Pathway Decision Making Tool [206KB] .

What to consider before you raise an adult safeguarding concern [254KB] .

Allegation Management Framework/Person in a Position of Trust (PiPoT)

The Care Act 2014 requires the local authority, its relevant partners and those providing universal care and support services, to have clear policies for dealing with allegations against people in positions of trust (anyone working in either a paid or unpaid capacity with adults with care and support needs). The people in position of trusts (PIPOTS) may be people who are employed and work with or voluntarily undertake activity with adults or children (for example where an employee/worker/volunteer has been accused of the abuse or neglect of an adult with care and support needs). The Framework can be found on the Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedure website here.

Thames Valley Police, have created a video to assist professionals to be mindful of those rare cases of where members of TVP abuse their positions by forming improper relationships.

On the 22nd October 2020, Thames Valley Police, Counter Corruption Unit, hosted a virtual event on Abuse of Position. You can  find the Abuse of Position presentation here [440KB] .

Information Sharing Protocol and SAB's Powers under s45 of the Care Act

The  Information Sharing Protocol [776KB]  covers all of the agencies that form the Safeguarding Adults Board. It provides a framework for making decisions about sharing information in order to help protect vulnerable adults who may be at risk of abuse or neglect.

The Care Act introduces a new duty for Safeguarding Adults Boards. In essence section 45 of the Care Act means that:

• a person must supply information on request by the SAB if they are likely to have information relevant to the SAB's functions
• the information can be about the person, or a function or activity they engage in, or a person in respect of whom they exercise the function / activity

The power to request information could be used when carrying out a Safeguarding Adults Review, but might also assist in the context of an on-going safeguarding investigation, particularly if issues are raised about the disclosure of relevant information.  The request places the person it is made to under a duty to disclose. It is the Board rather than Adult Social Care or any other agency which has the power to request disclosure. The Board has agreed an arrangement for requesting information in urgent cases, as outlined in this document,  duty to Apply the SAB's Powers under S45 of the Care Act [221KB] .

Supporting Agencies in the Management of Complex Multi-Agency Enquiries - Joint Safeguarding and Criminal Investigation Protocols

Supporting Agencies in the Management of Complex Multi Agency Enquiries [391KB] .
 

In response to the learning from the 'Adam' Safeguarding Adult Review, the partnership has introduced this protocol. Its objective is to help Local Authorities and the police manage cases where there is a joint safeguarding enquiry and Complex Criminal Investigation.

The partnership acknowledges that when such investigations are running parallel there will be complex, competing demands, with agencies making decisions regarding information sharing, which significantly impact on the other parties involved. The overarching priority of all of those involved in the investigations must be to protect those whose circumstances triggered the concerns, and others subsequently identified during the enquiries from further harm.

This protocol has been developed so that once a complex joint investigation has been instigated, there is clear, identified, senior oversight, from staff within the respective organisations not directly involved with the investigations, who will be able to objectively support the operational teams regarding resourcing, information sharing protocols, and the management of the investigations.

Quality Assurance Framework

The Board has its own Quality Assurance Framework which can be found here: Quality Assurance Framework [295KB] .