Gloucestershire MASH Kevin Buck Head of Service MASH

Gloucestershire MASH Kevin Buck, Head of Service MASH, CSE, EDT 1

GLOUCESTERSHIRE MASH September 2019 Shire Hall Level 4

GLOUCESTERSHIRE MASH Co-location in Shire Hall – September 2018 Working Together 2018 Co-ordinating, multi-agency focal point for the consideration of contacts raising a concern about the safety and welfare of children Ofsted – ‘thresholds consistently applied, consent is appropriately sought – information from partners informs assessment of risk and decision making – concern about timeliness of response to acute cases – May 2019’ Performance has improved since

MASH Resources • • • Social Care – 37 posts Police – 36 posts Health – 3 posts Education – 2 posts GDASS – 2 posts Change Grow Live – 0. 5 post 4

MASH Demand • • • Contacts circa - 2140 per month (Av. past 9 months) CAFCASS/Ofsted info requests – circa 30 per month Court requests – 5 per month Missing Notifications 400 per month OLA/Probation/Offender Mgt. – 20/25 per month Attendance at AMM, MARAC, MAPPA, morning DA meeting Prisoner release/high risk notifications – 5 per month DSL/Member etc. visits to MASH +

GLOUCESTERSHIRE MASH Do I need to submit a MARF? When you have collated your evidence of concerns, ensure you read the Gloucestershire Levels of intervention and consider what is needed at this time to effect positive change. Have you considered exploring what support could be offered as part of the Graduated Pathway? Consent After completing the above steps if you feel threshold has been met for a Level 4 response, you will need to speak to parents to obtain consent for the referral. There is a clear expectation that referral agencies will obtain consent prior to making contact Children at risk of significant harm When you have concerns about a significant harm to a child, you must contact MASH immediately by telephone on 01452 426565. This is to be subsequently followed by completion of the MARF.

GLOUCESTERSHIRE MASH Completing the MARF When completing the MARF ensure you complete as much as possible to enable the MASH to make a clear decision and enable any further enquiries that need to be completed. Aspects to consider when completing the MARF: “Don’t loose your focus” After submitting a MARF, make sure you are contactable within 48 hours. It is crucial you leave contact details, the best time to call you or who else to speak to within your organisation if you are not available. Don’t stop working with the family at this time of transition.

Role of Triage 71. Within one working day of a referral being received, a local authority social worker should acknowledge receipt to the referrer and make a decision about next steps and the type of response required. This will include determining whether: • The child requires immediate protection and urgent action is required • The child is in need and should be assessed under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 • There is reasonable cause to suspect that the child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm, and whether enquires must be made and the child assessed under section 47 of the Children Act 1989 • Any services are required by the child and family and what type of services • Further specialist assessments are required to help the local authority to decide what further action to take (think MASH Enquiry – this needs to be a timely decision to prevent unnecessary delay) • RAG rating will determine the timeliness of response based on that initial triage decision

Key issues for discussion Developmental work on the children portal MARF Feedback to referrers MASH activity and connection with schools