5.What Happens Next?

When a concern is passed to the police or social workers information is shared during an Inter-agency Referral Discussion which can also be called an IRD for short. At that point the people whose job it is to keep children safe – the police, social work, health and education – will meet to consider what needs to be done to support the child and their family and ensure the child can be kept safe.

The child and their parents or carers do not go to this meeting. 

The police and social workers are responsible for investigating the concerns and working with others to make a plan to protect a child from harm or risk of harm. This is called an Interim Safety Plan. In an emergency, where there is an immediate risk of harm, the police may need to take immediate action including ensuring a child can be in a place of safety.

The Inter-agency Referral Discussion can lead to any one of three decisions. 

1. Child protection processes are not required but support may be provided through other processes

2. Single agency response to child protection concerns, through social work, police or health teams

3. Multi-agency response to child protection concerns, through some combination of social work, police, health and education teams, as required for the specific situation

Information about the Children’s Hearings System on the Scottish Children’s Reporters website. 

When a child may have been harmed they may be asked to speak to the police and social workers in what is called a joint investigative interview.  

This interview is specially planned in a way that understands a child’s circumstances and is conducted in a sensitive and child-centred way so that the child knows what will happen before, during and after the interview and who can support them. It may not be appropriate for the child’s parent or carer to be with their child in the interview.

Police and social workers have a right to investigate when they suspect that harm might have occurred or there is a risk of harm to a child. However, the police and social workers will assess if a child is able and willing to be interviewed and what support might be needed. 

There are several reasons why the police and social workers have a duty to investigative interview with a child. As well as trying to find out if the child has been harmed or is at risk of harm, they will need to understand if any other children, such as sisters or brothers may have been harmed or if the child has been a victim of a crime or a witness to a crime where another child or an adult has been harmed. 

They will listen and learn from the child to see why there was a worry or concern reported. 

The information shared in the interview can also help the police to establish if a crime may have been committed against a child or anyone else, to understand where the child is under 12 whether there are concerns about them harming others, or to gather evidence for a future court case or information the Children’s Hearing might need.  

If a child has been hurt or injured, a medical assessment or specialist medical examination might be needed.

To protect a child from any further harm to their physical and mental health and wellbeing and keep them safe, it needs to be understood whether the child has been harmed due to abuse or neglect, or whether there is another cause for the concern.

The child must have every opportunity to ask questions and gain reassurance from the health professional looking after them. It is important that the child feels safe through this process and is accompanied by an adult that they can trust. 

Social workers, the police and the examining doctor should make sure that the child, their parents and carers, or any other trusted adult who is with the child, can hear about what is happening. 

Before an assessment or examination is done, the examining doctor needs consent from or on behalf of the child to be given. There are three ways consent can be given:

1. a parent or carer with parental rights can give consent 
2. a child who is assessed to have capacity to consent by the examining doctor can give consent
3. consent can be given by a court order acting in the interests of a child

   
   It is also important to understand that in an emergency, for example where there is threat to life, a doctor can medically treat a child without consent.

In some health board areas of Scotland, children over the age of 16 who have been victims of rape or sexual assault are able to self-refer for a forensic medical examination. They are able to do this without first making a report to police.

Children, especially where sexual assault or abuse has been experienced, are able to ask that the examining doctor who treats them is a woman or is a man and where possible, these wishes should be supported. 

The right to family life means that children have the right to live with their parents and parents have the right to live with their children. 

If children are not safe living with their parents or are at risk of being unsafe living with their parents, children may need to live away from their parents. 

When a local authority needs to protect a child in this way, they need to identify a safe place for the children. This may mean the child living with their other family members such as grandparents or aunts and uncles or with foster carers or in residential care. 

Where more than one child is not safe at home, the local authority will keep sisters and brothers together or in contact with each other if keeping them together is not possible. 

If the situation at home is so unsafe or dangerous for the child or children and it is decided that they cannot stay there, this can be decided quickly. This can feel very sudden and will be an upsetting change for everyone involved. 

These decisions should only be taken when necessary to keep a child safe or to prevent further harm. The decision needs to be supported either by parents or carers with parental responsibilities agreeing to this in what is called a voluntary arrangement, or through a child protection order which must be made by the court. 

A voluntary agreement should last as long as it is necessary. The safety of the child is the priority. If a parent or carer removes their consent and there are still concerns about the child’s safety at home then the local authority can seek a child protection order through the court.

You can find out more about these legal processes and parents’ rights here.

The child, their parents or carers must be asked about ways to keep the child safe.

Your views about how to keep your child safe are very important. Your views should be listened to carefully and fully inform any decisions made.

The views of your child and any sisters and brothers they have are important and should be sought and taken into account in these decisions.

The views of other adults who know you and who may be able to help care for your child for a short period of time also need to be considered. 

After all these views are gathered and considered a plan of action will be made.