Children Act 2004 - guidance on the ‘duty to cooperate’
From: http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/strategy/guidance
The Children Act 2004 provides the legal underpinning for the transformation of children’s services as set out in the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme. Section 10 of the Act provides the statutory basis for Children’s Trusts (the duty to cooperate).
Revised Children’s Trust guidance on the ‘duty to cooperate’ was published on 18 November 2008. The ‘relevant partners’ currently under the ‘duty to cooperate’ are: district councils, the police, the probation board, the youth offending team, the Strategic Health Authority and Primary Care Trusts, Connexions partnerships, and the Learning and Skills Council.
The relevant partners are placed under a ‘duty to cooperate in the making of arrangements to improve well-being’ and have a power to pool budgets and share other resources.
The Government is intending to add to this list of relevant partners other bodies including maintained schools, Academies, FE and sixth form colleges and Job Centre Plus, to bring key delivery partners into the strategic planning role of the Children’s Trust.
For more information and guidance, go to the Children’s Trust page.
The Children’s Plan
The Children’s Plan: building brighter futures recognises the importance of Children’s Trusts in forging collaborative partnerships, improving integration of services and delivering measurable improvements for all children and young people.
To help drive forward this ambition the Government is committed to considering whether Children’s Trust arrangements need to be strengthened, including through further legislation. To this end, on 3 April 2008, the Secretary of State, Ed Balls, launched a consultation on the updated guidance Children’s Trusts: Statutory guidance on inter-agency cooperation to improve the well-being of children, young people and their families, which supplements the existing guidance issued in 2005.
Guidance on the Children and Young People’s Plan (CYPP)
A key element in the implementation of Children’s Trusts is the development, by the local authority and its partners, of a single, strategic, overarching plan for all services affecting children and young people - the Children and Young People’s Plan (section 17 of the Children’s Act 2004).
Revised CYPP guidance should be available in December 2008. It will replace the previous guidance issued in 2005 and 2007; bring together the 2005 and 2007 CYPP regulations into one place, and reflect new performance management arrangements.
For more information and guidance, go to the Children and Young People’s Plan page.
Guidance on the roles and responsibilities of the Lead Member for Children’s Services and the Director of Children’s Services
A consultation on revised ’statutory guidance on the roles and responsibilities of the Lead Member for Children’s Services and the Director of Children’s Services’ was published on 18 November 2008. The consultation will run from 18 November to 10 February 2009. This guidance explains how the roles of the LM and DCS are distinct and complementary and how working together as a team, they can be most effective in driving clear improvements in outcomes for children and young people.
For more information, read the 2005 statutory guidance along with the revised statutory guidance which is currently under consultation.
Local Safeguarding Children Board Guidance
The establishment of local safeguarding children boards (LSCBs) is an important element of the improved safeguards for children put in place by the Children Act 2004 - the creation of LSCBs fulfils sections 13-16 of the act. The LSCB and its activities are part of the wider context of children’s trust arrangements. Each local authority needs to have an LSCB in place by April 2006.
The LSCBs guidance forms chapter three of Working Together to Safeguard Children.
Click to read the guidance on LSCBs or to read more about LSCBson this site.
Working Together to Safeguard Children
Working Together to Safeguard Children sets out how individuals and organisations should work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The guidance has been updated since the previous version which was published in 1999. The new version reflects developments in legislation, policy and practice.
Click to read the guidance.
Guidance on the Duty to Safeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children
Working Together and the Guidance on the Duty to Safeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children, both deal with the key cross cutting issue of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.
Click to read the guidance.
Children Act 1989, Guidance and Regulations, Volume 1 Court Orders
Children Act Guidance and Regulations, published originally in 1991, provided a suite of guidance, primarily addressed to local authorities. Volume 1 addresses the court-related provisions set out in the Act. Following the Review of the Child Care Proceedings System in England and Wales, published in May 2006, and public consultation on draft guidance between June and September 2007, revised guidance has now been prepared, which is being published alongside this letter. This replaces the 1991 edition and comes into effect from 1 April 2008.
Read the guidance and letter, available on the DCSF website.
At Cutler Buttery Solicitors, Mark Buttery has 20 years specialist experience of acting in a wide range of Children Act or child welfare cases. Please contact Mark for detailed guidance and advice in relation to all Children Act and child welfare matters.
