Understanding Core Groups
Are you a member of a Core Group for a child who is the subject of a Child Protection Plan? This page sets out the basics of Core Group working and shares some useful tips and resources.
What is a Child Protection Plan?
- ensure the child is safe and prevent any further significant harm by supporting the strengths of the family, by addressing the risk factors and vulnerabilities - in and outside the home - and by providing services to meet the child's assessed needs;
- to promote the child's welfare, health and development; and
- provided it is in the best interests of the child, support the family and wider family members to safeguard and promote the welfare of their child.
What is a Core Group?
The Core Group ensures that the Child Protection Plan for the child is implemented, progressed and reviewed regularly and amended accordingly to meet its aim of protecting and promoting the welfare of the child.
Every member of the Core Group shares responsibility for successfully implementing the Child Protection Plan. It is, therefore, essential that all Core Group members are aware of their responsibilities.
Core Group Membership
- The parents/carers & advocate/supporter
- The child, if appropriate, & advocate/ supporter
- An interpreter if required
- The key professionals involved with providing services to the child and family;
- Any specific experts, who have been invited to work with the child and family in relation to, for example, substance misuse; domestic abuse; or mental health issues.
Role & responsibilities of Core Group members
All members of the Core Group are jointly responsible for the formulation and implementation of the Child Protection Plan, refining the plan as needed, and monitoring progress against the planned outcomes set out in the plan.
The specific responsibilities of individual Core Group members are to:
- Maintain a child-centred focus
- Contribute to the multi-agency assessments
- Provide specialist advice, make proposals or commission specialists or agencies to make progress for the child
- Attend, participate in, and contribute towards the chairing and minuting of Core Group meetings or other relevant meetings. Core Group members must give adequate notice if unable to attend Core Group meetings or arrange a substitute colleague to attend if possible. If not, they must provide a summary of their involvement with the family since the last Core Group meeting
- Carry out agreed tasks in accordance with their own agency functions: if this is not possible the Lead Social Worker must be consulted before any plans regarding the child or family are altered
- Provide the Lead Social Worker with written reports as requested
- Communicate regularly with the Lead Social Worker about the progress of their part of the agreed Child Protection Plan
- Raise points of difference for discussion at meetings - and escalate any concerns using the LSCP's escalation process
- Alert the Lead Social Worker to the need to convene either a Core Group meeting or to reconvene the Review Conference early if there are concerns about the child's safety
Professional Difference & Escalation
- Discuss concerns within the Core Group
- Follow up concerns within their own agency
- Escalate, if their concerns remain
One mother's experiences of Child Protection
Support and Resources
Multi-agency Meeting Resources
