A child protection investigation begins when significant concerns are raised in terms of your safety and wellbeing. The investigation can be carried out jointly with police and social work or by social work. The Investigating workers will contact people who know you and gather information to make a decision about your safety. You and your family will be kept updated and we will listen to your views throughout this process.

A  Child Protection Planning Meeting is a meeting that is held when a social worker, or a teacher, or a health visitor, or a nurse, or the police, or any other professional who knows you, believes you are at risk of significant harm. They may feel that extra support is needed for you or your family to ensure your safety.

The meeting will be chaired by someone called a Child Protection Chair. Their job is to make sure any decisions reached, or plans made at the Child Protection Planning Meeting, are done fairly and that everyone, including you, has a chance to have their say.

The purpose of the meeting is to make sure that everyone fully understands the worries for you and is clear about the things that are going well.

If you want to come to your meeting, you will be able to attend for some or all of the meeting. It is important that people know how you feel about what is happening in your life. 

Your Mum and Dad or the person who looks after you will come to the meeting. Professional people like someone from your school, your school nurse or your doctor will also be invited and should attend.

If you attend the meeting, before the meeting starts the Child Protection Chair will meet you and will go through with you how the meeting will run.

You can ask any questions that you may have about the meeting and let the Child Protection Chair know if there is any way in which they can support you, to make sure that you can attend and take part in all of the meeting.

The meeting will decide what needs to happen to keep you safe.

What happens after the meeting?

After the meeting, regular meetings with children’s social work will take place to look at any other help that may be needed for you and your family.