3.6.1 Death or Serious Injury to a Child in Care and Care Leaver

1. Death of a Child in Care where there are Suspicions of Abuse or Neglect

Local authorities in England must notify the national Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (the Panel) within 5 working days of becoming aware of a serious incident.

Serious incidents which should be reported are those where the local authority knows or suspects that a child has been abused or neglected and:

• The child dies (including suspected suicide) or is seriously harmed in the local authority's area;
• While normally resident in the local authority's area, the child dies or is seriously harmed outside England.

The process for reporting a serious incident to the Panel via the Child Safeguarding Incident Notification System is set out in the following: Report A Serious Child Safeguarding Incident (GOV.UK). The Panel will share all notifications with Ofsted and the DfE.

The following tasks are also required.

The child's social worker or if not previously known to Children's Social Care, the duty social worker receiving the information will:

1. Immediately inform his or her line manager;
2. Notify the parent(s) immediately and in person, if possible;
3. Discuss with the parent(s) and reach agreement regarding the arrangements for the funeral (in the event of sudden, unexplained deaths arrangements for the funeral may need to be delayed);
4. Obtain as much information as possible on the circumstances surrounding the cause of death and pass this to their line manager; and
5. Discuss with the manager any necessary expenditure including reasonable travel expenses to assist the family in attending the funeral where it appears there is financial hardship;
6. Following discussion with their Team Manager, contact the Police.

The social worker's line manager will:

1. Immediately inform the Service Manager and contact the Head of Service by telephone and provide follow up information in writing as soon as possible afterwards;
2. Advise Legal Services initially by telephone, then confirm details in writing; and
3. Contact the Insurance Section of the Finance Department, initially by telephone and then in writing.

The Head of Service will:

1. Inform the Corporate Director for Children and Learning;
2. Consider the appropriate manager to conduct a Management Review;
3. Consider whether a Child Safeguarding Practice Review is required under the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Partnership Procedures, Serious Case Reviews Procedure; and
4. Inform the Department for Education and the Regulatory Authority;
5. Collect any files held on the child and family and secure them in the correct office location;
6. Arrange to consider the circumstances of the death/serious injury, in accordance with the Safeguarding Partnership Procedures, including the need to hold a Rapid Review and, where the child has died, a referral to the Child Death Overview Panel.

For guidance in relation to Management Reviews, see Incidents Guidance.

Foster Carers/Residential Staff must take the following action:

• Take immediate action and contact the emergency service;
• Take First Aid action;
• Ensure the other children in the home are safe and reassure them;
• If necessary arrange for someone else to look after the other children in the home;
• If carers are sure the child is dead they should not move the child's body and should contact the child's GP;
• The foster carer/residential staff must ensure that they inform the child's social worker, duty officer or social worker's line manager;
• If the death occurs outside of office hours, the Emergency Duty Team should be informed;
• Inform the social worker if there are any suspicious circumstances.

The GP or hospital doctor will write out a medical certificate showing the cause of death. This is in a sealed envelope addressed to the Registrar.

Another notice informing how to register the death will also be given.

The GP will make arrangements to have the child's body collected.

The social worker should discuss with the foster carer or residential worker whether they wish to be involved with informing the child's parents.

Care must be taken not talk about the situation until the parent has been informed.

1.1 Notification for the Death of a Care Leaver

From January 2024 local authorities should notify the Secretary of State for Education and Ofsted of the death of a care leaver aged up to their 25th birthday as per the revisions to Working Together to Safeguard Children. Please refer to the Factsheet - Notification for the Death of a Care Leaver.

Why should local authorities notify the death of a Care Leaver?

Notifications for care leaver deaths will allow the Department for Education to understand and learn more about what happened so we can make better informed policy decisions to prevent future deaths.

How should local authorities notify the death of a Care Leaver?

The notification should be made in the same way as for a Child Serious Incident Notification, via the Child safeguarding incident notification system when a care leaver is aged:

• Under 18 years of age, notifications should be made by selecting death of 'Looked after child / Care leaver child (under 18 years old)'. Please continue to select 'abuse' and/or 'neglect' or 'no abuse or neglect'. There will be an option on the 'child detail' page to identify the child as a care leaver;
• 18 years old up to their 25th birthday, notifications should be made by selecting death of 'Care Leaver 18 years old up to 25th birthday'.

The information requested for the death of a care leaver is less than for a child serious incident notification.

The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel will receive the notification but will not review as their remit is children's serious incidents up to and including children aged 17. The notification of the death of a care leaver will not itself necessitate a rapid review or local child safeguarding practice review. Ofsted will also be notified of the death of a care leaver through the notification system.

Definition

A care leaver is anyone aged up to their 25th birthday1 and meets both of the following criteria:

• Is no longer looked-after;
• Has been looked after for at least 13 weeks which began after they reached the age of 14 and ended after they reached the age of 16.

2. Serious Injury to a Child in Care

Where information comes to notice of serious injury to a Child in Care, the following tasks are required.

The child's social worker will:

1. Immediately inform his or her line manager;
2. Notify the parent(s) immediately and in person, if possible;
3. Arrange with the parent(s) to visit the child in hospital;
4. Obtain as much information as possible on the circumstances surrounding the injury and pass this to their line manager; and
5. Discuss with the manager any necessary expenditure including reasonable travel expenses to assist the family in visiting the child where it appears there is financial hardship;
6. Following discussion with their manager, contact the Police.

The social worker's line manager will:

1. Immediately inform the Head of Service by telephone and provide follow up information in writing as soon as possible afterwards;
2. Advise Legal Services initially by telephone, then confirm details in writing;
3. Contact the Insurance Section of the Finance Department, initially by telephone and then in writing; and
4. Where the child was placed in foster care or residential care, advise the Regulatory Authority, initially by telephone followed with written information. Ofsted Notification form is located on Ofsted Online - Notification of serious childcare incident.

The Head of Service will:

1. Inform the Corporate Director for Children and Learning;
2. Ensure that the parents' wishes concerning the funeral are discussed (by the social worker or the team manager), that any possible conflict with the wishes of the carers are also ascertained and addressed, and that any appropriate associated costs are met;
3. Arrange, in consultation with the Safeguarding Manager, appropriate meetings under the Safeguarding Partnerships Procedures, including the need to hold a Rapid Review;
4. Consider the appropriate manager to conduct a Management Review;
5. Consider whether a Child Safeguarding Practice Review is required under the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Partnership Procedures, Serious Case Reviews Procedure;
6. Additionally, whenever a Child in Care dies, the local authority must inform the national Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel within 5 days using the Child Safeguarding Incident Notification System. The Panel, will share all notifications with Ofsted and the Dfe, the local authority must also notify the Secretary of State and Ofsted where a looked after child has died, whether or not abuse or neglect is known or suspected.

For Guidance in relation to Management Reviews, see Incidents Guidance.