Monday 05 Oct 2009 @ 16:13
Department for Education
Department for Education
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Consultation launched on ContactPoint
Children’s Minister Delyth Morgan today launched a consultation to update the rules governing ContactPoint.
Since the law governing ContactPoint came into force in August 2007, the system has been built, tested and subjected to rigorous security checks. The Government is today proposing to make some minor changes to the law.
Changes proposed include:
• Updating the law so that children whose parents live overseas but who go to school in England will be included on ContactPoint. Following a recommendation by Sir Roger Singleton this aims to make it easier for schools to implement ContactPoint, as well as better ensure that it is universal so that no child slips through the net.
• Replacing the definition of ‘parental responsibility’ with the more commonly used term ‘parent.’ This does not change the scope of ContactPoint but ensures that the same legal terminology is used across different laws;
• Changing the term ‘targeted and specialist services’ to additional services. Again, this will not change the scope of the information held;
• When a decision is taken to shield a child’s record, the name of their parent or carer will also be hidden. In this case, the law is being updated to reflect what is existing practice: parent or carer information is already hidden on shielded records;
• Making it clear, to conform to existing practice, that where relevant more than one address for an individual child can be held on the system.
ContactPoint is an online directory holding basic contact information for all children. The directory is designed to ensure that there is easier and faster contact between professionals who work with children.
The Government today also confirmed that the national rollout of ContactPoint is on track and practitioners across England can start to be trained and access the system from late October.
Children’s Minister Delyth Morgan said:
“I am delighted that we are on track to begin to roll out ContactPoint nationally later in the year. We have received early feedback from the pathfinder areas which demonstrates the positive ways that ContactPoint is helping practitioners in their day to day work to intervene earlier and prevent problems escalating.
“No system can alone guarantee that all children will be safe, but we know ContactPoint will make a real difference. Ensuring the system includes all children that go to school in England will make it truly universal, helping professionals ensure that no child slips through the net.
“Under current arrangements, if a practitioner believes that a child is at risk or needs additional support they often have no way of knowing whether other services might already be in contact with that child. We estimate that ContactPoint, when fully operational, can save at least five million hours of professionals’ time, freeing them up from trying to track down other practitioners and enabling them to spend more time on the child.”
ContactPoint is backed by major children’s organisations, such as the NSPCC, Barnardo’s and Action for Children, teachers’ unions like NASUWT as well as the Association of Chief Police Officers, The British Association of Social Workers, the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Children’s Inter-Agency Group - whose members include the LGA and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.
Editor's Notes
This press notice relates to 'England'
1. The consultation will last for 12 weeks and can be found at:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=consultationDetails&consultationId=1644&external=no&menu=1
2. Sir Roger Singleton’s report, Keeping our schools safe – review of safeguarding arrangements in independent schools, non-maintained special schools and boarding schools in England, can be found at http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/familyandcommunity/childprotection/safeguarding/
3. Sir Roger Singleton’s terms of reference for this review, announced by Ed Balls in October 2008, can be found at http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/resources-and-practice/CM00093/
4. The proposed change on children whose parents live overseas applies to all schools, independent and state-funded.
5. ContactPoint has been developed in response to a key recommendation of the Laming Inquiry into the tragic death of Victoria Climbié. It provides a quick way for practitioners to find out who else is working with the same child or young person. It will support better communication among practitioners across education, health, social care and youth offending, in the statutory and voluntary sectors.
It’s a simple online tool which contains:
• minimal identifying information for each child in England: name, address, date of birth, gender, and contact details for parents or carers. Each child will also have a unique identifying number;
• contact details for the child’s educational setting and GP practice and for other practitioners or services working with the child; and
• an indication as to whether a service or practitioner holds an assessment under the Common Assessment Framework, or whether they are a lead professional for that child.
Contact Details
Public Enquiries 0870 000 2288, info@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk
