Escalating for the right Outcome - Conflict Resolution and Professional Disagreement Policy

When working in the arena of safeguarding and child protection, it is inevitable that from time to time, there will be practitioner disagreement. Whilst this is understandable and generally acceptable, it is vital that such differences do not affect the outcomes for children and young people. This procedure provides a process for resolving practitioner disagreements and ensuring there is effective challenge in the system. It also provides practitioners with advice and support to enable them to escalate concerns where disagreements are not resolved at a practitioner level.

Professional challenge is a positive activity and a sign of good practice and effective multi-agency working. Being professionally challenged should not be seen as a criticism of the person’s professional capabilities.

Both national and local Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews (CSPRs) continue to draw attention to the importance of interagency communication and have identified an apparent reluctance to challenge interagency decision making with concerns that were not followed up with robust professional challenge which may have altered the professional response and the outcome for the child.

Disagreements can arise in a number of areas of multi-agency working such as (this list is not exhaustive):

• Thresholds applications;
• Outcomes of assessments;
• Decision making; roles and responsibilities of workers;
• Service provision;
• Information sharing and communication in relation to practice or actions which may not effectively ensure the safety or well-being of a child or young person or his/her family.

It is important:

To avoid professional disputes that put children at risk or obscure the focus on the child.

To resolve difficulties (within and) between organisations quickly and openly.

To identify problem areas in working together where there is a lack of clarity in existing procedures and to promote resolution via necessary amendments.

Throughout any dispute between individuals or organisations practitioners must remain child focused. The safety of individual child(ren) remains the paramount considerations.

With any dispute about thresholds, please refer to the appropriate pathway documents (Thresholds of Need in the City, Pathway to Provision in the County) to help articulate your concern. The interagency policy and procedures should be used to support professionals to explore the roles and responsibilities and options for professionals and consideration of the role of supervision, chronology and tools such as the neglect toolkit should be considered as ways to help resolved the concerns.

At no time must professional disagreement detract from ensuring that the child or young person is safeguarded. Any unresolved issues should be escalated with due consideration that might exist for the child. Every effort should be made to resolve the disagreement as quickly and openly as possible, within a time frame which clearly protects the child, determined on a case-by-case basis. Effective working together depends on resolving disagreements to the satisfaction of practitioners and agencies and a belief in a genuine partnership.

At every level professionals should consider if seeking advice or supervision from their line manager and  / or safeguarding organisational lead would support them to manage the issues.

Appendix 2: Escalation contacts Nottingham and Nottinghamshire provides a table of roles in partnership organisations to support professionals to identify their equivalent professional in order to escalate to NB. Whilst email contacts are provided wherever possible it is likely that a telephone conversation will often provide a more timely and effective resolution. If using email then ensure any out of office redirections are noted and responded to and it remains the person making the email contact to chase up non response in a timely manner.

Please contact the relevant SCB Business Manager for assistance if you are escalating to Stage Two and you do not know who the safeguarding lead is for the organisation you wish to contact.

Nottingham City: safeguarding.partnerships@nottinghamcity.gov.uk

Nottinghamshire County Council: info.nscp@nottscc.gov.uk

Click here to view Appendix 2: Escalation Contacts Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.

Click here to view Appendix 3: Form to Document Case Identified Requiring Escalation for the Purposes of Safeguarding a Child/ren.