Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 provides statutory guidance for inter-agency working for Local Authorities, Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), Police and other organisations to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.  Across the Pan-Lancashire region, the Children’s Safeguarding Assurance Partnership (CSAP) replaces the previously separate Local Safeguarding Children Boards as the combined partnership approach.  As outlined in our published arrangements, at the heart of this combined approach is a commitment from all agencies across the Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool and Lancashire region to work together to keep children safe, to continuously improve and learn how best to do this.

Whilst the revised arrangements do not affect the delivery of front-line services in these three unique local authority areas, it does enable the Partnership to ensure a proactive and responsive approach to the needs of children, young people and families and drives opportunities to shape and influence policy development leading to improved practice and outcomes.

In order to ensure that the voice of children, young people and families is heard locally, three ‘tactical’ groups working across the North, Centre and East of the local authorities drive safeguarding assurance activities locally and report to the CSAP Strategic Partnership Group.  The Partnership arrangements also bring together a Joint Business Unit to support the effective delivery of safeguarding priorities for children and young people across a large and diverse region, focussing on key areas of activity and working with a variety of partners across the children’s workforce.

In response to the changes required by Working Together, the safeguarding partners in Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool and Lancashire made an early decision in Spring 2019 to revise the existing arrangements and bring together the three former Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCB).  In doing so, this aims to harmonise multi-agency responses across the Pan-Lancashire region with a common approach and therefore, achieve the best outcomes for our children and young people.

As such, the resulting Children’s Safeguarding Assurance Partnership was was created with the following statement of purpose:

“The safeguarding partners and all relevant agencies that work with children and families are committed to ensuring that safeguarding arrangements are of the highest quality, that they consistently promote the welfare of children and effectively safeguards them whatever their circumstance.”

As is referenced in our Annual Report, a key factor in the safeguarding partners’ decision to bring together the three former LSCB areas was to provide greater consistency in approach and practice.

Promoting consistency across such a large and diverse geographical area requires that organisational structures are robust and are able to appropriately respond to local circumstances and challenges.

Our organisational structure therefore reflects this approach and includes a Tactical Group for each of the Central, East and North localities, which in turn each have Operational Groups to reflect our priority safeguarding areas of focus.

Additionally, a key aspiration of our partnership approach is to ensure there are appropriate links into related groups across the region.  These are reflected through our wider partnership activities which include the Children’s Partnership Boards, Community Safety Partnerships and Local Safeguarding Adult Boards.

The work of the Safeguarding Partnership is supported through a Joint Business Unit (JBU) who work across both the Children’s and Adult’s safeguarding agendas.  The JBU is a committed team containing a variety of expertise and experience to support the delivery of our safeguarding priorities.  If you are interested in joining the team, we have a Vacancies page which details information about current opportunities.