The Care Act & Adult Safeguarding – Implications for Age UK & Partners

Richard Powley

Head of Safeguarding

Age UK

Charity Commission

‘Strategy for dealing with safeguardingvulnerable groups including children issues in charities’

(2012)

Charity Commission Expectations

• Trustees have primary responsibility for safeguarding in their charity

• They have a duty of care to safeguard beneficiaries.

• They must always act in their best interests

• They must take all reasonable steps to prevent harm

• They have duties to manage risk and protect the reputation and assets of the charity

Charity Commission1. Awareness and Prevention

• Preventing problems from arising in the first place!

• Prevention - primarily trustees’ responsibility. They must understand their safeguarding responsibilities.

Charity Commission2. Oversight and Supervision

•Serious Incident Reporting (more later)

•Trustee checks – other charities? Relevant checks carried out?

•Assessing required improvements

•Analysis of trends and responses to trends

Charity Commission3. Co-operation

•Co-operation & liaison to stop those who seek to exploit charities to abuse children and vulnerable adults (with due regard to sensitive data)

•Regulators (CQC, DBS)

•Law enforcement

•Local authorities.

Charity Commission4. Intervention

•The Commission will intervene:

• In serious cases

•Where there has been non compliance or abuse

•Based on assessment against the Risk Framework

•They will not intervene if it is more effective for other agencies to intervene

Charity Commission

In 2012-13 - safeguarding issues in:

•11% of pre investigation assessment cases

•7% of investigations

•49% of serious incident reports

•11% of whistle blowing cases

Straightforward?We’ve come a long way – great that the importance of adult safeguarding is recognised, but;

Age UK and Partners may be operating in accordance with:

•Charity Commission expectations

•Their own safeguarding policy & procedures

•Local Safeguarding Adult Board policy & procedure

•CQC regulation

•Contractual/commissioning clauses

•CCG policy

•Any others..?

The good news

• They all say pretty much the same thing

The bad news• They may not have the answers that we

need…

Our big adult safeguarding issues?• Variable response from local authorities

• Variable local arrangements

• Confidentiality

• Onward disclosure without consent – mental capacity/vital or public interest risks

• Local training offer/arrangements

• Advocacy

• Board Chairing/Inclusion

What might the Care Act mean for us?

Further information

Making Safeguarding Personal

http://www.local.gov.uk/publications/-/journal_content/56/10180/3961573/PUBLICATION

Social Care Institute for Excellence resources:

http://www.scie.org.uk/adults/safeguarding/policies/

Care Act factsheets (factsheet 7 – safeguarding)

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/care-act-2014-part-1-factsheets