Professional Strategy Meeting

The professional strategy meeting will be convened by the Designated Officer for Safeguarding when safeguarding allegations/concerns have been raised about a practitioner/person in positions of trust. This can either be in a personal or professional capacity, where the individual has wider contact with children or with adults at risk.

The main functions of the strategy meeting are to:

• Ensure the proper co-ordination of child, adult protection, criminal and employment procedures
• Share all relevant information about the allegation/concern in question
• Consider what action may be required to protect the child or adult at risk in question
• Consider the likelihood of harm to other children or adults at risk with whom the person has contact at work or other activities, and agree any actions that are required
• Consider and evaluate the risk of harm to the subject’s own children, and agree any actions that are required
• Discuss any previous allegations or other concerns
• Plan any enquiries needed and allocate tasks and set timescales
• Decide who is to be interviewed and lead agency
• Identify a lead contact manager within each agency
• Decide what information can be shared with whom, when and who will do this
• Agree timescales for actions and/or dates for further meetings
• Consider whether the adult’s suitability to continue working with children or adults at risk in his or her current position has been called into question
• Consider whether there are disciplinary issues to be followed up
• Agree at what stage in the process the disciplinary issues should be followed up
• Consider any other factors that may affect the management of the case e.g. consideration of the need for a media strategy where there is likely to be press interest
• Confirm arrangements regarding who will communicate with the person about whom there are concerns and ensure appropriate support is provided
• Ensure that the appropriate referrals are made to the Disclosure and Barring Service and registering bodies of the professional involved (this can be completed at any point throughout the process
• The employer/voluntary organisation or registering body may need to consider suspending the employee without prejudice.

More than one professional strategy meeting is likely to be required to coordinate, monitor and review the process.