The policy relating to children in care in Northern Ireland leaving health trust premises unsupervised. Q: What age groups can stay out to what time? A: In common with any child living in the community, children in care are permitted by those exercising parental responsibility to leave their home unsupervised based on a judgment which takes into consideration their age, maturity and any perceived risks. Children in residential care homes have a Care Plan and an Individual Crisis Management Plan which is tailored to their own assessed need or behaviour, and is used to assist staff in making this judgment. Children’s behaviour is reviewed during staff meetings on a dayto- day basis and individual plans on how to respond to a child can alter accordingly. But there is no broad policy which defines when a child should be allowed out unsupervised. Q: Can Trust staff prevent them from going out? A: The Children’s Order Guidance and Regulations Volume 4 Residential Care advises: where it is clear that if the young person were to leave there would be a strong likelihood of injury (or harm), it is reasonable to use restraint. A child/young person cannot be physically restrained indefinitely nor can they be locked within a residential care unit. Q: Is there a central policy on this or does each Trust have its own guidelines? A: Yes. Regional Guidance entitled Police Involvement in Residential Units — Safeguarding of Children Missing from Home and Foster Care/April 2011, which was revised in May 2012. The document contains two related guidance areas: 1. Guidance in relation to when the PSNI attend residential units including when a child is missing. 2. Guidance in relation to children living within their own families, or who are in the care of a Health and Social Care Trust (HSC Trust) and placed in a family setting, who go missing.
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 10:23:30 +0000
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