5.6.2 Protocol: Case Transfers to 16 Plus Support Team |
Contents
1. Aim
To ensure a smooth and successful inter-team case transfer that meets the needs of the Directorate but above all is young person centred.
2. Context
The 16 Plus Support Team is the 16+ Looked After Children Team of the Directorate of Children, Families & Schools. As such it takes over case responsibility from one of the three Area based Social Care Teams on or around the young persons 16th birthday.
The 16 Plus Support Team maintains this case responsibility until the young person reaches the age of 21 years (or 24 if engaged in an agreed programme of education or training). This case responsibility is maintained regardless of any change in the young persons status under the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000.
3. Procedure
All Looked After Children will be transferred from one of the three Area based Social Care Teams to the 16 Plus Support Team on or shortly after their 16th birthday.
Exceptionally, on the request of the young person concerned an Area Team Social Worker may continue to hold case responsibility beyond the age of 16 years. Decision-making on such a request rests with the Head of Service for that area team. If agreed, the young person will be provided with a Leaving Care Personal Adviser in the 16 Plus Support Team in line with the duties under the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000. This Leaving Care Personal Adviser will be responsible for provision of the leaving care service including ensuring completion of the Leaving Care Needs Assessment and Pathway Plan within the prescribed timescales.
The CF3 Transfer Form should be completed by the young persons Social Worker prior to the young persons 16th birthday. This will be forwarded via that workers Practice Manager to the Service Manager, 16 Plus Support Team together with a copy of the last LAC Review, Personal Education Plan and any other relevant documents. The young person will then be allocated a Leaving Care Personal Adviser in the 16 Plus Support Team whose name and contact details will be notified to the Social Worker or their Practice Manager.
The young persons Social Worker or their Practice Manager will be responsible for arranging a transfer meeting. The transfer meeting will be held between the young person, their Carer, their carer’s Supervising Social Worker, their outgoing Social Worker and their Leaving Care Personal Adviser. The overall purpose of this meeting will be to formally welcome the young person to the 16 Plus Support Team and will allow the:
- Young person the opportunity to say what they expect from the 16 Plus Support Team and what they want to achieve as they move towards inter-dependence.
- Carer the opportunity to discuss their involvement with the young person and how they perceive their needs, achievements and aspirations.
- Supervising Social Worker to clarify any placement detail and their future role with carer and young person.
- Social Worker the opportunity to further discuss issues raised in the CF3 Transfer Summary.
- Leaving Care Personal Adviser to describe the services the Leaving Care Service can offer and how the team works with young people in the transition from care to adulthood.
Ideally the young person should be present for the whole of this meeting. Exceptionally the meeting may be held in two parts, one part excluding the young person when for example confidential information regarding third parties needs to be shared.
The young persons Social Worker or Practice Manager will have arranged for the case files to be sent to the Practice Manager, 16 Plus Support Team by courier or taken in person as quickly as possible following the transfer meeting. The receiving Practice Manager should be informed when the files are due to arrive. If practical the case files could be taken to and handed over at the transfer meeting.
The files will contain the following completed and up to date documents:
- Chronology
- Essential Information
- Genogram
- Birth Certificate and copy of Care Order (where relevant)
- Immunisation History (if not included in LAC documents)
- Criminal Injuries Compensation (CIC) detail (if appropriate)
It will be the responsibility of the Practice Manager in the team transferring the case to complete the Case Transfer Checklist. It is expected that all relevant sections of this checklist will be completed to a satisfactory standard. The receiving Practice Manager in the 16 Plus Support Team will ensure that this has been done before accepting the case files.
It should be noted that the occasional departure from this process should not unreasonably delay a case transfer. For example if a document is missing from the case files, transfer will still take place and it will be the responsibility of the transferring team to remedy this omission as quickly as possible.
Further it will be the responsibility of the Office Manager of the team transferring the case to complete the CareFirst Transfer Checklist. The Team Administrator of the allocated Leaving Care Personal Adviser in the 16 Plus Support Team will ensure that this has been done to a satisfactory standard before accepting the case files. Transfer detail will then be entered onto CareFirst.
Case transfer and responsibility is complete once the case files have been received and are compliant with Case Transfer Checklist and CareFirst Transfer Checklist.
The above procedure should be the practice for all case transfers between the Area based Social Care Teams and the 16 Plus Support Team. However it is acknowledged that on occasions either the transferring or the receiving team will require some flexibility in the above process.
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