Safeguarding Children – A Toolkit for General Practice
27.02.08
A toolkit designed to help guide
GPs through the myriad of procedures for safeguarding children has
been produced by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP)
and the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
(NSPCC).
The toolkit and two associated
training modules aims to provide GPs and practice teams with clear
and effective guidance that can be easily used in daily practice.
It brings together important legal information, recommended
guidelines, learning materials and effective implementation
strategies for supporting children and young people in their
care.
Dr Andrew Mowat, RCGP Child Health
Lead and Chair of the Primary Care Child Safeguarding Forum said:
“There is a lot of information on safeguarding children available
to healthcare professionals and GPs can be uncertain about their
role within the process.
“We hope that the toolkit
will improve this situation and that as many practice teams as
possible will use it in their dealings with vulnerable children and
young people. “
NSPCC senior consultant Evender
Harran said: “GPs provide a universal, non-stigmatising service to
all families and, as a result, are particularly well placed to
identify and respond to the needs of vulnerable children and
parents and carers, who may be finding it difficult to cope with
the demands of parenting.
“Being familiar with the signs and indicators of abuse places GPs
in a pivotal position to prevent a child being exposed to further
abuse. I believe that this toolkit will consolidate the
underpinning knowledge and skills required to safeguard the needs
of children and promote the confidence of professionals charged
with this responsibility.”
The Toolkit is freely available as
a PDF on the RCGP Clinical Innovation and Research Centre web page
- www.rcgp.org.uk/circ. RCGP
Members can download the Training Modules free from the Members
Section of the College website.
Ends
Media should contact the RCGP Press
Office on 0207 344 3135/3136/3137/3129 press@rcgp.org.uk
Notes to editors
1. The project is the culmination of two years work between
the RCGP and the NSPCC. Following on from the RCGP “Keep me Safe”
Strategy for Child Protection published in 2005 which considered
Lord Laming’s 2003 Inquiry into the Death of Victoria Climbie.
2. The guidance includes an
audit/self assessment tool and two educational in-house training
modules which were piloted by five practices across Wales, Scotland
and England last summer.
3. The interactive web based
format means that the toolkit can be further developed and updated
to include relevant information and further legislation, along with
indications of when this may come into effect and its impact on
general practice.
The Royal College of General
Practitioners (RCGP) is the largest membership organisation in the
United Kingdom solely for GPs. It aims to encourage and maintain
the highest standards of general medical practice and to act as the
“voice” of GPs on issues concerned with education, training,
research, and clinical standards. Founded in 1952, the RCGP has
over 34,000 members who are committed to improving patient care,
developing their own skills and promoting general practice as a
discipline.
The NSPCC is the UK's leading children charity specialising in
child protection and the prevention of cruelty to children. The
NSPCC's purpose is to end cruelty to children FULL STOP. Its vision
is of a society where all children are loved, valued and able to
fulfil their potential. The NSPCC runs 180 projects and services
across the United Kingdom and Channel Islands, including ChildLine,
the UK's free, confidential 24-hour helpline for children and young
people. The NSPCC helps over 10,000 children and their families
every year.