Working Together to Safeguard Children (2023) sets out the statutory guidance which must be followed when there are concerns about the safety or welfare of any child.
Whenever there are concerns of a child protection nature that involve someone in a position of trust such as a foster carer, the fostering service has a duty to inform the local authority responsible for the child, the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) for the area in which the carer lives, and/or the police if there is an immediate safeguarding situation that requires action. Foster carers will normally be informed that an allegation has been made. However, the details of the allegation may not always be shared with the foster carer initially.
The LADO will convene a strategy/positions of trust meeting of all the relevant professionals, including the police, education, and health and social workers. They will discuss the allegation and decide the next steps to take. Foster carers should then be kept informed about the investigation process.
If this meeting decides that further investigation is necessary, this may sometimes be done jointly between the local authority and the police, or by a single agency (usually the local authority). The police may carry out an “interview under caution” with the foster carer. An interview of the child or children involved may also be carried out by the police and/or local authority.
Being interviewed by the police can be a distressing and frightening experience for anyone, and foster carers may feel vulnerable. Fosterline strongly advises carers to have legal representation at their interview under caution, to protect their interests. This is not an admission of guilt, but a sensible precaution which will ensure that they are able to answer any questions put to them clearly, calmly and with support. Fosterline can offer advice to carers seeking information about representation.
There may be further strategy meetings held as an investigation progresses. Once the investigation has been concluded, a further strategy meeting will be held to decide on the outcome. The foster carer will then be informed of the outcome in writing, and advised on any actions that have been agreed. The outcome may be:
- Substantiated: There is sufficient evidence to support the allegation. There may be continued involvement of the police in respect of any criminal offence if applicable.
- Unsubstantiated: There is insufficient evidence to either support or refute the allegation made.
- Unfounded/false: The evidence is sufficient to disprove the allegation, or there is no basis to support the allegation being made.
We are aware that the term 'malicious' has been used in the past as an outcome from an investigation into an allegation, and so make reference to it below. However, it is no longer considered best practice to use this term. For further discussion on why this term should be avoided, you can read an article by the NSPCC on this topic here.
- Malicious: this means the allegation is entirely false and there is clear evidence to prove that there has been a deliberate act to deceive
