Transfer and Closure of Cases

Principles and best practice guidance

• Reduce where possible the number of Social Workers a child or family have during their involvement with Children's Social Care;
• Transfers should be as seamless as possible for the service user whose needs will take priority;
• Promote caseloads that are manageable and allow sufficient capacity for meaningful change orientated interventions to be successful with children and families;
• Services will always apply the most collegial and collaborative approaches to any individual, team or service facing capacity difficulties;
• Disputes should be resolved at Team Manager level where possible;
• If a decision is made to issue care proceedings the service making that decision should provide the initial documents for Court (i.e. initial statement and care plan).

Before any case is transferred to another team or Service a Case transfer/escalation/cancelling step should be started on Mosaic, see Transfer Escalation Process (intranet) for details on how to complete this step, the team manager will authorise the step and ensure that there is an up to date chronology, recordings are up to date, relationships are correct which will ensure that the genogram in Mosaic pulls through all relationships. When the manager is satisfied that the case is ready they will the send a request to business support to transfer the case to the new allocated worker.

Take child protection (CP) plans from the initial child protection conference (ICPC) where a CP plan is made following the ICPC.

Retain CP cases which end and become a child in need (CiN) plan until the case can be safely closed or transferred to Early Help. Exceptionally a CP case where the plan ends a Child In Need plan made might transfer to A&I where this won’t impact negatively on the progress of the case or the family/child.

Take re-referred cases within three months of SGCP closing the case, including those stepped down to Early Help.

Children accommodated by A&I during their work will transfer to SGCP at the first LAC review.

Similarly, cases that progress to letter before proceedings (LBP) will also transfer from A&I or EoC to SGCP.

Supervision Orders will either transfer from SGCP to A&I or may remain with SGCP where practice / relationships demand.

Referrals are received via IRT. Pre-Birth team have a criteria of care leavers who are expecting and/or parents who have had one or more child removed from their care.  

The principle of the Pre-Birth team is that the child/ren will remain within the same team and with the same social worker throughout the duration of the child’s involvement with Children's Services. The Pre-Birth worker will complete all aspects of work with the child/ren including child and family assessments, CIN, section 47 enquires, ICPC, Child Protection in the event of a child becoming a Child in Our care (CIOC) and/or subject to legal proceedings the same social worker and team will remain allocated to the child/ren. 

Referrals for assessment from the Integrated Referral Team (IRT). Where a Child and family assessment/plan is required the case remains in A&I until closure is appropriate or escalation to CP plan or LAC plan becomes necessary.

Exceptionally a SGCP CP Case where the plan ends and CiN plan made might transfer to A&I where this won’t impact negatively on the progress of the case or the family/child.

Section 7 and 37 that are directed by the court while open to A&I. Where the case is subject to a section 47 and an ICPC and subsequent CP plan likely the Practice Leads will agree which service would be best placed to take on the court report.

Where a section 7 or section 37 is ordered by the Court on a closed case the team/service who had the previous involvement and knowledge should pick up the case, unless there is no legitimate link to the previous team/service in which case A&I will pick up the case.

Supervision Orders where the change in relationship with the SGCP worker won’t impact negatively on the progress of the case or the family/child.

Court ordered Family Assistance Orders.

Private fostering arrangements.

Young People aged 11-18 years identified by IRT for young people who at risk of or victims of any forms of exploitation, extremism or radicalisation or edge of care/homelessness. 

Cases identified by IRT or A&I service where there is a high probability that a child over the age of 11 will become looked after imminently unless urgent, intense, and sustained intervention takes place.

Cases identified by IRT, A&I or SGCP service where there are highly complex family dynamics that are impacting on the behaviour or welfare of the children and without intense and sustained intervention it is highly probable that a child or children will become accommodated.

Where the team accommodate a child on their caseload the team will retain the case where rehabilitation is a realistic plan and achievable before the CIOC 2nd review.

If a case escalates to Letter Before Proceedings an initial parenting assessment will be completed by the EoC worker that analyses the impact of their interventions and whether they have effected change.

Referrals are received via IRT. At least one of the young people on the referral should attend the school of the allocated social worker.

SWIS workers complete Child and family assessments, section 47 enquires, ICPC and hold Child Protection cases.

If a child becomes CIOC this is then transferred to SGCP social worker.

When Newly Qualified Social Workers are within this team before transferring to other teams, they will hold work at Child in Need (CiN) level. This work will be identified at the following stages: 

• A&I – daily allocations meeting, whereby a C&F assessment could be completed by a NQSW and/or co-worked by a NQSW;  
• SGCP – via allocation spreadsheet;  
• CioC – via allocation spreadsheet and discussed at monthly Transfer meetings together with SGCP and CioC team managers; 
• Fostering and Kinship – via allocation spreadsheet; 
• The allocation spreadsheet is a live document which can be accessed by all Team Managers. The Academy Team Manager and CSW allocate work dependent on the developmental stage of each NQSW within the Academy team. A data report each week summarises the Mosaic relationships for all NQSWs within the Academy team. 

Children who are subject to a Care Order at the end of proceedings.

Children subject to section 20 where a legal panel has concluded that proceedings are not necessary and long-term fostering is the plan.

See Mosaic guide (intranet)

1. SGCP social worker will complete the “Transfer to LAC” step as soon as there is an indication that the case may transfer to the LAC service You should use the Alert LAC to incoming transfer request to send the information to the team;
2. When the case is ready to transfer the social worker should re-enter the step and complete the Transfer to LAC team form and send the request ‘Allocated manager to authorise case ready to transfer to LAC team’, the manager will ensure that the case is ready to transfer and that there is an up to date chronology, recordings are up to date, relationships are correct which will ensure that the genogram in Mosaic pulls through all relationships;
3. A transfer must occur within 10 working days following the team managers ’s discussion. During the 10 working days, a meeting must occur between the child, the CIOC social worker and the SGCP social worker (a CIOC Team Manager will attend if the social worker is unavailable). Should a Team Manager or social worker fail to attend the respective Transfer Meeting, the case will still transfer from this agreed date;
4. The IRO will be informed;
5. If a CIOC Review is happening within the above time frame, the LAC social worker can go and observe (depending on the views of the child). A handover of the case could be made at this point (again, depending on the views of the child). A Care Team Meeting is also an appropriate transfer meeting;
6. If the case is not transferred within 10 working days and all of the above requirements are met, the Practice Lead should be notified via e mail;
7. Later Life Letters to be completed by the SGCP social worker, within six weeks of the case transferring to the LAC Team. This should be uploaded onto the Life Story work step.

Referrals from outside services relating to families with a disabled child or self-referrals are made directly to IRT who will determine if the child meets the criteria for DCT team. If the criteria is met the DCT team manager will allocate the case for a Child and family assessment. See Children with Disabilities Team: Access to Services Eligibility Criteria Procedure

DCT will assume case responsibility for that child and any siblings referred.

Where a child protection concern becomes evident on an open case and the child becomes subject to a Child Protection plan the case will remain with the team. Likewise, if a child becomes a Looked After Child.

Internal transfers in to the DCT Team should be made following discussions between Team Managers.

Where there are needs identified but the threshold for DCT is not met then IRT will direct the case to the appropriate service namely: A&I, SGCP, or Early help.

To enable a successful transfer of case from one area of service to another the following actions are undertaken to ensure the case file and documents are up to date and the Child In Need plan transferred to A&I meet current assessed needs. It is intended to allow the child and family as well as the new worker a good understanding of the outstanding areas for intervention and support.

When considering the transfer of a case the principles above apply.

When seeking to transfer a case from SGCP to A&I the following actions are to be completed:

• A Child and family assessment and revised Child In Need plan is to be undertaken and completed by the social worker in preparation for the Child in review and signed off by SGCP Team Manager prior to the review to ensure agreement;
• There is a current Child In Need plan available on Mosaic and the step is closed;
• The transfer summary template (The template can be accessed in Core group meeting step, Child in need care team meeting step, Child or young person in need review step and Child and Family assessment step) is to be completed, turned into a PDF and then added to the transfer diary;
• The Child in need review date/time will be added to the diary as per current use to allow for case consideration/discussion and the identification of the allocated social worker in A&I;
• An identified social worker from A&I will attend the Child in need review and this will be the agreed point of case transfer upon all relevant documents being completed and updated;
• A Child in need review is to be held, chaired by manager in SGCP. This will review the plan and make any amendments/changes to the plan ensuring it is meeting the current assessed needs;
• The new/developed Child in need plan from the review is added to the child(rens) file by the social worker or TM in the SGCP team;
• The Child in need chair’s report in the Child or young person in need review step  is added by the chair within 5 working days of the review;
• Social worker in SGCP will ensure that all family relationships are correct within the system and the genogram function works and that there is a fully updated chronology within the Chronology step, the Chronology step will be re-assigned to the new allocated worker by business support, it should not be closed;
• When the case is agreed it will transfer a Case transfer/escalation/cancelling step should be started on Mosaic, see Transfer Escalation Process (intranet) or details on how to complete this step, the team manager will authorise the step and ensure that there is an up to date chronology, recordings are up to date, relationships are correct which will ensure that the genogram in Mosaic pulls through all relationships. When the manager is satisfied that the case is ready they will the send a request to business support to transfer the case to the new allocated worker.

Transfer protocol for Children In Our Care (CIOC) to Care Experienced Team (CE):

Co Working Responsibilities of Social Workers and Personal Advisers:

• The Care Experienced PA will be matched with a care leaver at 16.5 years and will commence work with the young person at a point agreed with the individual young person and the social worker;  
• Until allocation to the PA the social work PA functions will be undertaken by the social worker. In Gateshead all eligible young people will usually have both a PA and social worker allocated to them by their 17th birthday;  
• The Personal Adviser will be introduced to the child by their allocated social worker and together start planning for leaving care. The allocated social worker retains statutory case responsibility working together with a PA to ensure a supportive transition from adolescence to early adulthood for children as well as a smooth transition of case responsibility from the children’s social worker to the PA at the age of 18 years;  
• At 18 years old, the PA will become the allocated key worker for the child and the children’s social worker role will come to an end;  
• The table below defines specific respective role responsibilities for 16 to 18-year-old care leavers. There will be times when it is appropriate for there to be negotiation about some tasks dependent on the knowledge, expertise and capacity of the worker.

• The transitions team should receive a referral for a cared for young person, those young people open to a children's social care team, at 16 years old or before depending on the needs of the young person;
• All internal referrals from children’s services should be completed by children’s workers adding the ‘Passport into Adulthood’ form on Mosaic then running this off the system and sending this to the transitions duty inbox (TransitionTeam@gateshead.gov.uk) in a pdf/word format FAO the Team Manager or the ATM of the transitions team for it to be actioned/ added to the transitions team waiting list;
• CIOC Cared for young people aim to be allocated a transitions worker prior to their 17th birthday if the young person is transitioning via the CHC pathway then a transitions worker will be involved in a consultative capacity until 18 years old;
• CIN young people aim to be allocated a transitions worker prior to 17 years old 6 months unless the young person is transitioning via the CHC pathway then a transitions worker will be involved in a consultative capacity until 18 years old;
• If the young person is transitioning via the CHC pathway, a transitions worker will be involved in a consultative capacity until the young person is 18 years;
• The transitions worker will add themselves as a co-worker to the young person’s file and liaise with the children’s allocated worker and attending scheduled meetings (CIN/LAC Reviews, Care Team Meetings) to begin gathering information to help inform the young person’s adult assessment;
• The transitions worker will become the primary worker and the transitions team will become the responsible team. Case management responsibility becomes Adults, unless the young person’s care is transferred to the ICB as they become CHC funded.

Referral to A & I from Early Help TFS

1. Early Help Manager call to IRT duty manager to agree referral threshold/context;
2. Follow the Mosaic guide Early Help step up to Children Social Care (intranet) on how to escalate a case for consideration by A&I. The guide gives a list of scenarios to support you to chose the correct next actions;
3. Early Help worker to negotiate/agree role (or not) during Child and family assessment process;
4. Early Help worker ends their steps and completes the relevant closure document if the case escalates to a  section 47 or further work in required by Edge of Care or on a Child Protection or Child In Need basis;
5. Early Help worker to update all case recording and chronology;
6. Closure document will be authorised by the Early Help Manager with 5 working days of the case transferring, this is to avoid any difficulties in closing the case as more steps are added by Children Social Care;
7. N.B. Escalation of cases where there is significant/immediate risk to children also uses Steps 1-2 in this process.

Referral to Tier 3 from Early Help TFS where Tier 3 have assessed/held the case within the previous 3 months

1. Early Help Manager holds initial discussion with previous team manager to discuss risks/referral context;
2. Following Team manager confirmation of Tier 3 threshold being met, case is returned to previous Tier 3 service;
3. Arrangements can be made for A & I/SGCP manager/rep to attend a TAF meeting to explore issues/risks after consent secured from family;
4. Early Help worker adds Closure Summary and updates all case recording and chronology, Chronology step is reassigned to the new worker and should not be closed;
5. Closure Summary authorised by Early Help Manager;
6. If case not accepted by Tier 3, Early Help Manager adds Manager’s Decision with next steps for Early Help – safety planning, etc.

Step Down from A & I – Full Child and Family Assessment, 45 days

1. (Optional) conversation from A & I worker with Early Help Duty about the referral/ threshold;
2. A & I worker reassigns the Request for Early Help (RFEH) document to the EH Duty Desktop;
3. Referral should include a meeting date, time and venue with notice of 5 working days;
4. CIN Assessment should be fully completed and include a clear plan of action for EH to adopt/develop;
5. EH Duty Manager updates the RFEH with outcome/rationale and adds a Manager’s Decision.

Step Down from A & I – Short Child and Family Assessment, 28 days

1. (Optional) conversation from A & I worker with Early Help Duty about the referral/ threshold;
2. A & I Worker reassigns the RFEH document to the EH Duty Desktop;
3. Outcome 1 - Direct allocation of EH Worker without the need for a transfer meeting;
4. Outcome 2 – EH Duty Manager queries threshold; dispute resolution followed;
5. EH Duty Manager closes the RFEH with outcome/rationale and add a Manager’s Decision.

Step Down from IRT – duty contact

1. IRT duty reassign Contact record to EH Duty Desktop;
2. EH Duty contact family, explore issues/risks and either:
   • Closes the Contact with an outcome of advice given, signpost to another service, etc;
   • Agrees that an EH worker allocation is required, secures consent and adds a RFEH.
3. EH Duty Manager closes the RFEH with outcome/rationale, closes/reassigns Contact and adds a Manager’s Decision.

Step-Down from SGCP/DCT to Early Help TFS

1. (Optional) conversation from SGCP/CWDT worker with EH Duty about the referral/threshold;
2. SGCP/CWDT Worker reassigns the Request for Early Help (RFEH) document to the EH Duty Desktop;
3. Referral should include a meeting date, time and venue with notice of 5 working days;
4. RFEH should include a clear plan of action for EH to adopt/develop;
5. EH Duty Manager updates the RFEH with outcome/rationale and adds a Manager’s Decision.

• Recently opened cases transferring from another local authority providing they have a completed the following assessments as a minimum requirement - child in need single assessment, child in need plan, chronology and a genogram. A&I duty gather information required for CIN transfer and once all documentation is received forward to relevant S&CP team for action; the information is also included in the A&I transfer diary;
• Children subject to a child protection plan from other areas that are moving into Gateshead; a notification is sent to the Safeguarding Children’s Unit, who alert the relevant SGCP Team Manager of that particular transfer week. The SGCP Team Manager will then make contact with the relevant Local Authority to request the documentation, and will then make a decision on accepting the transfer once the documentation has been received;

• If families require ongoing services and they move permanently to another local authority a referral should be made to the authority’s equivalent Integrated Referral Team, outlining the needs which have been identified through the assessment and the social worker should follow the receiving Local Authority’s transfer policy;
• Social Worker to follow Closure Procedure (see below).

• When a child is placed with carers living in another Local Authority the allocated social worker must inform relevant Business Support. The notification letter (CF89 and 89a) is then completed and distributed via secure email to the local authority. A copy is also sent to Duty Fostering admin who maintain the register of all LAC within the borough and those placed outside;
• The letter is a standard notification only – any information about the child which the other authority needs to be aware of must be separately communicated, for example risk assessment information, child in need assessment or social work report as felt to be appropriate;

(see Appendix 1: Children Who Move – Subject to Child Protection Plans).

• Any change of address must be referred immediately to the Designated Administrator (Safeguarding Unit) who will send a standard notification to the other local authority‘s Designated Manager and Designated Administrator to which the child/children has/have temporarily moved. This does not include any specific information about the child or his/her protection plan. These must be separately communicated where required.

• Again, the designated Administrator will notify the new authority;
• Any discussions about transferring case responsibility must be initiated by the Social Worker/Team Manager, with reference to Local Safeguarding Children’s Partnership Procedures;
• Any negotiations about supervision of the child, dependent upon geography etc must be confirmed in writing.