Managing Professional Differences Policy

At no time must professional disagreement detract from ensuring that the child is safeguarded. The child's welfare and safety must remain paramount throughout.

This procedure identifies a non-exhaustive list of potential areas of professional differences, and guidance to follow in the event that professional differences cannot be resolved through discussion and negotiation between professionals at front line level. It does not include procedures when there is a disagreement regarding the need to convene an Initial Child Protection Conference or the implementation of the Child Protection Plan.

• A referral not considered to meet the threshold for assessment by Children's social care;
• Children's social care conclude that further information should be sought by the referrer before a referral is progressed;
• That the child protection procedures should/should not be invoked;
• Difference of opinion on the need for a child protection enquiry;
• The sharing/not sharing of information and/or provision or services;
• The outcome of any assessment and whether the appropriate action plan is in place to safeguard and promote the wellbeing of the child.

Most professional differences can be resolved through discussion and negotiation.

Within a meeting setting, an agenda item should be set to allow the opportunity for any professional to raise their professional differences, with those present and to provide an opportunity for those attending to consider the matter and reach a resolution or record the differences.

Outside of a meeting setting, professionals involved should attempt to resolve differences through discussion within one working day.

If a resolution is not reached and professional differences remain, this must be reported by the individual to their agency team manager, front line manager or equivalent.

With respect to most day-to-day issues, the relevant agency team manager, front line manager or equivalent, should be able to resolve the professional differences. This contact should take place within one working day. The purpose of this contact is to review the available information and to resolve the differences.

It may be helpful to consider the involvement of the individual agencies' safeguarding lead at this stage.

Any action agreed should be fed back immediately to the relevant managers involved and the detail of the professional differences and agreements reached should be recorded on the child's file.

Where it is not possible to resolve the matter at front line management level, the matter should be referred without delay to the agency service manager / operations manager or equivalent management level. This should be addressed by the manager, at the most within three working days. It must however be recognised that the prevailing circumstances may mean the issue need to be addressed in a more timely manner.

The issue will then be considered at this higher management level with direct communication taking place with the individual agency safeguarding lead with the aim of resolving the professional differences and reaching agreement.

Where it has not been possible to resolve at Stage 2, and the professional differences remain, the matter will be referred to the appropriate agency strategic manager, head of service or equivalent management level, who will consider the matter.

The purpose of escalating the professional differences to this level is to reach a position where differing professional opinions have been taken into account and efforts made to explore whether the differences have arisen through lack of clarification or understanding in the professional dialogue. Ultimately a decision at this level will need to be reached where agencies agree a way forward and where the child's safety, wellbeing and best interests are paramount.

This should be addressed within five working days of receiving the information. There may be some circumstances where this needs to be addressed in a more timely manner.

In the unlikely event that the professional differences remain unresolved and the stages have been previously followed, the matter must be referred to the DSCP agency representative, who will determine a course of action including reporting the matter to the DSCP Chair.

In all cases where it has not been possible to resolve differences and/or where there may be lessons to be learned for future practice, consideration should be given to holding a multi-agency case review.

At any stage of the process, any action agreed should be fed back immediately to the management staff involved and the detail of the professional differences and agreements reached should be recorded on the child's file. Records of meetings at all stages must be documented. They should be clear, accurate and recorded in a timely manner.

All professional differences should be resolved in a timely way so that the safety and wellbeing of the child remain paramount. In some situations, there may be a need to initiate all stages within a short period of time or to escalate the process so that the safety of the child is not compromised.

Managing Professional Differences Flowchart