Assessments and Referrals Guidance
If staff have concerns about a child’s welfare, they should act on them immediately by following their school or setting’s child protection policy and speaking to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
If a child is in immediate danger, contact the emergency services using 999.
Designated Safeguarding Leads should access the Kent Support Level Guidance from the Kent Safeguarding Children Multi-agency Partnership (KSCMP) to assess the levels of need and intervention required.
If you assess that a child/family requires intensive or specialist support, you will need to make a referral through the ‘Front Door’. For more information and to access the Online Portal see the Kent Safeguarding Children Multi-agency Partnership website.
If you assess that a family’s needs sit below level 3 and 4, but you would have previously considered completing an Early Help Notification, you may still wish to contact your local Early Help Team for advice about the most appropriate type of support available within the community at Support Levels 1 and 2.
DSLs should ensure that all concerns, discussions, decisions and justifications are recorded in writing.