On Wednesday 24 June, 12:00pm to 1:00pm, we hosted a webinar to consider the data, themes and learning emerging from serious safeguarding incidents notified to the Panel between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025.
Sir David Holmes CBE, Panel Chair, was joined by Panel Members, Codrutza Oros-Marsh and Jacqui Belfield Smith MBE to share the findings.
Approximately 239 practitioners attended the webinar, which generated over 100 questions and comments in the online forum. Participants were encouraged to continue discussions through the online forum, share resources and examples of good practice, and suggest topics for future webinars.
The discussion focused on themes highlighted in the annual report, including babies and adolescents, young parents, suicide, online harms, information sharing and wider system pressures. A summary has been included below:
Participants emphasised the importance of maintaining a strong focus on babies and very young children within safeguarding work, highlighting concerns that this group can sometimes lose visibility. Safe sleeping practices and early intervention remained key priorities. There was also significant discussion about the need to strengthen support for parents, particularly those who have previously had children removed from their care. Participants advocated for relational, strengths-based approaches during pre-birth work and further development of models such as the Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC). Concerns were raised about reductions in early help services, including health visiting provision, and the potential impact on families.
Challenges around consent and information sharing were also discussed, particularly where consent requirements may hinder effective multi-agency working below safeguarding thresholds. Concerns about suicide and mental health support focused on links with safeguarding, long waiting times for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), and the need for stronger collaboration with public health partners. Participants also highlighted growing risks associated with online harms, including links to serious violence, difficulties in assessing online risk, and the reliance on parents and carers to manage children’s digital activity. More broadly, discussions reflected concerns about pressures on frontline services, workforce capacity, policy and funding constraints, and the importance of understanding the wider system factors that can affect the ability to improve practice.