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Recommendations: 91 - 101 | 102
- 108
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This section brings together the recommendations that are to be
found in the Report. The way in which local authorities name committees
and officers can vary. For ease of reference, the recommendations
are expressed in the terms of the Local Authorities Personal Social
Services Act 1970. To the left of each recommendation is an indication
of the timescale for action:
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1 means the recommendation should be implemented within
three months.
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2 means the recommendation should be implemented within
six months.
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3 means the recommendation should be implemented within
two years.
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Of the 108 recommendations in this Report, 46 are under '1' and
a further 36 are under '2'. This means that some 82 of the recommendations
could be acted upon within six months.
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The paragraph numbers that follow the recommendations are cross-references
to the paragraphs in this Report in which they can be found.
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Recommendations: 91 - 101
| 102 - 108
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Recommendation 91 Save in exceptional circumstances, no
child is to be taken into police protection until he or she has
been seen and an assessment of his or her circumstances has been
undertaken. (paragraph 13.17)
Timescale for action 1 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 92 Chief constables must ensure that crimes
involving a child victim are dealt with promptly and efficiently,
and to the same standard as equivalent crimes against adults. (paragraph
13.24)
Timescale for action 1 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 93 Whenever a joint investigation by police
and social services is required into possible injury or harm to
a child, a manager from each agency should always be involved at
the referral stage, and in any further strategy discussion. (paragraph
13.52)
Timescale for action 1 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 94 In cases of serious crime against children,
supervisory officers must, from the beginning, take an active role
in ensuring that a proper investigation is carried out. (paragraph
13.55)
Timescale for action 1 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 95 The Association of Chief Police Officers
must produce and implement the standards-based service, as recommended
by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in the 1999 thematic
inspection report, Child Protection. (paragraph 13.66)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 96 Police forces must review their systems
for taking children into police protection and ensure they comply
with the Children Act 1989 and Home Office guidelines. In particular,
they must ensure that an independent officer of at least inspector
rank acts as the designated officer in all cases. (paragraph 13.68)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 97 Chief constables must ensure that the
investigation of crime against children is as important as the investigation
of any other form of serious crime. Any suggestion that child protection
policing is of a lower status than other forms of policing must
be eradicated. (paragraph 14.15)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 98 The guideline set out at paragraph 5.8
of Working Together must be strictly adhered to: whenever
social services receive a referral which may constitute a criminal
offence against a child, they must inform the police at the earliest
opportunity. (paragraph 14.46)
Timescale for action 1 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 99 The Working Together arrangements
must be amended to ensure the police carry out completely, and exclusively,
any criminal investigation elements in a case of suspected injury
or harm to a child, including the evidential interview with a child
victim. This will remove any confusion about which agency takes
the 'lead' or is responsible for certain actions. (paragraph 14.57)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 100 Training for child protection officers
must equip them with the confidence to question the views of professionals
in other agencies, including doctors, no matter how eminent those
professionals appear to be. (paragraph 14.73)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 101 The Home Office, through Her Majesty's
Inspectorate of Constabulary, must take a more active role in maintaining
high standards of child protection investigation by means of its
regular Basic Commands Unit and force inspections. In addition,
a follow-up to the Child Protection thematic inspection
of 1999 should be conducted. (paragraph 14.132)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendations: 91 - 101
| 102 - 108
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Recommendation 102 The Home Office, through Centrex and
the Association of Chief Police Officers, must devise and implement
a national training curriculum for child protection officers as
recommended in 1999 by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary
in its thematic inspection report, Child Protection. (paragraph
15.16)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 103 Chief constables must ensure that officers
working on child protection teams are sufficiently well trained
in criminal investigation, and that there is always a substantial
core of fully trained detective officers on each team to deal with
the most serious inquiries. (paragraph 15.24)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 104 The Police Information Technology Organisation
(PITO) should evaluate the child protection IT systems currently
available, and make recommendations to chief constables, who must
ensure their police force has in use an effective child-protection
database and IT management system. (paragraph 15.40)
Timescale for action 3 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 105 Chief constables must ensure that child
protection teams are fully integrated into the structure of their
forces and not disadvantaged in terms of accommodation, equipment
or resources. (paragraph 15.45)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 106 The Home Office must ensure that child
protection policing is included in the list of ministerial priorities
for the police. (paragraph 15.46)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 107 Chief constables and police authorities
must give child protection investigations a high priority in their
policing plans, thereby ensuring consistently high standards of
service by well-resourced, well-managed and well- motivated teams.
(paragraph 15.46)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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Recommendation 108 The Home Office, through Centrex, must
add specific training relating to child protection policing to the
syllabus for the strategic command course. This will ensure that
all future chief officers in the police service have adequate knowledge
and understanding of the roles of child protection teams. (paragraph
15.53)
Timescale for action 2 See table at top of page
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