Safeguarding Children Service (looked after children)

The Safeguarding Children Service is a multi agency service for looked after children.

It comprises of Independent Reviewing Officers (IRO's), Education Learning Mentors (ELM), Teaching assistants, and a Designated Nurse. The Designated Nurse and Education Learning Mentors promote the needs of looked after children, offering guidance, training and support on health and educational issues; acting as link agents between departments and authorities.

The responsibilities of the Independent Reviewing Officers (IRO) include:

• Ensuring that plans for looked after children are based on a detailed and informed assessment, are up to date, effective and provide a real and genuine response to each child's needs;
• Offering a safeguard to prevent any 'drift' in care planning for looked after children;
• Monitoring the activity of the Local Authority as a Corporate Parent in ensuring that care plans have given proper consideration and weight to children's wishes and feelings.

The IRO then has a crucial role in supporting Bexley's responsibilities as "Corporate Parent" for all the children they look after.

The IRO helps the child's voice to be heard so that they can be offered stable care that is sensitive to their personal needs, so that "Care" can be a positive experience enabling the child to flourish and achieve.