Voice of the Child

Child focussed work and ‘the voice of the child’ is central to good safeguarding practice. Children and young people must be continually involved in the safeguarding process and be given the opportunity to describe things from their point of view and there should always be evidence that their voice has influenced decisions made by practitioners. The meaningful involvement of children and young people in decision making, evaluation, planning and delivery leads to services that are effective in meeting their needs.   The ‘voice of the child’ means more than seeking their views, it involves them being continually involved in any assessment and plan by all agencies involved, not just CSC. Professionals should be able to evidence that the child’s voice has influenced the decisions that have been made. Practitioners should seek to understand the child’s lived experience, including their view of their situation.

When working with children and young people it is essential to gain a clear picture of their thoughts, wishes and feelings. This not only refers to what children say directly, but to many other aspects of their presentation. It means seeing their experiences from their point of view. It is good practice to ask the child or young person which practitioner they would like to gather this information from them. The right of a child to be heard is included in the UN Convention of Rights and the Children’s Act 2004 (as amended by the Children and Social Work Act 2017) emphasises the importance of speaking to a child as part of any assessment. The importance of speaking to a child or young person and gathering their views has been consistently highlighted in lessons learned from Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews. Child focussed work means that children feel listened to, plans are more successful when they are involved and prompt decisions are made about safeguarding when necessary.