Adult safeguarding for housing staff Elaine Cass

Overview  Film  Why safeguarding in housing?  About SCIE and its safeguarding products  The new guide: Safeguarding for Housing Staff  Key areas for improvement  Case studies

Safeguarding in housing: Why? Safeguarding is everybody’s business – the right thing to do Increasing public, political and media awareness of abuse Failures of housing providers to prevent murder, abuse and neglect of adults at risk, including those living in general needs housing Reputational risk Links with anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse, disability hate crime, health and well-being The Care Act 2014 To prevent abuse that could lead to increased need and vulnerability and further demands on services

Examples from serious case reviews Steven Hoskin, Cornwall  Support officers not seen as professional  Referrer asked to leave the safeguarding meeting Gemma Hayter, Warwickshire  Lack of oversight or clear coordination  No evidence of other health and social care agencies seeing housing as playing a key role Surrey County Council  Concern from the SCR panel that an individual could potentially have a serious mental health and forensic history and pose a threat to the community, but that housing might know little or nothing about this Adult A, Stockport  Stockport Housing’s input was not sufficiently complemented by other agencies  The effectiveness of information sharing was limited

Fives sources of knowledge KNOWLEDGE BASE FOR SOCIAL CARE Policy Organisational knowledge User and carer knowledge Practitioner knowledge Research

SCIE safeguarding work overview  Policy and procedures  Enabling risk, ensuring safety  Participation  Prevention strategies  Commissioning care homes  Mediation and family group conferences  Social Care TV films  Resources on minimising restraint  MCA resources  E-learning materials  Adult safeguarding for housing staff  Learning together

Other DH commissioned work  Self neglect  Legal guide  Financial abuse

The Care Act (2014): safeguarding and housing Professionals and other staff should: know about different types of abuse and neglect support people to keep safe know who to tell about suspected abuse or neglect support people to think about risk when exercising choice and control

The Care Act (2014): safeguarding and housing  Workers in housing need to be vigilant about adult safeguarding  Housing can undertake enquiries when requested  SABs expected to involve representatives of housing providers and housing support providers  All service providers, including housing and housing support providers, should have clear operational policies and procedures

Six safeguarding principles Empowerment Protection Prevention Proportionate responses Partnership Accountability They apply to all sectors and settings including housing providers They should inform the ways in which professionals and other staff work with people at risk of abuse or neglect Draft statutory guidance to the Care Act

Empowerment Raise awareness and educate people to protect themselves Empower people with information, advice and advocacy Avoid risk averse practice – losing independence, choice and control can have worse outcomes Reduce social isolation Practice relationship-based, person-centred working Recognise the central role of carers Ensure appropriate access to advocacy, or an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA) Minimise risk with the options least restrictive of the person’s rights and freedoms Consider the use of mediation and family group conferences

Proportionate responses  Person centred - what does the person want?  Mental capacity issues  Coercion or duress  Risk to others  Sharing information  Involving the police  Support for victims  Support for perpetrators  Mediation /family group conferences

Adult Safeguarding for Housing Staff Summary of key messages Housing staff are well placed to identify people at risk of abuse Joint working between housing and adult social care is essential SCRs highlight the need for housing to play a more effective role False perceptions about needing evidence or consent for safeguarding referrals Negative attitudes towards housing staff from social care No national agreement on the threshold for housing referrals Complex networks; housing providers may have to work with numerous local authorities in their area and vice versa Some housing providers have IT systems inadequate for ‘customer profiling’ to identify adults at risk of abuse

Housing: key areas for improvement Better joint working, information sharing and communication Better links with public protection forums (safeguarding boards, MARACs, MAPPAs, Health and Wellbeing Boards and Community Safety partnerships). Common understandings – shared language, training and policy development Clarity and understanding of the law relating to information sharing, confidentiality, data protection and human rights. Joint work to resolve issues where the individual may not be eligible for social care support, people who refuse support and those who self- neglect.

Housing: key areas for improvement cont… Training and awareness raising Training all front line housing staff and contractors Better understanding of the Mental Capacity Act Common understandings of language and definitions regarding vulnerability and safeguarding Recognition of the role of housing staff in safeguarding Inclusion of housing staff in strategy meetings and investigations / enquiries Keeping referrers informed Preventing abuse Empowering people with care and support needs, through education about abuse, to better enable them to protect themselves Support for perpetrators of anti-social behaviour to reduce behaviours Support for carers

Sharing information All staff should understand their responsibilities in relation to sharing important safeguarding information: the duty of confidentiality the Data Protection Act 1998 the Human Rights Act 1998 the Mental Capacity Act 2005

Respecting people’s wishes If a person refuses intervention and has the mental capacity to do so, their wishes should be respected unless: other people are at risk the alleged perpetrator has care and support needs and may also be at risk a crime has been committed staff are implicated coercion is involved

Sharing information: The Data Protection Act Any personal information should be shared on the basis that it is: necessary for the purpose for which it is being shared shared only with those who have a need for it accurate and up to date shared securely and in a timely fashion not kept for longer than necessary for the original purpose

Sharing information: confidentiality Don’t give assurances about absolute confidentiality Try to gain consent to share information as necessary Consider the person’s mental capacity to consent Make sure that others are not put at risk by information being kept confidential – is there a wider public interest, could your action prevent a crime? Don’t put management or organisational interests before safety Share information on a ‘need to know’ basis Record decision making about information that is shared

Human Rights  Individuals have a right to respect for their private life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.  This is not an absolute right and, as long as it is necessary and in accordance with the law, it can be interfered with.  This means that the any interference must be justified and for a particular purpose “for example, protection of a person’s health, prevention of crime, protection of the rights and freedoms of others.” (Mandelstam, 2011)

Conclusions  Safeguarding adults is an important area of practice for housing staff  SCIE resources can support good safeguarding practice  Good communication, joint working and information sharing are vital  We need to find the right balance between the right to confidentiality and privacy and the need to share safeguarding information

Social Care Institute for Excellence