What happens at a safeguarding meeting?

[confuddledDOTcom]

Not sure if this is the right place to stick this, but I'm sure the right person will read it wherever.

I don't want to go into detail here because things have become quite complicated and I'm finding it all very stressful. I'm just wondering what a safeguarding meeting is, what happens, if you get told that they're going to happen and anything else that's relevant?

Presumably concerns have been expressed about a child. It will be a social services organised meeting involving interested agencies (eg school, doctor, police - if relevant) and parents to discuss those concerns and agree if possible action or a solution.

It's difficult to explain this without saying more than I feel comfortable to (especially with certain people currently nosing around the site) so please bear with me. Someone has told me they've used their influence to find out that my HV and GP (a partner I've never met as I usually use the same day clinics and don't generally see the partners on those) have held one about my unborn baby, before half term - so over a month ago. It's supposed to have been a secret (hence this person using their influence to find out).

There has never been social workers or police involved in anything for anything. I feel this person is trying to scare me, my own conversations with the HV don't fit this story but she's now left the surgery (conveniently I wasn't told until after she left, although this person "knew" before hand) so I can't really check with her.

I'm trying to build a case against this person (not an official complaint case) so I need to understand what they're saying to me so they can't use things against me that I don't know enough about to argue.

I'm sorry if this doesn't make much sense, it's hard to explain without giving too much away.

Anyone able to help me out?

maybe focus more on building a case for you and why there is no reason for concern - rather than against someone else.

if there is no reason for anyone to be concerend then you have nothing to fear.

if there is "something" in your medical history or whatever then focus on how to show this is no longer or has never been a concern . get family / friends to vouch for you

I'm not trying to prove someone is a bad parent, not really an option with them. I think they keep lying to me about things but I don't have enough knowledge to challenge it whereas they do, I'm also not confident enough at the moment to speak to the GP etc that's supposed to be involved, partly I'm worried they'll say it's right that's happened (because I don't know the processes to know for sure it's not true) and partly because I don't want to cause trouble with this person either for them with the GP etc or with them and me. They're a professional but that's not the capacity I know them in them and they're telling me that they're using their influence with people to find things out. The case I'm trying to build against them is for me to be able to challenge that they're lying to me without them trying to say "I know more than you do"

As far as I know, from all the professionals I've spoken to in my time there isn't a concern for my medical history, my relationship with my children, whatever. My HV commented last time she saw me that seeing me is like having a lesson because I keep my knowledge more updated than she does and she doesn't have any concerns that I don't apply it.

As I said, this is so complicated and I don't want to go into too much detail on here, I just need to understand what's being told to me so I can work out the truth. Would a HV who has been to my house once, a GP (partner at my surgery, not a random) who's never met me and goodness knows who else hold a secret meeting and never even tell me the decisions they've come to? That's the crux of what I'm trying to work out and probably more important than explaining all the other stuff.

You don't give anyone anything like enough information to go on. Whose child is it? If not yours, you'll be entitled to no information about it.

If it's yours, you'll be intimately involved in the process.

So in answer to your final paragraph depends on whether the decision affects you. I'm confused.

Yes, it's my unborn baby. I believe this person is lying to me to scare me (I really can't explain more than that) they've told me they've used their influence (as a professional, which is not the capacity I know them) to talk to people and got this information from them. No professional has spoken to me about any concerns or told me that this meeting happened, it's been put to me like it's a big secret and I'm not supposed to know.

Are you aware of anything that might worry the LA?

Have you other children who have been the subject of LA investigations? Do you have a mental health condition, or do you have an addiction to drugs or alcohol?

Absent of any of the above, I don't think that you'd be on the radar of the LA.

Scary situation to be in whilst pregnant. I just wrote a long message wh has disappeared into cyberspace.

Parents/carers are ALWAYS invited to Safeguarding Meetings and if you wish you can take along other family or friends for support and/or a legal rep.

It sounds to me as tho' there might have been a Strategy Meeting wh permits professionals in social services, police, health [eg GP, HV, midwife, paeds, MH professionals] education etc involved with you , yr partner or other children to explore whether or NOT there are safeguarding concerns regarding yr unborn baby.And to offer help that would prevent or reduce risk eg mother & baby foster placement, etc Parents carers aren't invited to these sort of meetings.

Strategy Meetings do not have the authority to remove babies or institute care proceedings. If that is what you are worried about.

And as people have said above there are many reasons wh MIGHT cause concern and wh you will alredy be aware of even tho' you have no previous contact with social services or police.

Are you in Scotland by any chance? As I'm only saying what I know of the Children Act in England.

Likely to have x posted, sorry. Type very slowly.

No, none of those concerns no one involved before. I know what this person is trying to scare me over and the HV doesn't - when I've spoken to her - seem to agree. This person doesn't like something and is trying to make other people involved - with or without them, I think - to back themselves up. As I said it's complicated to explain. Of the people supposedly at this meeting only one knows me - the HV.

Supposedly I'm not taking my baby home, I'm 25 weeks on Monday and they've told me to expect her to come May (I always have them early) but no one has told me this apart from this sneaky inside information I'm not supposed to know.

If someone wants to take this to pm I'm happy to explain better privately because I know I sound awkward at the moment.

If I were you, I'd be taking this to the "professional"s employers. Ifni understand it, this person is trying to bully/intimidate you.

Yeah, I've considered that. I know who they work for up a couple of levels, as I said I don't know them in a professional capacity, I've known them since before they were a professional. I'm trying to be careful with them, if they were someone I knew as a professional doing this I'd give them a mouthful, call them out on the lies (even if I was as unsure about it as I am now, I'd blag it) and tell them where to go but the nature of things, with it being personal, makes it harder to do. If things go too far with this I will do, my HV has commented that this person can't leave their hat at work IYSWIM.

I can't really see how you are going to get any helpful advice when you are being so vague and non-specific.

Perhaps you should namechange, change details which identify you and come back on a different forum eg bullying

The advice I asked for is what happens for a safeguarding meeting, the rest I can deal with if I have that information. What the process is leading up to it, who's involved, what the outcomes are, etc.

I can't begin to imagine that if there had been a safeguarding meeting and the result is that you're not taking your baby home, you wouldn't have been told about it.

And given the good relationship with the HV and the fact there has never been any SS involvement it's certainly the case that this person is winding you up - but the only way you'll know for absolute sure is to bite the bullet and go and see that GP.

ConfuddledDOTcom You could get in touch with and or go and see your local children's social services and say :- I've heard via the grapevine, from a source who has instructed me not to reveal his or her identity, that there has been a "strategy meeting", or such like, relating to possible future harm to my yet to be born child. I would like to know if social services have any significant concerns following the strategy meeting, assuming my informant was correct and a meeting was actually held. I understand that you will not be able to tell me who informed social services that my child may be at risk of being harmed. Also that you will be unable to tell me what the predicted harm was, if in doing so it would make it fairly obvious who had predicted the harm. However, I would like to know what the predicted harm was, assuming you are able to tell me what it was. And, regardless of that, I would like to know if social services have any significant concerns which remain outstanding.

Hassled, that's what confused me, I'd probably have believed them (they're someone I've always known to be honest and get angry about other people lying) but I couldn't get my head around the idea of not knowing anything, that people are involved or that the baby isn't going home, until the day I go to take her when they say "actually..."

I'm worried if I say anything I risk causing trouble, for and with this person and almost that if I do say anything it's going to make them interested.

I didn't even say Beetlejuice this time

Was the link I sent you helpful?

You are being 'bullied and intimidated' you need to speak to the persons superiors....she sounds like she is a meglomaniac.

(probably the wrong word but power mad I mean)

Yes, thank you Collaborate. I'm installing my new laptop at the moment and kept it open so I could come back and thank you but did a restart so lost it and forgot It proves my theory I think that I'm being lied to, it all seems to be about working together which all this supposed secrecy isn't about.

I hope I didn't make your head explode, as I said in my OP it's rather complicated!

nickschick, it is something I'm considering but it's difficult because of the situation that I haven't gone into. It's certainly something I'm going to threaten the new HV with - if she speaks with the person about me I'm going to both of their superiors. If I can be sure the new HV isn't passing information on I can be in more control of what's being said to me IYSWIM. Old HV said before she left that this person will speak to the new HV, so from my POV I do need to get in first.

I don't think you should be so prescriptive as to tell the new HV she can't speak to the other person. Just mention your concerns, and maybe ask her for help in trying to reduce this person's influence in your life. Remember, the HV is there for you, not the other person.

The fact that this person has (alledgedly ) used their professional status to find things out about you- a person with whom they have no professional relationship with, and have then used this alleged information to scare threaten bully or intimidate you is a matter if concern to me and I imagine would also be of interest to their professional body.
Approach your gp tell him that person x has disclosed certain information to you
A - if it's true it's probably a breach of confidentiality
B- if it's not true it's probably evidence of professional misconduct.
she is in trouble either way.
He will more than likely tell you the truth and you can deal with the consequences.
If you have been subject to safeguarding then your legal rights need to be respected and proper processes followed and if it's lies well you need to give some thought as to what you do next.