Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 July 2017
710. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the details of the signs of safety strategy for child protection that Tusla has been preparing to implement; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32294/17]
View answerThe Child Protection and Welfare Strategy (CPWS) developed by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency is a 3-5 year strategic plan that lies at the heart of a significant transformation to improve organisational, cultural and operational matters. As part of the CPWS, Tusla has selected the Signs of Safety as its national approach to practice. The Signs of Safety is an innovative, strengths-based, safety-organised approach to child protection casework, grounded in partnership and collaboration with children, families and their wider networks of support.
The Signs of Safety reflects best practice which is underpinned by ‘Children First’. Children and families will be at the centre of assessment and decision-making and the approach will be strengths-based, evidence-based and outcome-focused.
Central to the Signs of Safety approach is a risk assessment and case planning format that is meaningful for professionals as well as the parents and children. The Signs of Safety risk assessment process is characterised by:
- The integration of professional knowledge with local family and cultural knowledge, and the balancing of a rigorous exploration of danger or harm alongside indicators of strengths and safety.
- A format that offers a simple yet rigorous assessment format that the practitioner can use to elicit, in common language, the professional’s and family members’ views regarding concerns or dangers, existing strengths, safety and envisioned safety.
- A framework that integrates risk assessment with case planning and risk management by incorporating a future focus within the assessment.
A comprehensive overview of Signs of Safety is available on the Tusla website.
