National learning

The National Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel published the national review into the murders of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson. This review sets out recommendations and findings for national government and local safeguarding partners to protect children at risk of serious harm. It examines the circumstances leading up to the deaths of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson and considers whether their murders reflect wider national issues in child protection. (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2022)

In 2019 the government’s manifesto committed to reviewing the children’s social care system to make sure children and young people get the support they need. The review launched in March 2021 and it prioritised hearing the voices of children, young people and adults that have received the help or support of a social worker, or who have been looked after. The independent review of children’s social care was published in May 2022 and sets out recommendations for how the system can be improved, continuing to feed in a wide range of views, culminating in final recommendations and a report. (Department for Education, 2022).

The National Child Safeguarding Practice Review published The myth of invisible men. This review explores the circumstances of babies under one-year-old who have been harmed or killed by their fathers or other males in a caring role, and makes recommendations on ways to address the issue. (Child Safeguarding Review Panel, 2021).

The Department for Education has published a series of reports analysing the learning from serious case reviews that were published between 2003-2017. The most recent of these is Complexity and challenge: a triennial analysis of SCRs 2014 to 2017. (Department for Education, 2020).

The National Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel have published their first Annual Report 2018 to 2019, which analyses 538 rapid reviews received between July 2018 and December 2019. (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020a).

The National Panel have also committed to producing thematic reports, sharing the learning from rapid reviews about a particular topic. The first of these is about safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation. (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020b).