2015 No. 1357 (W. 131)

Social Care, Wales

The Safeguarding Boards (General) (Wales) Regulations 2015

Made

Laid before the National Assembly for Wales

Coming into force

The Welsh Ministers, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 134(1) and (3) and 136 (3)of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, and after consulting the Safeguarding Board partners for an area in accordance with section 134(3)of that Act 1, make the following Regulations:

Title, Commencement and Application1

1

The title of these Regulations is the Safeguarding Boards (General) (Wales) Regulations 2015.

2

These Regulations come into force on 6 April 2016.

3

These Regulations apply in relation to Wales.

Interpretation2

In these Regulations—

  • “the Act” (“y Ddeddf”) means the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014;

  • “annual plan” (“cynllun blynyddol”) means the plan published by a Safeguarding Board under section 136(1) of the Act;

  • “annual report” means (“adroddiad blynyddol”) the report published by a Safeguarding Board under section 136(2) of the Act;

  • “National Board” (“Bwrdd Cenedlaethol”) means the National Independent Safeguarding Board established by section 132(1) of the Act;

  • “principal local government area” (“prif ardal llywodraeth leol”) means a principal local government area as set out in Parts I and II of Schedule 4 to the Local Government Act 1972;

  • “Safeguarding Board” (“Bwrdd Diogelu”) means a Safeguarding Children Board2 or a Safeguarding Adults Board3;

  • “Safeguarding Board partner” (“partner Bwrdd Diogelu”) is to be construed in accordance with section 134(2) and section 134(6)(b) of the Act.

Safeguarding Board Areas3

The areas in Wales for which there are to be Safeguarding Boards are the principal local government areas set out in column 2 of the table set out in Schedule 1, designated by the name opposite in column 1.

Lead Partners4

1

The Welsh Ministers specify the Safeguarding Board partner shown in column 2 of the table set out in Schedule 2 as the lead partner in relation to children for the area shown opposite in column 1.

2

The Welsh Ministers specify the Safeguarding Board partner shown in column 3 of the table set out in Schedule 2 as the lead partner in relation to adults for the area shown opposite in column 1.

Annual plans5

A Safeguarding Board’s annual plan must include the following information —

a

a list of the members of the Safeguarding Board;

b

any particular outcomes the Safeguarding Board proposes to achieve;

c

a summary of any improvement the Safeguarding Board proposes to make to enable it better to fulfil its objectives;

d

the amount of expenditure which the Safeguarding Board partners agree the Safeguarding Board is likely to incur in order to achieve its objectives;

e

a description of how the Safeguarding Board proposes to collaborate with other persons or bodies engaged in activities relating to its objectives;

f

when and how the Safeguarding Board will give children and adults who are, or may be, affected by the exercise of its functions, the opportunity to participate in its work.

Annual reports6

1

A Safeguarding Board’s annual report must include the information set out in Schedule 3

2

As far as practicable the report is to follow the form of the Safeguarding Board‘s most recent annual plan.

Publication of annual plans and annual reports7

A Safeguarding Board must—

a

make its current annual plan and annual report publicly available,

b

make available on request a copy of any of its past annual plans and annual reports,

c

send its current annual plan and annual report to the National Board.

Mark DrakefordMinister for Health and Social Services, one of the Welsh Ministers

SCHEDULE 1Safeguarding Board Areas

Regulation 3

Name of Safeguarding Board area

Extent of Safeguarding Board Area

Cardiff and Vale

principal local government areas of —

  • Cardiff City and County Council and

  • Vale of Glamorgan Council;

Cwm Taf

principal local government areas of —

  • Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council and

  • Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council;

Gwent

principal local government areas of —

  • Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council,

  • Caerphilly County Borough Council,

  • Monmouthshire County Council,

  • Newport City Council, and

  • Torfaen County Borough Council;

Mid and West Wales

principal local government areas of—

  • Carmarthenshire County Council,

  • Ceredigion County Council,

  • Pembrokeshire County Council and

  • Powys County Council;

North Wales

principal local government areas of—

  • Conwy County Borough Council,

  • Denbighshire County Council,

  • Flintshire County Council,

  • Gwynedd County Council,

  • Isle of Anglesey County Council, and

  • Wrexham County Borough Council;

Western Bay

principal local government areas of —

  • Bridgend County Borough Council,

  • Swansea City and County Council

  • Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council;

SCHEDULE 2Lead Partners

Regulation 4

Safeguarding Board Area

Lead partner in relation to children for the area

Lead partner in relation to adults for the area

Cardiff and Vale

Vale of Glamorgan Council

Cardiff City and County Council

Cwm Taf

Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council

Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council

Gwent

Caerphilly County Borough Council

Caerphilly County Borough Council

Mid and West Wales

Pembrokeshire County Council

Carmarthenshire County Council

North Wales

Conwy County Borough Council

Conwy County Borough Council

Western Bay

Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council

Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council

SCHEDULE 3Content of Annual Report

Regulation 6(1)

A Safeguarding Board’s annual report must include the following information.—

a

a list of the members of the Safeguarding Board;

b

action the Safeguarding Board has taken to achieve particular outcomes;

c

the extent to which the Safeguarding Board has implemented its most recent annual plan, with particulars of how far any specific proposed improvements were implemented;

d

how the Safeguarding Board has collaborated with other persons or bodies engaged in activities relating to the board’s objectives;

e

any requests the Safeguarding Board has made to qualifying persons under section 137(1) for specified information, and whether the requests were complied with;

f

achievements the Safeguarding Board made during the year;

g

the extent to which each member of the Safeguarding Board contributed to the Board’s effectiveness;

h

an assessment of how the Safeguarding Board used its resources in exercising its functions or achieving its outcomes;

i

any underlying themes in the way the Safeguarding Board exercised its functions, as shown by an analysis of cases it has dealt with, and any changes it has put into practice as a result;

j

when and how children or adults exercised an opportunity to participate in the Safeguarding Board’s work and how this contributed to the Board achieving its outcomes;

k

the number of adult protection and support orders which were applied for in the Safeguarding Board area, how many were made, and how effective they were;

l

any information or learning the Safeguarding Board has disseminated, or training it has recommended or provided;

m

how the Safeguarding Board has implemented any guidance or advice given by the Welsh Ministers or by the National Board;

n

other matters relevant to the work of the Safeguarding Board.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations relate to Safeguarding Children Boards established under section 134(4) of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (“the Act”) and Safeguarding Adults Boards established under section 134(5) of the Act. In these Regulations Safeguarding Children Boards and Safeguarding Adults Boards are referred to collectively as “Safeguarding Boards”.

Regulation 3 and Schedule 1 set out the areas for which there are to be Safeguarding Boards.

Regulation 4 provides that the lead partners for children in the area are set out in Schedule 2 column 2 and the lead partners for adults in the area are set out in Schedule 2 column 3. Section 134(4) requires the lead partner in relation to children to establish a Safeguarding Children Board and section 134(5) requires the lead partner for adults to establish a Safeguarding Adults Boards for their respective Safeguarding Board area.

Regulation 5 sets out the information to be included in the annual plan published by Safeguarding Boards under section 136(1) of the Act.

Regulation 6 and Schedule 3 set out the information to be included in the annual report published by Safeguarding Boards under section 136(2) of the Act.

Regulation 7 provides for copies of the annual plan and annual report to be made available to the public and to the National Independent Safeguarding Board.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result a Regulatory Impact Assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the Social Services and Integration Directorate, Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ.