The Norfolk Safeguarding Adults Board is reviewing its quality assurance and development programme and is seeking views from its partners to contribute to that piece of work.

The Voluntary and Community Sector in Norfolk has two people on the Norfolk Safeguarding Adults Board (James Kearns – The BUILD Charity, and Ben Reed – Equal Lives) who provide a sector perspective to other partners including Norfolk County Council, the NHS, UEA, Prison Service, DWP, and Police.  Both are keen to make sure the voice of the sector is heard in this development.

Colleagues are asked to take a few moments to consider 4 questions posed by the Chair of the Board, which will help shape discussions in September about the future role and resources for the Board and its operational teams.

Responses are required no later than 15^th July to james.kearns@buildcharity.co.uk so that they can be shared with the Norfolk Safeguarding Adults Board.  Please remember not to make references to specific names, or incidents, in your responses.

1. From your organisation’s available data and experiences; how has the safeguarding landscape changed during the pandemic?

• Are there significant changes in the types of safeguarding concerns that you are addressing – and does this appear to be because of the circumstances of the pandemic or because of system pressures?
• How have you managed to maintain Making Safeguarding Personal during the pandemic?

2. How has your organisation mitigated any risks or gaps brought about by the pandemic?

• Are you confident that safeguarding arrangements within your organisation remain robust and effective? How are you confident of this view?
• Have you changed any systems, process, or practical ways of working that have impacted upon safeguarding?
• Have you any specific risks, gaps remaining that may impact upon safeguarding people at risk?

3. What learning has been identified during the pandemic (as a single organisation and as a partnership)?

• Please identify good practice which would be useful for NSAB partners to learn from and areas to develop.

4. Thinking forward, what are the key safeguarding issues as a single organisation and as a partnership to focus on?

• In the case of the partnership, please provide supporting data to support that it merits collective focus and attention.

Click here for a “headline” of issues discussed at the NSAB on 10^th May 2022 for colleagues in the Norfolk VCSE sector by one of the VCSE Sector colleagues, James Kearns, (Chief Executive of The BUILD Charity) who was in attendance as a Board Member.