Multi-agency safeguarding advice

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Safeguarding is Everyone’s Business
Safeguarding is everybody’s business and professionals should be aware of their responsibilities towards people who use services as well as colleagues.

The following provides the policies, procedures, guidance and training opportunities you need to help and protect adults at risk of abuse, neglect and self-neglect. 

Multi-agency Safeguarding advice for professionals 
Safeguarding adults means protecting the rights of an adult with care and support needs to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.

This involves two important elements:   

  • Preventing abuse and neglect:  Minimising opportunities for abuse and neglect should be a key priority for everyone who works adults with care and support needs.  This includes minimising the risk for people who self-neglect.            
  • Ending abuse wherever possible.  If someone is at risk or experiencing abuse then the multi-agency safeguarding adults policy and procedure should be followed to help and protect the person at risk. 

Everyone who work with adults with care and support needs has a responsibility to both work to prevent abuse and neglect and to take actions within these policy and procedures to end abuse wherever possible. For some this will involve speaking up and raising concerns with their managers, others may have a direct role in managing enquiries or putting in place measures to safeguard an individual. 

The Legislation 

The Care Act 2014 sets out a clear legal framework for how professionals should work together and with local communities to protect adults at risk of abuse or neglect. The Care Act sets out key requirements including: 

Conducting safeguarding enquiries
A safeguarding enquiry should be considered where an adult with care and support needs may be at risk of abuse or neglect . The purpose of an enquiry is to determine what, if any actions should be taken in the person's case and by whom. The local authority will either undertake these enquiries, or they will cause another organisation to do them.  

Enquiries may take forms, but the objectives of an enquiry are set out in the Care and Support Statutory Guidance to: 

  • Establish facts 
  • Understand the adult’s views and wishes 
  • Assess the needs of the adult for protection 
  • Support and identify services or support that will redress the concern 
  • Protect from the abuse and neglect, in accordance with the wishes of the adult 
  • Make decisions as to what follow-up action should be taken with regard to the person or organisation responsible for the abuse or neglect 
  • Enable the adult to achieve resolution and recovery 

A safeguarding enquiry should also consider the risk to others, and to take actions that safeguard others who may also be at risk: “action may need to be taken if others are or will be put at risk if nothing is done or where it is in the public interest to take action because a criminal offence has occurred.” 

Having a Voice / Making safeguarding Personal 
Safeguarding adults must be undertaken in a way that enables the adult at risk to make choices and have control about how they want to live. People need to be asked about what they want to achieve through the support being offered and be involved in decisions about their safety and wellbeing.

As part of the safeguarding process people are entitled to representation by a family member or an independent advocate if this is needed to enable them to participate in the way they would like. Advocacy Focus are the commissioned Independent Advocates for those within Trafford. Advocacy is supporting a person so that their voice can be heard. 

Advocacy Focus provide a service to help people understand their rights and express their views. They have created Easy Read booklets to help understand the help they can provide which includes: 

  • Independent Mental Health Advocacy 
  • Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy 
  • Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards 
  • Relevant Person's Representative 
  • Care Act Advocacy 
  • NHS & Social Care Complaints Advocacy 

Advice to help practitioners capture the views of adults as part of a safeguarding enquiry is set out under the Making Safeguarding Personal Guidance which can be found here 

What to do if you are worried about an adult
If you think that an adult is in immediate danger or if there is immediate threat to life such as someone is feeling suicidal, please call 999. 

If you are concerned about an adult who is experiencing, or at risk of abuse, neglect or harm, you can make a referral to the Trafford Safeguarding Hub:   AdultSafeguardinghub@trafford.gov.uk 

Making a Formal Adult Safeguarding Referral
If the adult is already known to ASC, the Safeguarding Hub will ensure the referral is logged and passed to the relevant neighbourhood team to be dealt with as soon as possible. You will receive an email acknowledging receipt of the referral.  

Information to help people in Trafford stay safe
Please help us to raise awareness about safeguarding adults by sharing our information videos. They provide information and advice about how to raise concerns if someone is experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect, and how to spot the signs of abuse or neglect.

  • Adult Safeguarding animation - developed by Portsmouth Safeguarding Adults Board to explain what adult safeguarding is and how to get help if you are worried that an adult at risk may be experiencing abuse or neglect.  
  • Tricky Friends animation- developed by Norfolk Safeguarding Adults Board to help people to understand what good friendships are, “Tricky Friends” is a short animation developed for people with learning disabilities, autism, or those who have cognitive difficulties to help people maintain safe friendships by recognising harm and exploitation.    

Useful links
The following national and local resources provide useful additional guidance about adult safeguarding:

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